Charles strikes gold again

Barely a fortnight after winning team gold at the Paris Olympics, 25-yearold Harry Charles caps an "incredible summer" with a spectacular home win

- SARAH RADFORD and JENNIFER DONALD

THE past fortnight has been nothing short of magical for Harry Charles. After delivering under pressure to help Great Britain secure a team gold medal in Paris, the 25-year-old came home, and with a different ride claimed the €165,000 (£140,600) top prize for the Longines Global Champions Tour (LGCT) grand prix of London.

“This is my last show for a while. I’m going to take a month off and reflect on it all, it’s going to take a lot of processing,” said a stunned Harry, who partnered Sherlock to an electrifying 0.24sec victory. “I couldn’t have picked a better show to come home to and have this win after Paris. It’s just been an incredible summer.”

Harry has always held 11-year-old Sherlock in high regard – he is the horse he has owned the longest, and produced patiently from a fiveyear-old – but although gifted with carefulness and power, his father Peter and Stall Zet’s gelding was not the most obvious candidate to top the podium in this company.

Jumping last of seven against the clock, Harry had to front an intimidating target set by Germany’s Olympic individual gold medallist Christian Kukuk and 10-year-old mare Just Be Gentle.

They had propelled themselves to a spectacular 1.72sec lead over 2022 London grand prix winners Pieter Devos and the endearing 17-year-old mare Toupie De La Roque, who were lying ahead of the only other double clear, from Canadian Kyle Timm (Casino Calvin).

“I thought I was going for top three,” Harry confessed. “I didn’t think Christian was beatable. I said to my dad in the warm-up, ‘Well, that’s your winner.’ He said, ‘Just go, you never know.’ Sherlock has never gone that fast, he didn’t really have the experience for it. I guess I got a rush of blood to the head and with a good crowd behind you, you can do a lot!”