Equestrian: School of hard knocks prepares riding hopeful

By EUGENE BINGHAM in Athens

It's been a long way to the Olympics for Grant Cashmore.

The first time he mounted a horse, as a 4- or 5-year-old, he broke his arm.

At age 10 he broke his leg when another horse flipped backwards on top of him as they rode at the Tokoroa A&P show.

Showjumping may look like it should be a refined, "gentlemen and ladies" kind of pursuit, with its riders in ties and jackets prancing high atop beautifully groomed horses with names such as First De Launay.

But riding would not be the kind of heart-in-the-mouth event it is without a bit of rough and tumble, rider and horse balancing on the precipice between brilliance and catastrophe.

And there is no bigger stage than the Olympics.

Perhaps it was those first brutal experiences that helped Cashmore, cousin of former All Black Adrian, to thrive in the main showjumping arena in Athens, despite being his first time at the Games.

In his first round on Sunday, he was one of only 10 riders of the 77 in the field to go clear.

If it were not such a cliche, people would perhaps have called him the dark horse of the field.

Last night, his horse Franklins Flyte incurred 12 penalty points in his second round but was still positioned strongly for the five-round individual competition. Cashmore was due to ride his third round early today.

The 35-year-old moved to England 10 years ago to pursue his riding career and horse business.

Compared to Sunday's round, last night's course was significantly higher and more testing but Cashmore was still confident.

"We're still up there," he said. "I have been to a few Nations Cup [events] and it can change a lot in the second round. We've got to even work harder."

After the second round last night, Cashmore was the best-placed of the four New Zealanders, sitting in 28th position. Meech was the next best in 45th.

In the team competition, New Zealand finished 12th.

Meech is based in Germany, where he once worked for Paul Schockemohle, son of the legendary Alwin Schockemohle, who won gold in 1976 as the first rider to complete the Olympic competition without a fault in 48 years.

The Schockemohle's influence in these Games extends to supplying several of the horses competing, including those from the Greek and Korean teams.