The queen's granddaughter Zara Phillips heads intothe grueling heart of the Olympic equestrian eventing competition Monday,racing her horse around a twisting course in London's oldest royal park that'sbeen outfitted with 28 fences, hedges and water jumps.
The thrilling cross country portion of the three-discipline eventingcompetition is designed to test horse and rider's endurance and guts — and the5.7-kilometer (3.5-mile) course up and down the hills of Greenwich Park shouldfit the bill. There are razor-sharp turns, blind 2-meter (yard) drops andtricky combination jumps — each one designed with a very British story behindit.
It remains to be seen which royal might come to cheer Phillips on for what shehas said is her horse's strongest event of the three-discipline competition.
On Sunday, her grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh joined her mother PrincessAnne in the VIP stands of the main stadium of Greenwich Park to watch her earna respectable score in the dressage portion of her Olympic debut. With 46.10penalty points for a slight mistake, Phillips landed in 24th place out of 74riders with cross country and show jumping to go.
Phillips said her horse High Kingdom, an 11-year-old bay gelding, was lookingforward to Monday's cross country, a timed competition with penalties awardedfor refusals, falls and times that exceed the 10 minute, 3 second pace.
"He's a good jumper, that's his stronger phase," she said. "He'squite quick and easy to turn so hopefully it'll be good." And after dayspracticing dressage, a standard test of walk, trot and canter that demonstratesthe horse's obedience, Phillips said High Kingdom was ready for action.
"I think he wants to get out there now. He's a bit bored ofdressage," she said.
What he'll face are English rose gardens to jump over, a Tower of Londoncombination jump in the main stadium and even a swampy scene from the Britishchildren's classic "The Wind in the Willows." One tricky jump depictsthe Prime Meridian Line that runs nearby; another is a crescent moon in a nodto the Royal Observatory on the park grounds.
The course starts with a diamond-framed hedge in honor of Queen Elizabeth II'srecently celebrated Diamond Jubilee. It ends with a giant, upside downhorseshoe flanked by two equine sculptures made entirely out of recycled horseshoes.
Phillips, a former world and European eventing champion who is 14th in line tothe British throne, said she was thrilled to be representing Britain on herhome soil — literally. Equestrian events are being staged at Greenwich Park,the oldest royal park in London which dates from 1433. The main equestrianarena sits in front of Queen's House, a 17th-century building designed as asummer palace for Queen Anne of Denmark, the wife of James I.
"To be here at home is an amazing feeling, and you just want to try and doyour best for the team," Phillips said.
Cheers and applause broke out as Phillips rode into the stadium Sunday, andcheers erupted again when she finished. Princess Anne, wearing a bright redcanvas hat, applauded politely.
Anne competed at the 1976 Montreal Olympics, but her horse fell going over ajump during the cross country event. Phillips father, Capt. Mark Phillips,fared better, winning team gold at Munich in 1972 and silver in Seoul 16 yearslater. The elder Phillips was in the stands on Sunday as well to cheer hisdaughter on, sitting a few seats from his ex-wife. He's currently a coach ofthe U.S. equestrian team.
After the dressage portion, Germany was in the lead with 119.0 penalty pointsfollowed by Australia with 122.1 and Britain with 127. The United States wasseventh with 138.8. Like golf, the low score wins.
Japan's Yoshiaki Oiwa posted the best individual dressage score on Noonday deConde with 38.1 points, landing in a surprise first place.
"I still can't believe it," Oiwa said. "Probably everyone is alittle bit shocked. No one was expecting it. There's very little Japanese mediahere."
But in eventing, anything goes, and team leader Germany — which won both teamand individual gold in the 2008 Olympics — said Monday's cross country wouldlikely shake up both team and individual standings.
"It's a three-day competition and not a dressage show," said Germancoach Hans Melzer. "I think tomorrow is a new competition and everyonestarts with zero."
Course designer Sue Benson said she was aiming for a course that waschallenging enough for the most experienced riders but not so tough that lesserhorses would wipe out, fearing the bad reputation that could give the sport onsuch a high-profile stage.
Mark Todd of New Zealand, who won individual gold in eventing in 1984 and 1988and is in third place going into Monday, said there were plenty of challengesfor the horses, all of whom will be running the course for the first time.
"The fences themselves aren't difficult," he said. "When you addin the hills, twists and turns, and the riders are trying to make the time,there are plenty of places where you can make a mistake."
And then there's the very real threat of rain: On Sunday, fierce rain andlightening forced a brief suspension of dressage.
"If it rains and gets slippery, that will make it a differentballgame," Todd said.
The seventh-place U.S. team faced a double whammy heading into Monday'scompetition — a disappointing dressage result and a poor draw.
On Sunday, Phillip Dutton of West Grove, Pa., earned 44.3 and 19th place out of74 riders on Mystery Whisper, while Will Coleman of Gordonsville, Va., scored46.3 on Twizzel and sits 26th, adding to the scores their teammates earnedSaturday.
The Americans must send their riders out first in cross-country, meaning theywill need to gallop all out without knowing the standings of the other riders,who can ride more conservatively knowing precisely what kind of score theyneed.
The time to meet is 10 minutes, 3 seconds. Penalties for exceeding the optimumtime will likely separate the eventual winners from the rest of the pack.
Benson, the course designer, has said she only expects one or two horses tomake the time, given the hills and turns that will slow the horses down.