Did you manage to get any sleep knowing this is the final day? "Absolutely! Slight lie-in was followed by dragging myself stiffly out of bed. Sarah very enjoyable physio effort last night certainly helped me be less of a robot, but it still took a short while to loosen up!" Has she worked on you today too? "Yes. When I got to the yard she treated both Bug and myself again, and then left me with electrodes pulsating on my achey back for so long that I fell asleep! Sarah's great efforts certainly helped me ride better in the show jumping so I am very grateful!"
Did you have a lot of time to kill? "Not really! I then dashed back to change for the final trot up at 4pm (in my baggy whites and silvers again). Bug trotted up extremelly well as did all the Italian team which was great!" Not everyone sailed through though. Australia and America looked like they were having some nervous moments, although all the horses jumped very well in the end, so the ground jury had made the right decision in passing them."
And then I guess you had to prepare for the show-jumping straight away? "Yes. I changed into the minimum amount of my SJ kit so as not to melt whilst walking the course at 6. The ring looked stunning with so many floral and vegetation adornements and even water features that I wondered whether Bug would mistake it for more XC! I also found myself distracted from coursewalking by all the eye-catching martial arts displays going on around the ring!"
What did Bug think of it all? "Our first round was for the team result, I did a careful warm up to not let the heat take anything out of him and entered the stadium's electric atmosphere with Bug's flashiest trot. The crowd were still clapping the previous rider so that really lifted Bug. I took advantage of his attetion-seeking show-off characteristics!" Well it obviously had the desired effect because he round looked fantastic! "As we jumped the first I just knew we had got the rhythm and everything else right, leading to the most exhilirating clear I have ever had. We even did a really tight turn to an arrow-head to save valuable seconds as the time was very tight. He just flew round in his springy style! Everyone cheered lots and Bug got lots of hugs and pats! I then realised I would have to jump again as one of the top 25 for the individual placings!" Well done you!
What about the rest of your team? "Fabio jumped a great clear too and Stefano had one down, however Susanna and Roberto unfortunately had a less gleeful time dropping the team to 6th. This was a shame, but we knew both horses would struggle with this phase. Roberto showed huge improvement jumping brilliantly most of the way round, but it all went pear-shaped following a stop that proved very expensive for time faults particularly."
How did the second round go? "Bug's second round was good too, but I think we both had rather given our all in the first so I found it hard to get the same rhythm on a more open galloping course and we just touched two poles that came down. My preparation was also not helped by the stewards leading me to believe I was due in the ring much sooner than I was!" You completed on an excellent score though and best of the Italians. "Yes. We finished 16th! Overall, a great for a first attempt and for an age well below average. Bug truly was magical throughout and probably could have done even better without my interference!" Congratulations from all of us!
Did you follow that with a wild party? "Many of us ended up partying in the media and owners' hotel! In hindsight I wish I had gone to change as I felt very grimey in my riding clothes having had a very sweaty evening. When I undid my hair it was still damp from sweat! (Doesn't sound at all pleasant I know but that is just how hot HK is!)." It must have been pretty late as the show-jumping finished so late? "Yes. Having done my last jumping round about midnight I soon found it was past 4am so I decided to leave the Germans to their raucus celebrations and drag myself to bed! The Germans really did put up outstanding performances in all three phases making their gold very well deserved. Even more deserving was Marius who carried Heinrich to individual gold - what a chaming delightful horse! Heinrich is also so unassuming and smiley, I am not sure either of them were sure how to react to double gold!" Yes, it was a fantastic achievement for them both!
The blog has been changed to an interview to comply with Olympic regulations