New Zealand's double Olympic equestrian gold medalist Mark Todd was sure he was hanging up his riding jacket for good after winning an individual bronze medal at the Sydney Olympics.
But at the age of 52, Todd's competitive fire has been rekindled and he is launching a late bid to compete in his fifth Olympics with 10-year-old gray gelding Gandalf.
Todd was a New Zealand sporting icon after winning back to back individual golds at Los Angeles in 1984 and Seoul in 1988 with his famous mount Charisma, but after Sydney he lost the desire.
"When I finished, I did not want to do it anymore," Todd said. "I had lost all motivation and at the time thought I would never come back."
He had reason to be fed up with the spotlight, when three months before the Olympics Britain's Sunday Mirror newspaper splashed a story alleging he used cocaine and had engaged in unprotected gay sex at a British hotel.
Todd never confirmed or denied the allegations but he was cleared to compete at Sydney by the New Zealand Olympic committee.
Now he is back and the man named "Rider of the 20th Century" by the International Equestrian Federation is hoping to be a force early in the 21st century too.
"I'm really enjoying it, it's fun and the motivation is back," he said.
Horses have been Todd's life and since retiring from eventing, he has built up a thoroughbred breeding and race training business with his wife Carolyn in New Zealand.
"We still have horses and are competing, but with racing you're not doing it yourself. You send the horse out with the jockey, so I missed competing on the horse myself."
Every now and then he would joke with friends about making a comeback but when the chance to buy Gandalf came up in January, he suddenly became serious.
He had kept riding regularly and his tall frame is as lean as ever.
"I'm happy with my fitness, it's more a matter of getting my eye back in and getting into the groove of things," he said.
Gandalf is named after the wizard from J.R.R. Tolkein's epic fantasy tale Lord of the Rings.
The Gandalf connection brought New Zealand film-maker Peter Jackson global success for his Lord of the Rings movie trilogy and Todd is hoping Gandalf can make him lord of the Olympic equestrian ring in Hong Kong later this year.
He has described his bid for Olympic selection as a long shot, but he and Gandalf easily cleared the first hurdle last month.
The pair have to post two qualifying scores to be in the running for selection and they secured their first in March when they won the Puhinui three-day event in Auckland.
Now he has left with Gandalf for Europe for a warm up event on May 5 and the second Olympic qualifying event at Saumur in France on May 15-18.
Eventing began as a competition between cavalry officers, testing their horses in the skills they would need for battle field charges as well as parade ground drills.
The precision needed for the opening dressage event and the final showjumping test must be matched with stamina and courage on the cross country course. All three require an uncanny understanding between horse and rider.
Todd is famed for his ability to get the most out of horses and he is pleased with his developing rapport with Gandalf.
"I'm very happy so far. If anything, things have gone better than I thought they would," he said. "The main aim at Puhinui was to get a qualifying score, and winning it was an added bonus."
Eight riders are competing for five places in the New Zealand team and New Zealand chief of selectors Mary Darby said Todd's performance at Puhinui showed he was improving fast.
"At Puhinui, he was very much like the Mark Todd of old. He doesn't look as if he's been out of it for eight years," Darby said.
Todd is loath to compare Gandalf with Charisma or any other of the horses he has competed with since starting his international career in the late 1970s.
"They are really all different. The most important thing is he has the right temperament and a really good attitude," he said of the gelding.
"He is a very good jumper and that's not been the case with all the horses I've had over the years. At the moment dressage is the weakest thing. I know he will improve a lot in the coming months."
The one-time dairy farmer is looking forward to competing again in Europe, where he was based for 20 years while accumulating honors which included winning the prestigious Badminton Horse Trials three times and two World Championship team gold medals with New Zealand.
For now, Todd is keeping dreams of again standing on the Olympic podium at bay.
(AFP April 24, 2008)