*Exclusive* ‘I literally couldn’t walk or halt!’: Becky Moody relives her medal-winning tests at the Paris Olympics

In this exclusive, subscriber-only interview, Paris Olympics team bronze medallist Becky Moody relives her medal-winning rides on Jagerbomb and gives an insight into the behind-the-scenes action that lead to that success

For those who’ve been involved in British dressage for some time, there was something so cathartic in watching Becky Moody and Jagerbomb impress on the world stage and win a team bronze medal at the Paris Olympics.

Since winning the Pony Talent Spotting Final at 14, Becky has been a fixture on the circuit, winning more than 30 national titles and training countless other riders up through the levels.

Seeing all those years of unwavering dedication and tireless hard work rewarded, while riding a horse she bred, raised and trained herself, encapsulates the dream of what is possible in the sport.

“My diary was chock-a-block as soon as I got back so I haven’t had much time to think about it all,” Becky admits, after a short pause. “I’d say it’s been surreal – it almost feels like it never happened.”

We’re speaking two months on from Paris, and while Becky has been non-stop, Jagerbomb has been enjoying some well-earned down time in the field.

As we wave our arms and rustle his favourite treats to perk him up for the photos, it’s hard to believe Becky when she says this nonchalant gelding – who looked wholly accustomed to his new level of fame – was one of the hottest horses she’s ever ridden while in Paris.

“This is why nobody quite believes the horse I had before the grand prix,” she laughs. “Normally, he is a very laid back character. He had been to Compiègne and Rotteradam earlier in the season, which gave him some exposure to stadium atmospheres, and while he was hotter there, it was in a manageable way.

“But in Paris he was ridiculous – pinging around and thinking it was the best thing ever. I was on the first day of the grand prix on the Tuesday and when I rode him on Sunday after the trot up, I was really expecting him to have settled by that point, and he just hadn’t.

“I literally couldn’t walk or halt because he was so full of energy and excited by everything, and I was like ‘Oh my goodness, this is not how I wanted it to be!’

“But Carl [Hester] was fantastic and we made a plan and by Monday evening I was feeling in a much better place.”

On the morning of the grand prix itself, Becky admitted the waiting was the toughest part, especially with the pressure of the crowd.

“I wasn’t on until four o’clock on Tuesday so I had the whole day to think about what was coming and it made me feel a little queasy,” she says. “It was nice to be able to watch Carl who went earlier but I don’t like watching too much so spent a lot of time in the stables – which was the nicest place to be because the air-conditioning was so good.

“Once I’m on it’s fine, it’s the sitting around before you get on that’s the horrible bit. The heat was tough. I warmed-up in the covered arena and then probably for the last 15 minutes went outside. I’d drunk a lot of water but probably not enough electrolytes and when I went outside I felt quite light-headed. I even asked my groom Kim for a sugar cube!”

Despite the heat and the nerves, the pair produced a mistake-free round to score 74.94% and top Group C in the grand prix.

“So many people messaged me after the class and to say how nice it was to see someone smiling doing their test,” Becky recalls. “But I was absolutely not smiling, I was grimacing and squinting in the sun, apparently I just can’t squint with my mouth shut!”

But while the pair were impressive in the grand prix, they excelled in the special. Going first for the team, and on their championship debut, they were close to faultless, scoring a new personal best of 76.49%.

“I was in the morning, so I managed to force some breakfast down bright and early,” Becky recalls. “I rode him first thing and then put him away so we could both have the physios look at us. I think that’s something people don’t really see, but the support team that we have around are incredible.

“I then always plait up. It’s my thing, I love it, and it’s part of my mental prep. I use that time to focus and visualise my test and think through it.”

Becky adds that there are always a few “set pieces” she rides in the warmup, but in Paris she tried to stay adaptable.

“We knew the passage, to trot, to half-pass was something he was fragile in, so we practiced that before the test. One thing we did differently is that we didn’t really practice the piaffe. I think I maybe did one piaffe in the warm-up for each test, and that was it.

“That was a tiny bit daunting for me because I’d never done that in a warm-up. Normally, I’d probably have to do quite a lot of piaffe as a sort of motivating thing but he was so on it, and I didn’t want him to be off in his halts, so we just left it alone.

“And it worked – because the wonderful thing about him is how much he wants to do it, and that’s what got me through the special as well as it did.

“That test is a marathon, but even on that final centre line he was ‘I’m ready for more, what’s next’, which is great because as a rider my job became saying ‘Whoa, balance, organise, good boy, you’re fine’ rather than ‘Come on, you need to be a little sharper’, which makes for a much better picture.”

Becky did manage to get everyone a bit nervous when she cut it close, leaving a second of her allotted 45 to spare before entering the arena.

“That was just to freak everyone out,” she laughs. “It was because we’d been doing a lot of canter, walk, canter to help him with the halts and I wanted to do a couple of those before I rode my first centre line.

“But he was still a little bit tense and tight still, so I was like, ‘I’ve got to do another one.’ I could see the clock so I was sure I had time, I don’t think everyone else was though!”

One moment that stands out for Becky is standing on the podium alongside some of the sport’s greatest names.

“That was the coolest thing and the picture of us all up there is one of my top five favourite photos of all time. To look at that picture and think that these guys have been my absolute inspiration and role models was incredible, and to be there with Lottie [Fry] as well who I taught when she was a wee nipper in BD Youth, it just goes to show how things can change when you graft and work hard.”

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