A SHOWJUMPER has been training for the start of next week’s Olympics at a South Lakeland stud farm.


Scott Brash has spent the last fortnight preparing for the London 2012 Games with his 10-year-old Hello Sanctos at Hill Farm, Ings.


He chose to come to Cumbria because of his long-standing friendship with Simon Buckley, a fellow showjumping competitor and son of Everley, who has owned the family-run stud for 35 years.

“We’ve pretty much grown up together on the circuit so it’s great to come here and spend a couple of weeks resting and training for the Olympics,” Brash said.


“Simon’s been riding him (Hello Sanctos) while I was away in Germany and I wouldn’t trust anybody else to do that - he’s a top rider so I knew Hello Sanctos would be in good hands.”


Brash, from Peebles, Scotland, added that his preparation on the hilly South Lakeland landscapes and at the showjumping ground at Hill Farm was going well, with him flying to Ings straight from Aachen, Germany.

He won the Preis der Soers aboard one of his four other horses Bon Ami, and he helped Great Britain finish fifth in the Nations Cup with Intertoy Z as he ramped up his training programme.


Brash, 26, added: “I’m really looking forward to the Olympics now and it’s all about making sure the horse is in as good a condition as possible so that we can give ourselves the best possible chance.

“It’s very different from other sports - a lot of the Olympians only have themselves to worry about whereas in showjumping you have a horse to consider!”

Brash is sponsored by Kendal-based equine firm E-Quester, who gave their own horse rugs and blankets to the Scots for free, and he has been using their equipment for several years.


Simon Buckley, who is going to Greenwich to watch Brash, said: “For Scott to get on the team from where he was a few years ago is phenomenal.


“It’s nice to be involved in his preparation and he is a very good, dedicated rider - I’m sure he’ll do really well.”


Britain last won an Olympic showjumping medal in 1984, while their last individual podium finish came at the Munich Games 12 years earlier.

 

ARE you going to the London 2012 Games? Which sports are you going to see? If you are call the Westmorland Gazette’s sportsdesk on 01539 710155.