UK Sport sets Funnell on road to success
SubscribeRob Burgess 08 May 2002
BRITISH RIDERS funded by UK Sport - which invests over £1million per year in the sport through the British Equestrian Federation’s World Class Performance Programme - swept the board at Badminton over the bank holiday weekend.
Pippa Funnell went clear for the second day running to win the three-day event title on Supreme Rock with William Fox-Pitt (Tamarillo) and Leslie Law (Shear H20) finishing second and third respectively having completed a successful warm-up competition at Lexington, Kentucky, a fortnight ago.
Other World Class Performance riders finishing in the top twenty were Polly Stockton (7th, Eye Spy II), Kristina Cook (12th, Captain Christy), Karen Dixon (16th, Uptotrix) and Leslie Law (18th on his second horse, Brer Rabbit II).
FUNNELL PAID TRIBUTE to a pioneering mobile sports science and medicine unit, used for the first time at Badminton, after her win.
The unit, funded by the UK Sports Institute, is the brainchild of Michael Dooley, the British Equestrian Federation’s Director of Human Sports Science and Medicine. It will provide the athletes with a range of tailored facilities including physiotherapy, sports psychology, audio visual back up for performance analysis and nutritional support.
Funnell had physiotherapy on her leg, which was badly injured in a crashing fall at the Belton Horse Trials in April, over the three-days of competition at Badminton.
"The squad riders may spend up to four days each week competing and are often on the road travelling for up to nine months of the year, which leaves no time for consultations and treatments," said Dooley. "This way they can access the medical and veterinary expertise of the sports medicine team at training camps and national competitions."
The unit will be used at a number of competitions this season, including the Royal Windsor Horse Show later this month and the Hickstead Derby in August.
