Individual showjumping finalKevin Babington heads into today's individual show jumping final carrying Team Ireland's best hope of a medal squarely on his shoulders at the end of an otherwise blank fortnight in Athens.
The Tipperary-born rider, who has been based in America for the past 17 years, has peaked at exactly the right moment and his horse Carling King seems to be back to the form that earned him European team gold in 2001 and top-10 finishes in both the 2002 world equestrian games and last year's European championships.
"We're in with a fighting chance," he told The Irish Times yesterday, "and I feel confident enough.
"The horse is jumping well, he feels healthy and he's confident. I feel like we've got a good shot. We'll go in and do our best and I'll just have to treat it like a regular Grand Prix."
If Babington, who celebrated his 36th birthday on Tuesday, can treat today's two giant tracks like a regular Grand Prix he could certainly be within shouting distance of the medals at the close of play this evening, having already notched up three Grand Prix wins this year.
Babington and Carling King have hit only one fence in three rounds of jumping at the Markopoulo equestrian centre for fifth place at the end of Tuesday's two-rounder, but go into this afternoon's jumping level-pegging with the rest of the finalists, including Ireland's Cian O'Connor and Jessica Kurten.
"I do think it's unfair", Babington said of the Olympic format, which sees the top-45 riders starting on zero scores today, regardless of their results in the first two qualifying legs.
"But it's more unfair for Beezie than it is for me," he said, describing Beezie Madden's three faultless rounds that helped America to team silver on Tuesday.
"There's a very good chance that someone who finished well down could sneak in and get a medal. There are so many variables in this sport," he said expressing regret that the Olympic final is not run under the same format as the world and European championships, in which faults from the first two legs are carried through to the individual final.
But the format certainly favours Ireland's other two finalists, Kurten and O'Connor, who start this afternoon with their slates wiped clean.
Kurten, who picked up four faults in the opening qualifier and nine in the first round of Tuesday's team decider, bounced back with a brilliant clear at the second attempt for overnight 17th with the mare Castle Forbes Maike. Bubbling with confidence, German-based Kurten is keen to get on with the jumping and put in her bid for a place on the podium.
But O'Connor, who started the Games so well with just a single time fault, only to lose his form in the Nations Cup, is not his usual bullish self. The 24-year-old came out unscathed from a minor crash on Wednesday when girlfriend Rachel Wyse rear-ended a car on the way to Markopoulo, but his concerns revolve around his horse rather than himself.
"I was disappointed I wasn't a greater help on the day," O'Connor said about his 12-faulter and nine in the two-round team final on Tuesday with the 13-year-old Waterford Crystal. "It was uncharacteristic of the horse, but I noticed that he was a bit sore on the left side of his neck, so maybe he got cast in the stable. He's not lame, but even in the practise arena he was difficult to ride and usually he's on springs."
The German-bred gelding has been treated by a chiropractor, and magnetic blankets and massage have also been employed, but he - like the rest of the horses through to the final - was passed fit to compete at yesterday afternoon's horse inspection.
"If he's jumping well he has as much chance as any other horse, but if he's hard to ride and aggressive to his fences it'll be difficult to get a clear round. He's sound and I'll jump him in the final, but if he's sore I won't persecute him."
