Charisma, groom to stay together

Press, 24 September 1988, Page 42

Charisma, groom to stay together

PA Auckland Helen Gilbert, Mark Todd’s English groom for his gold medal-winning mount Charisma, refuses to be parted from her champ and will come to New Zealand with the' horse in November. Charisma’s Hamilton owners, Bill and Judy Hall, say Helen cannot be parted from the horse she has looked after for Todd since the . partnership began five years ago. The Olympic champion, who became only the second horse and rider combination to win gold at consecutive Olympic games, will live out his retirement on the Halls’ small farm south of Hamilton, Mr Hall said. Helen is likely to live with the Halls for some time, close to the little gelding who has captured her heart and won the admiration of millions of television

viewers worldwide. But Charisma will not be out of the limelight for long. He will make guest appearances with Helen around the country, raising funds for the New Zealand Horse Society and Mrs Hall plans to compete in dressage events with him. Mrs Hall said she was very excited at the prospect of Charisma returning home and predicts the 16 year old will continue to perform well for some time in the more sedate discipline of dressage. “He’s got nothing more to prove as an event horse and he has always been good at dressage and as he is used to going out I don’t think he’s the sort of horse that would be happy sitting in a paddock,” she said. The Halls will discuss Charisma’s future in more detail when Todd returns home for Christmas.