For Charlotte Dujardin, every triumph in the sporting arena seemingly took her another step closer to an uncertain future.
Billed as “The Girl with the Dancing Horse” after her heroics at the London 2012 Olympics, she feared that every time she competed would be the last waltz with her equine partner.
The mere thought of losing her “best friend” reduced Dujardin to tears.
Valegro, the horse on which she won double gold, on which she was crowned double European champion and on which she aims to repeat the feat at August’s world championships, was attracting big offers.
He was valued at $10 million but, after much speculation, Valegro’s “For Sale” sign has finally come down — meaning they now have the chance to continue a remarkable record-setting run together.
“His future is secure — he is never going to be sold, we have him forever,” the British rider says of the 12-year-old horse, which is co-owned by her mentor and fellow Olympic champion Carl Hester and Roly Luard.
“It’s an unbelievable relief. It was really, really hard knowing that every competition we did might be our last one. I never knew what was going on, I was too afraid to ask,” Dujardin tells CNN.
–
“But who cares? There are thousands of people that would like to have had this opportunity. I’ve been lucky to have it, I will always have it and I will enjoy it.”
It is a far cry from the rider that first turned up at the yard of Hester, himself an Olympic champion who described her as Edwina Scissorhands, because of her wooden riding skills akin to the character played by Johnny Depp in the 1990 movie Edward Scissorhands.
Hers and Hester’s relationship can still be a volatile one — Dujardin admitting “we occasionally scream and shout at each other” — but it is clearly stronger for the certainty over Valegro’s future.
Dujardin knows she can save the pair’s last dance for some time.
Read: The world’s most traveled horse
Read: Blind dressage rider’s Olympic ambition
