Umbrellas are not supposed to be brought into the equestrian arena – they startle the horses. But the Games volunteers at the gates allowed some flexibility as the morning rain hurtled down and the spectators perched in the open‑air stands opened their parapluies and hunched underneath, the teachers herding troupes of back‑to-schoolchildren cursing their luck.
Natasha Baker, who won bronze in the grade‑three individual dressage event on Dawn Chorus (known as Lottie) was one of the unlucky ones who rode before the deluge cleared, her test done with the huge gardens of Versailles behind her unrolling to a palace that was half-hidden by a damp shroud.
