Mike Rowbottom

mike rowbottom ©insidethegamesFor some it's sport. For others dogs. For yet others horses. We're talking here about what animates people.

Say "Horse & Hound" to me and I think of Hugh Grant's panic response in the film Notting Hill when he has to say what magazine he represents in order to talk to the object of his affections, film star Anna Scott, as played by Julia Roberts.

But an online story recently from the oldest equestrian magazine in the UK - it's been galloping on since 1884 - tells of a bewildering (to me) world of swapping horses as if they were football managers.

When some people think of Horse & Hound, they think of Hugh Grant in the film Notting Hill. Others think of an equestrian magazine which has been galloping on since 1884 ©Getty ImagesWhen some people think of Horse & Hound, they think of Hugh Grant in the film Notting Hill. Others think of an equestrian magazine which has been galloping on since 1884
©Getty Images

So there was this very good showjumper, name of Callahan (sired by Contendro, first Dam by the name of Flare, try and keep up), and it was one of the horses ridden by Netherlands rider Gerco Schroder, who won an Olympic silver medal in the individual event at London 2012. But not on Callahan. He did that on a horse called London.

Then Callahan, and London, and 28 other showjumpers owned by Eurocommerce Stables, had to be sold in an online auction after a Dutch court ruled on March 5 that Rabobank had the right to collect assets from the bankrupt owner.

The total for all the lots came to €11,126,151 (£8.7 million, $13.5 million). Which was apparently less than expected. Poor old Rabobank.

Within that total, London netted €8.6 million (£6.7 million, $10.5 million), and Callahan cost its new owner €180,000 (£141,000, $220,000). The new owner of Callahan was top Saudi Arabian rider Abdullah Al Sharbatly, an Olympic team bronze medallist at London 2012.

Saudi Arabia's Abdullah Al Sharbatly, on his newly purchased horse Callahan, en route to gold at this year's Asian Games in Incheon ©AFP/Getty ImagesSaudi Arabia's Abdullah Al Sharbatly, on his newly purchased horse Callahan, en route to gold at this year's Asian Games in Incheon ©AFP/Getty Images

Al Sharbatly has had a great year on Callahan, with whom he won gold at the recent Asian Games in Incheona.

But the maxim "never change a winning formula" clearly has no credence in the world of equestrianism.

Before the year is out, Al Sharbatly has got rid of his golden partner, who has been sold on to his fellow London 2012 Olympian Ahmad Hamcho. The 19-year-old Syrian rider, who is based in London, is now aiming to qualify for next year's International Equestrian Federation (FEI) World Cup finals in Las Vegas.

You could call it a gamble - but the odds would appear to be stacked in his favour given Callahan's pedigree. Indeed, the new partnership has already been successful at the Marocco Royal Tour event.

Syria's Ahmad Hamcho competing on Wonderboy at the London 2012 Olympics. He has now bought Callahan ©Sports Illustrated/Getty ImagesSyria's Ahmad Hamcho competing on Wonderboy at the London 2012 Olympics. He has now bought Callahan ©Sports Illustrated/Getty Images

All this shuffling horses about has got the horse-y set buzzing, if the Horse & Hounds Facebook conversation prompted by the article demonstrates. It seems to take some time for the idea that someone can compete in Syria and yet be based in London to sink in.

Suggestions that the horse would be kept in Syria have been discounted, as has the idea that an expensive thoroughbred show jumper would ever have less than a cosseted lifestyle. The suggestion is made that these sums paid for showjumpers represent "an obscene amount of money when third world countries are struggling to survive!"

The suggestion is quashed. "What does one have to do with the other? There's always going to be rich and poor, everywhere. So those with money, in your logic, shouldn't spend it as they see fit, out of guilt because others don't have money? This logic is flawed."

All told, a lot of sound and fury is generated. What is it about horses?

Shortly before the London 2012 Olympics got underway, I attended a news conference at the Royal Naval College in Greenwich at which Britain's three-day eventing team, including  Zara Phillips, were speaking about their looming challenge.

For the Queen's grand-daughter - who was about to emulate her parents, the Princess Royal and Captain Mark Phillips, by competing on a horse at an Olympic Games - the occasion was clearly something of a drag.

Asked what kind of response there had been from her mother and father upon hearing of her Olympic selection, given their own Olympic history, Phillips initially refused to jump.

"Not much," she responded with a sideways look. "Mum fell off. I don't think my dad ran cross country.

"My dad's not a big talker. He's more interested in training. He comes across that way instead."

(Princess Anne, finished 24th in individual three-day event at the 1976 Montreal Games, but fell heavily on the cross country during the team event, suffering severe concussion. Captain Mark Phillips won two Olympic medals in the three-day event - team gold at Munich 1972, and team silver in the 1988 Seoul Olympics. )

It was when she was asked about Toytown, on whom she had won the world title in 2006, that the royal rider appeared to find the proceedings worthwhile.

Comparing Toytown, whom she had ridden down the finishing straight at Cheltenham the previous month bearing the Olympic Torch, to her current horse, High Kingdom, she began to express herself with freedom and enthusiasm. The latter was a "very different horse," she said, adding: "He's probably more relaxed and laid back. Toytown loved the crowd - Kingdom wouldn't be as flash on the flat, but he's a very good jumper, nippy, so hopefully the track at Greenwich will suit him.

"He definitely senses the big occasion. We work day in day out to make sure we can use it to our advantage and keep him able to give his best performance at big competitions."

Zara Phillips, riding Toytown, carries the Olympic Torch at Cheltenham in the lead-up to London 2012 ©Getty ImagesZara Phillips, riding Toytown, carries the Olympic Torch at Cheltenham in the lead-up to London 2012 ©Getty Images

Meanwhile Gerco Schroder has been blissfully reunited with London - the horse, not the city - in roundabout fashion. London was purchased at the online sale by Austrian couple Gaston and Kathrin Cook (Gaston is founder of the world-renowned firearms company Glock). Having laid out €8.6 million, these two equestrian enthusiasts - who were already sponsoring Dutch dressage, set about getting the horse back to The Netherlands and the man who had ridden it so successfully for the previous six years.

"I am so incredibly happy," Gerco said. "There really are no words to describe how I feel. That the Glock family has bought London so we can stay together is the greatest gift ever."

Shortly afterwards, the familiar pairing helped The Netherlands take team gold at the FEI World Championships in Normandy.

As they say in equestrianism – never change a winning formula...

Mike Rowbottom, one of Britain's most talented sportswriters, covered the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics as chief feature writer for insidethegames, having covered the previous five summer Games, and four winter Games, for The Independent. He has worked for the Daily Mail, The Times, The Observer, The Sunday Correspondent and The Guardian. His book Foul Play – the Dark Arts of Cheating in Sport (Bloomsbury £8.99) is available at the insidethegames.biz shop. To follow him on Twitter click here.