Monday, 29 July 2024
Team GB win eventing gold at Paris 2024, while Laura Collett takes individual bronze
Ros Canter, Laura Collett and Tom McEwen have defended Great Britain’s eventing team title from Tokyo 2020 and, in doing so, given Team GB their first gold medal of Paris 2024. This marks a record-breaking fifth team title for Great Britain. Laura Collett and London 52 also took individual bronze following two tense rounds of showjumping.
The day began, bright and sunny, with the second horse inspection. All four of our horses looked the picture of health following the exertions of the day before, which is a credit to the hard work of grooms Sarah Charnley (Lordships Graffalo), Tilly Hughes (London 52), Adam Short (JL Dublin) and Alison Bell (Banzai du Loir), supported by the equine practitioner team of team vet Liz Brown, equine physio Vicky Spalding and farrier Greig Elliott. They were passed by the ground jury and declared fit to compete.
Due to the Olympic ruling that only one set of medals can be awarded for each sporting event, the Games is an anomaly in the eventing world in that it requires two rounds of showjumping on the final day. All combinations still in the competition ride the first round, which decides the final team standings. Any penalties gained are added to their individual score, then the top 25 continue on to the second round – which uses a shorter course – to allocate the individual medals.
Team GB entered the final phase in gold medal position, but with only one fence in hand over second-placed France. The course designer duo of Santiago Varela and Gregory Bodo had produced a beautiful course that featured plenty of nods to French culture and the picturesque setting of Chateau de Versailles, which featured 13 obstacles comprising of 16 jumping efforts in the first round.
Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo
After those not riding in the team competition had jumped, it was down to business with the 16 nations vying for medals. They ran in reverse order of merit, meaning that the first British combination into the packed stadium was Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo. The pair were further down the rankings than many expected to see them due to picking up a rather contentious 15 penalties on cross-country day for missing a flag. However, there is no better person than Ros to put that disappointment behind her and focus on securing a good result for the team.
She and ‘Walter’, who’s owned by Archie and Michele Saul, made the 1.25m track –which had been causing problems for many, including the first of the French riders, who’d had two down and granted Team GB a little more breathing space – look almost easy. The lively crowd, who had been vocal in their support all day, cheered as they completed the tricky treble across the middle of the stadium, which just stole Walter’s concentration for a fraction of a second – enough to tap fence six and knock it down. The rest the course was expertly done and they crossed the line comfortably inside the 80-second time allowed for a new score of 42.4. Team GB now sat on 86.5, while the French were a little further adrift on 95.2 – although there was still little room for error.
“Team orders are always to go for the clear round and do the best we could for fast and clear, so, that’s what I tried to do today,” said Ros afterwards. “I didn’t pull it off. I think in trying to be quick I just cut the corner. He has a bit of a right drift and I just didn’t manage it round that one corner, but the rest of it I’m absolutely delighted with.
“I think the atmosphere is quite unlike anything I’ve ever ridden in – the crowd and the French crowd are obviously extremely noisy and it’s like a pressure pit in there. The poles are beautiful to look at, but they’re really hard to see when you’re in there! I think it all blends into the background quite a lot and it plays with your eyesight a little bit. I found it hard to ride very well.
“I’m very lucky, though – Lordships Graffalo is in his element down there and he didn’t really get too affected, so it was all down to me to pilot him as best I could. It was hard work and nerve-wracking. I don’t think I breathed the whole way round, but I’m mightily relieved to have jumped that last fence and become an Olympian.
“The whole support team this week has just been phenomenal. The support I had yesterday evening, everybody has been so kind. Whatever happens today, I know we’ll hold our heads high and be very proud of each other.
“I had a very clear plan of how I wanted to be mentally coming into the showjumping course and I think I achieved that, so I’m delighted with that.”
The topic of the past 24 hours has been the ground jury’s decision to sustain the 15 penalties given to the pair on cross-country day, despite a review process that went well into yesterday evening.
“Yesterday carried on a lot longer than it should,” said Ros. “It would have been lovely to have had a bit of time to celebrate and enjoy what happened yesterday and, so far, I haven’t been able to do that. It’s a little bit of a bitter taste at the moment, I have to say, and I feel unbelievably sorry for Lordships Graffalo – he deserves this more than I do and I’ve found the whole thing quite a hard pill to swallow, but we know we’ve got the best cross-country horse in the world and he gave everybody a stellar performance yesterday. I hope everyone enjoyed watching him as much as I get the pleasure of riding him.
Tom McEwen and JL Dublin
Tom McEwen and JL Dublin entered the cauldron next. Both Tom and ‘Dubs’ hold an affection and affinity for the showjumping phase, so it was hoped that they’d be able to capitalise on this to not only further strengthen the Team GB campaign, but also to put themselves in a strong position for the individual final, given that they were sitting in overnight sixth.
James and Jo Lambert and Deirdre Johnston’s gelding looked to be in his element as he made his way round the course. They never looked in danger of touching a pole, although Tom did have to offer some vocal encouragement down the final line. They stopped the clock with seconds to spare, adding nothing to both their own score and the team total.
“It felt incredible,” said a delighted Tom. “I’ve had an Olympic partner in Toledo, who’s probably one of the best horses in the world at showjumping and eventing, so to then come out on a day like that today with Dubs… he was sensational. He was class from start to finish and he jumped his socks off. I knew it from the moment he warmed up –he heard the crowd and he really picked up. Following the French and the noise after that, I knew he just thought it was for him – he doesn’t care there was someone else in the ring. He just completely picked up, I did a flying change, his head went between his legs and I was like ‘right, he’s feeling it’. I just knew I had to navigate and do the best I could to help him get the clear.
