Queen Camilla welcomed members of Britain’s Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic equestrian teams at a special reception held at Clarence House.
The gathering brought together athletes, grooms, owners, coaches and managers who contributed to one of the team’s most successful Games in recent years.
The Queen, who had previously missed a Team GB reception at Buckingham Palace while recovering from pneumonia, was finally able to meet with the accomplished equestrians.
Among the distinguished guests were Paralympic medallists Natasha Baker, Sophie Wells, Georgia Wilson and Mari Durward-Akhurst, who collectively secured one silver and six bronze medals at the Games.
A heartwarming moment occurred when Team Eventing gold medallist Ros Canter presented the Queen with a drawing from her five-year-old daughter Ziggy.
“My daughter was jealous of me coming here,” Canter told Her Majesty. “She wants to be a princess.”
The Queen was visibly delighted by the young girl’s artwork and promised to respond personally.
“She loved it,” Canter later shared. “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.
During the reception, Paralympic champion Natasha Baker shared an amusing conversation with the Queen about medal storage.
“We spoke about the fact that it was my fourth Paralympics and I’ve become a bit of a seasoned pro now,” Baker revealed.
She explained her unique method of storing medals in socks to prevent damage. “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!” Baker quickly clarified, adding that the Queen “thought it was hilarious.
The Queen demonstrated her deep knowledge and enthusiasm for equestrian sports throughout the reception.
“She’s just so knowledgeable about horses and equestrian sporting in general, and she’s so supportive of us,” Baker noted.
“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,” Baker added.
