Team GB’s showjumpers are travelling home from Casas Novas in the port city of A Coruña in north-west Spain with silver medals hanging around their necks after a brilliant performance at the Longines FEI European Championships.
Two-time Olympic team gold medallist Scott Brash also piloted Hello Folie (pictured above) — a mare who is “quick, feisty, and can make it challenging at times” — to another shiny silver in the individual standings.
Ben Maher (riding Charlotte Rossetter’s Dallas Vegas Batilly), Donald Whitaker (on his own Millfield Colette) and Matthew Sampson (aboard Rachel Gredley’s Medoc de Toxandria) completed the British quartet.
They were pipped by Belgium — this nation recording its second European title in the history of these championships, which began in 1957.
Germany collected bronze.
“We were very close and just very unlucky really,” said Scott about missing gold. “It’s been a great team with great team spirit and we’re all delighted.”
‘She knows she’s good’
Scott and Hello Folie’s rounds were edge-of-your-seat viewing due to the mare’s exuberant behaviour.
During Thursday’s round — the first in the team competition — Scott even lost his reins on a vital turn.
However, the mare didn’t touch a single pole and kept a clean score card all week.
“She’s very excitable and keen to get on with the job, she doesn’t want me to tell her what to do at times,” said Scott of Lady Pauline Harris and Lady Pauline Kirkham’s chestnut mare.
“It’s about trying to find that fine line, that fine balance so that I can put her in the right spot.
“She’s just super-keen, she has a massive engine behind, so much power behind and is a little bit on her head then.
“She knows she’s good; she’s like a small pony — a bit greedy, quite lazy, so we have to talk to each other to find a compromise.”
Scott explained that the 10-year-old mare doesn’t “do” waiting and so he has had to find a way to negotiate with her in order to prevent her rushing at the fences.
“She’s just showed the world how talented she is. I’ve always felt that she’s going to be a top, top horse, but until they actually come and do it at this level, you don’t really know.
“But she’s certainly proved that more this week. So I’m delighted with that”.
‘Better than I could wish for’
Individual honours were secured by Germany’s Richard Vogel and the stallion United Touch S.
This is Germany’s 16th individual European title.
“He jumped amazing and performed better than I could wish for,” said 28-year-old Richard.
“I think everyone knows how amazing United Touch is. When we first started, his enormous stride and enormous scope was for sure a big strength of him, but also in the same moment a kind of weakness, because in those technical courses and now in this championship, just everything got asked from those horses.
“There is always some lines where we have to shorten our strides, where he needs to slow down, and some short doubles where he needs to use his body and put his stride together.
“For him that’s certainly not easy, but I’m just so happy how he managed that. When we were able to, we tried to leave some strides out, but we couldn’t do it everywhere, especially in the doubles where he really needs to slow down.”
‘Biggest courses in her life’
Belgium’s Gilles Thomas, riding Ermitage Kalone, collected individual bronze behind Scott Brash.
Ben Maher narrowly missed out on securing a second medal, finishing fourth.
Spanish course designer Santiago Varela presented big courses all week with the challenge increasing each time.
“The level was fantastic!,” said Santiago about the calibre of horses and riders taking part.
By the time the top-25 came forward to decide the individual medals in the final session, there was less than a fence between the leading 13 combinations.
“These are certainly the biggest courses [that Hello Folie has] jumped so far in her life,” concluded Scott Brash.
“I think it’s been a great championship to look after a young horse. I feel like she’s grown up through the week.
“She’s certainly going to use this championship to grow for the future.”
View the final individual standings
Images © FEI/Benjamin Clark
