Zara Tindall had a weekend worth remembering as she claimed one of the most coveted eventing titles on British soil.
In her first major individual title win since 2006, Zara won gold at the prestigious British Eventing Open Championship, contested within Hartpury’s international NAF CCI4*-S. Zara, who was riding the 17-year-old Class Affair, won a total prize pot of £5,000.
The royal said the victory felt "amazing" and she was "super happy" in a post-win interview with British Eventing - and her victory had to have felt extra special considering it fell on her mother, Princess Anne’s birthday.
Princess Anne turned 76 on Saturday, August 15, the same weekend her daughter achieved one of her best sporting outings in two decades. Zara's gold is the first major title she has won since 2007, when she won as part of a team at the 2007 European Eventing Championship.
Her last individual title win was in 2006, when she competed at the 2006 World Equestrian Games, riding her horse Toytown. True to form, Zara was a gracious victor, making sure plenty of glory was passed around.
In an interview with British Eventing, Zara made sure to share the credit, praising the horse for being “super” and doing an “amazing job”. She also made sure to highlight the work of those responsible for the ground and the event maintenance, crediting their hard work in making sure the ground was watered and up to standards despite the intense heatwaves that the UK has been experiencing.
Zara also poked fun at the fact that she's never been able to win the championship when it took place at Gatcombe, the private estate owned by her mother.
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This latest achievement is arguably another peak in Zara’s equestrian career, following her history-making performance in the 2012 Olympics. During the London Games, Zara followed - and surpassed - her mother’s own record.
In 1976, Princess Anne became the first royal to ever take part in the Olympics, competing in the Summer Olympics in Montreal. In 2012, Zara would do one better - she and Team GB won Silver, making her the first royal to win an Olympic medal.
Zara’s latest victory will no doubt be celebrated by others in her family, including Prince William. Not only are the two cousins thought to be very close, William has previously talked about Zara’s past triumphs leaving him “in pieces”.
The future king told podcast The Good, The Bad, And The Rugby - which is co-hosted by Zara’s husband, Mike Tindall - that he cried watching Zara win.
“The only time I’ve ever cried when watching sport was when Zara won, I think it was the European championship,” he said.”I was down in Exmoor at the time camping. We were all huddled around the phone watching it.
“She was there, she was blubbing away, the flag was going up. I was in pieces.”
