Pippa Funnell

The Autobiography

Pippa Funnell

Pippa Funnell is the golden girl of the British equestrian scene - but it hasn't always been so. She seemed doomed to be a "misser" in the really big competitions - she seemed to lack that special ingredient that makes a true champion in the style of Mark Todd or Ginny Leng. Everything began to change for her in 1999 when her results, including her first European title, were excellent, but it was at the Olympics that she really came of age. Her horse, Supreme Rock, which had promised so much, finally fulfilled his potential and they won a silver medal.

Since the Sydney Olympics Pippa has gone from strength to strength. She completed the double of European Championships in 2001. In 2002 she won Badminton - the most prestigious of all Three Day Events - and a further two high level ones. In 2003 she firmly established herself as the top sportswoman in the UK. She won the Rolex Grand Slam - which meant she won three four-star events: Kentucky, Badminton and Burghley. This resulted in her being awarded the Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year and coming third in the BBC TV Sports Personality of the Year awards.

Pippa's diary from the Athens Olympics makes fascinating reading as she records the ups and downs of the competition, the triumph of the dressage, her cross-country round and the showjump down that cost her a gold medal. As if all this were not enough, there was the controversy of the medals being reallocated on appeal, meaning Pippa won both a silver and a bronze.