‘It was great to be back behind happy ears’: Olympic eventer returns to the sport after one-year forced absence
Olympic eventer Vittoria Panizzon has said it is good to be back “behind happy ears” as she returns to competition after a year out.
Earlier this month H&H reported that the Italian rider’s four-year ban and fine for a missed human dope test that was not her fault had been entirely overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
On Wednesday (14 May) Vittoria and 11-year-old DHI Jackpot were seventh in section K of the Aston-le-Walls open intermediate, in what was the Italian rider’s first event since May 2024. The pair jumped double clear, adding just 4.8 cross-country time-penalties to their 31.8 dressage score.
“I’m really grateful to have been on a horse that made my first run back a real pleasure. It was great to be behind happy ears and on a horse enjoying himself, that was the nicest bit,” Vittoria told H&H.
“I’ve had the odd gap from competition before from injury, but obviously this time was a lot longer. I’m lucky I’ve been hunting so I’ve been riding cross-country to a degree, but a hedge is a little more forgiving than square tables!
“It is a bit stressful going out again because one does feel pressure, while being worried about being rusty, but I wasn’t too rusty. I didn’t go too slow but I didn’t chase him round, and we were only about a mark off the leaders of the dressage, so that was really pleasing. I was a bit worried that the weather’s been really dry, but Aston did more watering than I’ve probably ever seen.”
Vittoria only had two weeks to prepare herself for the event, but Susie Berry had given “Jack” a prep run last month at Burnham Market.
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“I was very mindful of the rider I chose for Jack’s prep run and I’m really grateful to Susie, he came back feeling really good,” said Vittoria.
“I’ve been doing lots of no-stirrups over the last 10 days to get myself back into sitting trot. I’ve only really had a couple of weeks to get ready, and two weeks goes very quickly when you’re trying to fit in lots of things.”
Vittoria, who had been campaigning Jack at four-star level before her time out, is keeping her plans for the season under her hat at the moment.
“I don’t want to say my plans out loud, but there’s plenty Jack and I need to catch up with to meet our aims for the season,” she said.
“There’s still challenges to overcome and there’s a lot to rebuild, but I hope to have a couple more horses running soon. There’s also shares available in Jack if anyone would like to join his journey.”
Vittoria thanked everyone for the support she has received.
“A lot of people have been incredibly kind. As well as close friends who have been unimaginably helpful, people I don’t know that well have been amazingly generous too,” said Vittoria.
“I went along to Badminton to watch and it was special to get such lovely support from people – and at Aston. It was really heartwarming, and gave me a chance to feel a little bit of celebration, which in day-to-day life and through all the challenges you don’t always get to.”
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Since joining H&H in 2018, Becky has covered a broad range of equestrian news including welfare matters, veterinary studies, FEI Tribunal hearings and road safety campaigns. She has also interviewed top riders including Scott Brash, John Whitaker and Ian Stark, to name just a few. Becky’s reporting has taken her to Canada for Spruce Meadows and France for Pau five-star, as well as the Royal Highland and Blair Castle International Horse Trials closer to home. She was also a key part of the remote reporting team for the Tokyo Olympics and the Europeans.