Access All Areas Laura Tomlinson

German efficiency and Cotswold charm characterise Laura Tomlinson’s new base; Martha Terry spends a morning at home with the Olympian

- Martha Terry

IF she weren’t so warm and smiley, it would be hard not to feel just a teensy bit jealous of Laura Tomlinson. Aside from bagging Olympic gold and bronze medals aged just 27, she has a state-of-the-art new yard, complete with a clutch of classy horses and the requisite gaggle of delightful dogs. Not to mention the fact she snapped back into shape, à la Kate Middleton, seemingly straight after having her third child.

When H&H visits, Laura’s three-year-old son Wilfred is out on the digger with the groundsman, while a brilliant nanny, Jane, wheels baby Hanni around near the stables, enabling Laura to concentrate on her job.

“We go into mourning whenever Jane is off,” laughs Laura. “We hope she never leaves, even when the children grow up.”

The new yard, in Shipton Moyne, is half an hour away from the stables of Laura’s parents, the Bechtolsheimers, where she was previously based. Both British style and her German roots are at the fore.

“It’s a mix of German efficiency with Cotswold design,” says Laura, 35.

She cherry-picked “the bits I like from lots of yards”, and the resulting set-up is exactly as she wants it – “I’m very particular about everything,” she admits.