A coronation at the palace, a leap to victory in the three-day team eventing, with the medals presented by none other than Princess Anne.
These magnificent gardens of Versailles were a fitting place for Great Britain to win their first gold at the Olympic Games.
In the playground of French aristocrats, where Louis XIV kept his horses, Team GB enjoyed their own moment in sporting history, defending their title for the first time in 52 years — and perhaps one of the last times the sport will fight for its future on the Olympic list.
This spectacular setting was at the heart of the French Revolution that began in 1789. It is the city where equestrianism was first introduced as an Olympic sport in 1900, but now it is the scene of a sporting revolution. The images of Charlotte Dujardin whipping her horse remain raw and sabotage reputations, and this was a day that British equestrianism desperately needed.
It was a display of harmony between horse and rider, with Laura Collett, Tom McEwen and the aptly named Ros Canter delivering a near faultless performance on the final morning.
Rosalind Canter, Laura Collett and Tom McEwen (left to right) won gold for Great Britain on Monday
The Team GB trio of horses were presented with their medals by Princess Anne (bottom centre)
“Horses don’t do that if they’re not happy,” said Collett, who wowed the crowd with her Swarovski crystal-encrusted helmet during the final round of the show jumping competition.
“When you see our horses go in there, look like a million dollars and perform like they’ve done all week, hopefully that shows what goes into it. There’s a huge team behind us that makes it happen. It’s huge.”
They say horses are sensitive to their surroundings, so perhaps they sensed mutiny in the air before the final event. Canter was given a 15-point penalty for missing a jump on day two of the cross country, but the judges rejected Team GB’s appeal last night.
It gave a huge boost to their biggest rivals, France. Conspiracy theories began to circulate that it was a move to help the hosts to a popular gold and British enthusiasts arrived brandishing Rule 217 of the Federation Jumping Rules.
It left Team GB little room for error. French rider Nicolas Touzaint sent the home crowd into raptures before Collett and her horse London 52 emerged for the crowning run. They remained calm.
“That was very kind of him!” Collett said, knowing that the noise would have scared most horses off. “Luckily my horse likes it. I wouldn’t have wanted to sit on a nervous horse. He took the opportunity. He’s a superstar and he likes to show off. He thinks he’s completely at ease with the palace as a backdrop. He was a bit disappointed in Tokyo, so he waited three years for a full stable.”
Collett, 34, also won a bronze medal in the individual eventing final on Monday
Collett dazzled the audience with her choice of headpiece, a Swarovski crystal encrusted helmet
In the horse equivalent of a team triathlon, Collett picked up one penalty in the obstacles. She consolidated first place, after a perfect run from McEwen and only one knocked down pole from Canter. ‘The focus was on not doing anything stupid. Horses are animals after all, anything can happen.’
Outside the paddock, owners and support crews burst into tears as victory was secured. The three horses were worth over a million pounds going into this final, but will now be worth considerably more.
Collett treated her 15-year-old gelding to a Pink Lady apple. Then, fueled by a breakfast of barley, oats and beans — and isotonic supplements and Polos, with 320 packs back at base — the beloved pair set off again to claim bronze in the individual competition just hours later.
“It was a strange feeling because you don’t even have five minutes to enjoy the fact that you’ve just won a team gold medal,” Collett said. “But now it’s over and to be sitting here with two Olympic medals is something I never dreamed of.”
Princess Anne, who stabled one of the winning team’s horses at her Gloucestershire stables, summed up Britain’s glory day aptly. “Very good!” she said in the royal setting.
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With five riders already in the world’s top seven, this was a performance that demonstrated Britain’s dominance on the world stage.
Equestrian sports are already set for the 2028 Games in Los Angeles, but more golden days like this are needed if it is to maintain its Olympic status for longer.