SARK-BORN dressage champion Carl Hester has been named in the Great Britain squad for this summer’s Athens Olympics. Hester, who has a reputation as a ‘pin-up’ of the sport, and who has been credited with bringing dressage to the masses, relegates Emile Faurie and Rascher Hopes to the reserve list. That pairing had been in the 2003 European Championship team with the other three pairs named.

‘Many of the horses and riders we considered have shown real improvement in their performances over the last six months, said David Trott, British Dressage chairman of selectors.

‘We were pleased to see not only four strong riders for Athens, but also talented horses and riders for the future.’

While it will be the first major championship for the 11-year-old gelding Escapado, the four team members between them lay claim to four Olympic, three World Championship and nine European Champion-ship appearances.

Hester took part in the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games at the age of 25 and has had more than 10 years of national and international success since then.

The holder of more than 30 national titles, Hester has trained Escapado from a five-year-old novice and this year won five grand prix classes at the Sunshine Tour in Spain with scores up to 71.5%.