Equestrian: New contender for Tait's heart

By SUZANNE McFADDEN

As Aspyring, the wonderful sneezing horse, ends his career with Blyth Tait today, another thoroughbred is trying to jump his way into the stables of the former Olympic equestrian champion.

Rongotai will try to win Tait's heart this weekend at the Puhinui three-day event in Auckland - to fill the void left by Aspyring's retirement and the death of Chesterfield on the eve of the Sydney Olympics.

After the first day of the two-star dressage yesterday, Rongotai has already impressed the New Zealand equestrian star.

The pair are second, behind Tim Price, of Oxford, in Canterbury, riding Desamoray.

Aspyring will make his swansong in the three-star individual event today - but Tait hopes there will not be any tears or sniffles.

He is just happy the horse that carried him to the podium at four-star events around the world has finally stopped sneezing.

"I'm so pleased he has come home to New Zealand, because he was allergic to England," he said.

"He sneezed all summer and he was always unhappy in winter in the cold and wet. But it's just amazing how his whole attitude has changed since he's been home."

Tait must now find another New Zealand-bred horse to take back to his English home for the build-up to the next world championships and Olympics.

"I'm a big fan of Kiwi thoroughbreds - they're the only horses I'll ride.

"Every time I come back I see the standard getting better and better. I've seen plenty of horses I like, but everyone wants to hang on to them now."

Rongotai is a definite candidate, though. His Pukekohe owner, Jen Kneale, handed him over to Tait for this Auckland Airport Qantas three-star event to see what he thought.

"I like him a lot - he's got a big future," Tait said. "He's not too big and he has staying power."

Tait still has his tried and true mounts, Olympic champion Ready Teddy and Welton Envoy, as well as two promising young horses in England.

This weekend, Tait will try to pick up points towards the world rider rankings in the final event of the year, but he has no idea whether they will be enough to catapult him to first place.

"I'm sixth right now, but to be honest I haven't really found out if I could go into first. But it's still very important for qualifying for the world championships and the Olympics," he said.

"It would be a nice way to end a pretty dismal year, though."

Tait said he had buried the disappointment of the Sydney Olympics, where his horses failed to finish and Chesterfield died suddenly.

Aspyring will star in the feature battle of the weekend, against old team-mate Bounce, Vaughn Jefferis' world champion horse, which will also bow out of the spotlight after this event.

Jefferis will also ride in the New Zealand side on a borrowed horse, Bakela, alongside Mark Todd and Dan Jocelyn in the international teams event.

The three-star dressage starts at 9 am. The teams - Olympic gold medallists Australia, Britain, New Zealand and an international trio - ride at 2 pm.