“It's a fantastic course, really clever. It’s the same as yesterday’s cross-country course, actually, because it really opens you up to begin with, then there’s the short line at the end, which is clearly catching people out. It’s a great Olympic course, although it’s longer than I was expecting.
“I don’t get nervous, I don’t know why. I could do this all day, every day. I’m not very good when the pressure is off, to be honest. A lovely sunny day in Paris with packed stands and people absolutely loving it and a lot of Union Jacks – what is there not to like? And a very nice pony. An incredible pony. He’s shown it before with Nicola at a championship and he performs on the big stage.”
Laura Collett and London 52
It had already been some week for Laura Collett and London 52. They’d broken the Olympic dressage record on Saturday and finished just two seconds over the optimum time on yesterday's cross-country round – only slowed down by the fact that ‘Dan’ lost a shoe at fence 12, meaning Laura had to ease off the accelerator. The resulting 0.8 time penalties had knocked them into second place overnight, but a pole down earlier in the day for cross-country leader Michael Jung of Germany meant they began their showjumping round back in pole position.
The buffer given by yet another four penalties on the French scorecard meant that Laura had the option not to chase the clock, which she used to her advantage to get the gelding – who she co-owns with Karen Bartlett and Keith Scott – in the right place to jump the fences with style and relative ease. With all the poles still in the cups when they cleared the fourth from home, the team gold medal was in the bag and they looked set to retain their lead. However, the boisterous crowd started celebrating a little too early as they approached the last and the momentary lapse in concentration caused Dan to just brush the last and have it down. That, combined with two time penalties, put them down into individual third on 23.1 – but the team gold would remain in British hands.
“Obviously, we would’ve liked a little bit more leeway,” said Laura. “But we’re sat on very good jumpers and we’re such a team that we just knew that if we stayed calm and went through the process and rode every stride, then we’d be alright. So, it’s thanks to the horses that we can stay calm. You’re just trying to think about each jump as it comes and not think about what’s at stake.
“I’m on top of the world. Riding into that stadium was an experience that I don’t think I’ll ever have again, it was spine-tingling. I’ve said it a million times and I can’t say it enough – I owe everything to him [London 52]. He is my horse of a lifetime and I’m so, so proud of him. He’s right at home with the palace in the background and however many thousands of people are here. He’s waited three years for a full stadium – he was a bit disappointed in Tokyo. Just riding into the arena, with all the people… the noise was unreal. Luckily, it didn’t distract him at all, he’s a true professional and he rose to the occasion. I think he knew what was at stake and I wouldn’t have wanted to be sat on anything else.
“We knew coming here that we stood a good chance, with the horsepower that Team GB has – the talent is second to none. They could’ve fielded a whole second team with the reserves and they could’ve gone and won a gold medal, so the pressure was on, but luckily we all managed to deliver.
“I just want every child out there to realise that you can never dream too big. I definitely never realistically dreamt I could go to an Olympic Games, let alone go to two, and come back with two team gold medals. So, keep dreaming.”
Although delighted by the result, the squad had little time for celebrations – the job was only half done, with only an hour’s break and a new course to walk before the individual final. All three had qualified by merit of finishing in the top 25 – Ros and Walter in 23rd, Tom and Dubs in fourth, and Laura and Dan in third – and the field would run in reverse order of merit.
Ros and Walter were in first and produced another beautiful clear round to end their Olympic campaign on a high. There was then a long wait before Tom and Laura would compete, during which time the field saw plenty of shifts due to falling poles and extra seconds on the clock.
Tom and Dubs were just four penalties behind the leaders, meaning a clear round would be essential if they wanted to apply pressure on those ahead of them. Again, they set out with great determination. There were a few heart-stopping moments when they rattled fence six and Tom had to loudly ‘woah’ an excitable Dubs in the treble, but they crossed the line with nothing to add, the highest-placed combination to finish on their dressage score and guaranteed fourth.
Immediately after them came Laura and Dan. Only a clear round would keep them on the podium and the pressure had never been higher. Luckily, Laura is a master at keeping a cool head and she expertly piloted her gelding around the course for a foot-perfect clear round. A medal was secured, but it was now a question of what colour it would be.
As it turns out, that colour was bronze. Both Australia’s Chris Burton and Shadow Man, and Germany’s Michael Jung and Chipmunk FRH produced clear rounds to finish in silver and gold medal position respectively, making Michael the first rider in history to secure three individual Olympic titles.
"I never thought this day would come," said a visibly emotional Laura after her round. "I owe absolutely everything to that horse and the team that have made it possible just to get here. I am so lucky to be the one that gets to ride into an arena like that and come out with a team gold and an individual bronze medal at the Olympics, but there are so many people that have contributed and I just want to say thank you to every single one of them.
"I thought Tokyo was special, but this has blown it out the water. To ride into a crowd like this and feel like every single person is willing you on and lifting you higher and higher... Dan definitely felt like that. I don’t think he’s ever tried so hard. This is him. This is all him. I am just the lucky one that has to steer him and make sure we aim at the right jumps, but it’s just a day I’ll never ever forget.
"It’s so many years of hard work and blood, sweat and tears – emotional rollercoaster doesn’t even do it justice – but, in moments like this, every single bad day is so worth it. You just have to never give up and lose hope, and you can never dream too big."
And so came the end of what’s been a very successful few days for British eventing. The team result also meant a podium placing for the home side, who picked up silver, and a historic bronze medal for Japan – a first in eventing and their first equestrian medal in any discipline since 1932.
The individual podium was equally noteworthy – a first Olympic individual medal for history-makers Laura Collett and London 52, vindication for Chris Burton after only teaming up with his mount earlier this year, and another medal to add to the collection of a rider who’s considered to be one of the best the sport has ever seen.
Tom McEwen and JL Dublin finished agonisingly close to the podium in fourth place, while Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo slotted into 21st place.