The British team of Becky Moody (left), Carl Hester (centre) and Lottie Fry (right) pose with their team bronze Olympic medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
A year on from dressage taking centre stage at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, this recap looks back at the moments that defined an unforgettable competition.
Britain entered the Games under a cloud – uncertainty, pressure and scrutiny all hung in the air. But what followed was a story of grit and grace. Team GB emerged with bronze medals, wide smiles, and a wave of relief that rippled across the sport.
Set against the splendour of Versailles and bathed in golden sunshine, Paris 2024 delivered it all: drama, tension, rising stars, and reigning icons. Relive the theatre, the triumphs, and some unexpected cameos through our gallery of standout images from a landmark Olympic dressage competition.
Becky Moody and Jagerbomb after their grand prix test at the Paris Olympics. Peter Nixon.
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
Following the withdrawal and subsequent suspension of Charlotte Dujardin, travelling reserves Becky Moody and Jagerbomb stepped up to take their place in the team. It was their championship debut, and on the sport’s biggest stage. But they rose to the occasion in style, posting personal bests in both the special (76.49%) and the freestyle (84.36%).
Becky Moody (far right) shares the limelight with her fellow dressage medallists.
(Image credit: Alamy)
2. One moment that stands out for Becky is standing on the podium alongside some of the sport’s greatest names.
“That was the coolest thing and the picture of us all up there is one of my top five favourite photos of all time. To look at that picture and think that these guys have been my absolute inspiration and role models was incredible, and to be there with Lottie [Fry] as well who I taught when she was a wee nipper in BD Youth, it just goes to show how things can change when you graft and work hard.”
Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg watching the grand prix special.
(Image credit: TT NEWS AGENCY/AFP via Getty Images)
3. In one of the more unexpected cameos of the Games, American rapper Snoop Dogg and lifestyle icon Martha Stewart turned heads as they watched the grand prix special dressed in black tailcoats and white breeches, cheering on Becky and Jagerbomb among others.
Lottie Fry and Glamourdale helped Britain secure the team bronze medal at the Paris Olympics.
(Image credit: Peter Nixon)
4. Lottie and Glamourdale secured a brilliant bronze medal for the British team in scoring 79.48% in the special, making it the first Games since London 2012 that Team GB have won Olympic team medals in all three equestrian disciplines following the success of the showjumping and eventing teams.
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It was 32 years since Lottie’s late mother, Laura Fry, rode at the Barcelona Olympics alongside Lottie’s current teammate Carl Hester.
“The fact that I’m on teams with Carl now is very, very special,” Lottie said. “I think she’s with me all the time and riding the test with me – I hope she’s proud.”
Carl Hester and Fame after completing their freestyle in Paris.
(Image credit: Peter Nixon)
5. “It’s been a week of very, very different emotions, but this is a fantastic way to top it off,” Carl reflected after receiving his team bronze medal. “I think a lot of people felt that if Charlotte wasn’t on the team, then we wouldn’t be successful, so it was very important for the team to show that we could do that.”
Riding Fame, it was Carl’s seventh Games, a joint record for the most Olympic appearances by a British athlete with Nick Skelton.
Abi Lyle and Giraldo during their grand prix test.
“It went better than I ever could have imagined,” Abi said. “Arty and I went into a little bubble – I felt completely in the zone. Afterwards, it was just a wave of relief and emotion. I’ve had very few rides like that in my career, and I don’t know how many more I’ll ever have.”
Catherine Laudrup-Dufour lets out a sigh of relief after her grand prix special test with Mount St John Freestyle.
The pair anchored the Danish team to a historic silver – their best Olympic dressage result to date. But it was heartbreakingly close: Germany edged ahead by just 0.12% to clinch the gold, in one of the closest team competitions in Olympic dressage history.
Isabell Werth gestures to the crowd after her grand prix special test on Wendy.
(Image credit: Peter Nixon)
8. Then just 10 years old, Wendy emerged as the breakout star of the Games under the saddle of Isabell Werth – the most decorated Olympic dressage rider in history.
The pair delivered a brilliant test to claim individual silver in the Olympic freestyle on 89.61% – the mare’s third personal best in as many tests. Their music was an instant crowd favourite, opening with Cyril’s Stumblin’ In, followed by Dire Straits, and, most memorably, Barry Manilow’s Mandy – with the lyrics cheekily changed to “Oh, Wendy.”
Dalera and Jessica von Bredow-Werndl after what proved to be their last freestyle together.
(Image credit: Peter Nixon)
9. The last dance – Jessica von Bredow-Werndl and Dalera signed off their extraordinary partnership with another Olympic double gold, before Dalera retired from competition after the Games. The world number ones and reigning European champions arrived in Paris unbeaten in 35 consecutive internationals – a streak that began with their individual gold in Tokyo.
They left as just the fourth pair in history to defend an Olympic individual dressage title, scoring 90.09% and standing as the only combination to break the 90% barrier at these Games.
Lottie Fry with her individual bronze medal after the prizegiving.
(Image credit: Peter Nixon)
10. Lottie and Glamourdale added an unexpected flourish to close out the competition, clinching individual bronze in the freestyle. With the margins at the top incredibly tight, a few slight mistakes left them on 88.97%, and it looked as though they might miss the podium – especially with last-to-go Cathrine and Freestyle still to ride.
Despite showcasing spectacular piaffe pirouettes into canter pirouettes and other highlights, the Danish pair also made errors, finishing on 88.09% and placing fifth.
“I didn’t want to disappoint myself, so I didn’t watch the last tests,” said Lottie. “As we were on our way back to the stables, I thought – just by coincidence – we should check the scores before packing up. And then suddenly there was a lot of screaming when we realised we had bronze! It was so exciting, and Glamourdale really deserves this.”
Charlotte FRY riding GLAMOURDALE for GBR during the Team Dressage Final - Grand Prix Special Competition at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games held on the Etoile Royal Esplanade in the grounds of the Palace of Versailles (Château de Versailles) in Versailles just outside Paris in France between the 25th July and 6th August 2024
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Oscar joined Horse & Hound in October 2023 and is the magazine’s dressage editor and sports manager, overseeing coverage of equestrian sport. After studying equine science at Myerscough College, he spent four years working for leading dressage rider Emile Faurie, competing at the 2015 National Dressage Championships and travelling with the yard to CDIs including Aachen and Saumur. He holds a master’s degree in Literature from York St John University (2021).
