Queen Camilla makes sweet promise over young girl's 'dream' to be a princess
The Queen was tickled to receive a drawing from the daughter of an Olympic horsewoman in which she shared her dream of being a princess.
Camilla giggled as she was presented with the artwork by team eventing gold medallist Ros Canter, whose daughter Ziggy, five, had asked her to pass it on. "My daughter was jealous of me coming here," Ros told Her Majesty, adding, "She wants to be a princess."
"That's very sweet. Tell her I will send her a letter," replied the Queen.
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"She loved it," said Ros afterwards. "She said she was going to write her a letter back. So that'd be amazing. She'll be the talk of the school, so she'll be very proud of that."
Camilla met Ros and six of her Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic equestrian team mates as she hosted a reception at Clarence House for them and the grooms, owners, coaches and managers who helped make last summer’s Games one of their most successful of recent years.
Paralympians Natasha Baker, Sophie Wells, Georgia Wilson and Mari Durward-Akhurst, who brought home one silver and six bronze medals between them were among the guests.
Natasha said: “We spoke about the fact that it was my fourth Paralympics and I've become a bit of a seasoned pro now, and we spoke about where we keep our medals. I keep mine in socks, because the boxes are so big you can't fit them in your handbag, so if they're in socks, they don't clang together and damage each other.
“Clean socks!” she clarified, adding of the Queen’s response, “She thought it was hilarious.”
Camilla had been due to attend a reception for Team GB athletes at Buckingham Palace before Christmas, but had to pull out while recovering from pneumonia.
“We met the King then, which was lovely, but she was disappointed to miss it, I think she likes a good get together,” said Natasha.
“She's just so knowledgeable about horses and equestrian sporting in general, and she's so supportive of us. You know, hosting events like this, it's such a huge honour for us to be invited to come along and to be able to meet her… she's so passionate about it. She's watching us every step of the way through the Games, and she always knows what we've been up to, and always is so interested in what's coming next for us, which is great.”
Also attending were reserve athletes, grooms and along with performance managers, coaches, vets and human and equine physiotherapists from the British Equestrian World Class Programme.
Among them was Adam Short, head groom to Olympic eventing gold medallist Tom McEwen, who is currently coaching overseas, and his horse JL Dublin.
Adam, 26, from Newcastle, learned to ride through the inner city charity Stepney Bank Stables and now serves as its patron as well as being a Youth Ambassador for the Emile Faurie Foundation, which offers riding lessons to disadvantaged children and young people.
Now based at Princess Anne's Gatcombe Park estate, he said: “The Queen was very interested to hear about it and the work they are doing. I have lived the story. Being here is an honour I would never even have imagined.”
In an impromptu speech to 93 guests, Her Majesty, who has been patron of the British Equestrian Federation since 2006, said: "I'm so proud to be your patron and it made us all very proud to be British. I'm sorry I wasn't there, but I was watching very keenly every bit of it on the television and it really did bring tears to the eyes. So thank you, the whole team, for everything you do and let's keep the British the best."
Camilla's words followed those of the BEF's CEO Jim Eyre, who had joked: "2024 was an incredible year. It pains me to say how well the French did. It was a roller coaster year, and there were the highs and there were the lows, and that our teams were able to perform so extraordinarily well and and every rider come back with a medal, it's testament to the talent that we have within this country."
He presented the Queen with a souvenir photobook from the Paris Games, compiled by team photographer Jon Stroud, joking that it had "all the gory snapshots, the tears, the thrills and the medals".
