Discover how equestrian eventing Olympic champion Laura Collett gets physically and mentally ready to compete on a global stage.
Laura Collett is an Olympic gold medallist (Tokyo, 2020), winner of the 2022 Badminton Horse Trials and winner of the 2023 Longines Luhmühlen CCI5*. Collett suffered a catastrophic fall in 2013; she ended up in a coma for six days with a punctured lung, lacerated liver, fractured shoulder and two broken ribs after her horse landed on her. The accident nearly killed her and left her permanently blinded in one eye, but despite this, she’s worked hard to thrive and succeed.
Now, she has her sights set on winning a second gold medal at the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris, which take place from 26 July to 11 August 2024. She was selected for the GB Evening Team alongside Ros Canter, Yasmin Ingham and Tom McEwen.
Here, Laura shares her insights into how she gets competition fit, both physically and mentally.
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You’re heading to Paris 2024 with plenty of experience in readying yourself for the Olympics — how do you prepare yourself for a competition of this magnitude?
A normal day sees me ride at the yard, go to work and then do an evening gym session. I also see a personal trainer twice a week to work on core strength, mobility and cardio. I feel I’ve done a lot of physical training to ensure I’m as fit and strong as possible. I also give myself a few quieter days in the lead up to a competition to make sure I’m feeling as good as I can. Mentally, I try to make sure I have a clear plan of exactly what I want to achieve and how each day is going to play out to ensure I reach my goal.
Thanks to the National Lottery, the support we receive as UK Sport-funded athletes (which covers everything from physio, nutrition, psychology, travel to competitions and more) is second to none and we head to Paris the best prepared we can be.
You suffered a life-threatening injury in 2013, yet returned to the saddle shortly after leaving hospital. Did this experience impact your attitude/approach to eventing?
It made me look at the bigger picture and appreciate all the small things in life. It’s easy to get hung up on things, but in reality, there are always people worse off than you. I count my lucky stars I got the chance to pursue my dream as a National Lottery-funded athlete, so I make sure I make the most of that opportunity.
How do you balance your ambition with pragmatism?
I think that comes naturally when you deal with horses! Horses are great levellers, and you learn to take the highs with the lows and always be grounded. Very often, things go wrong with horses — they can get injured or have a bad day — so you never know what you’re going to get. One minute, you can be on top of the world winning a big event and the next you can be devastated because they’ve picked up an injury. When you’re working with an animal that has its own brain, you know anything can happen. They can be different from one day to the next.
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How has your approach to self-care changed throughout your career?
I had a big life lesson after my fall that made me realise it was just as important to look after myself as it is my horses. After the accident 11 years ago, I started going to the gym as part of my rehab. Working on myself in the gym has made me aware of any weaknesses or one sidedness that I might have, which can then translate into my riding.
If I’m not in a good place physically or mentally, then I’d be letting the horses down. I’ve realised it’s just as important to make sure I’m physically and mentally prepared as it is for the horse to be.
Outside of my sport, I could definitely still be better at my skincare regime, but then couldn’t we all? To chill in my spare time, I do enjoy watching some shows on Netflix.
Women’s health is famously under-researched — just 6% (2022 statistic) of sport and exercise studies have focused on women specifically. Do you think it’s important that more funding is put towards learning more about female athletes?
I feel very fortunate that I don’t struggle personally, but so many women do — I’m looked after by an incredible team of coaches, nutritionists and psychologists, so this puts me in a lucky position to understand my body and have people to speak to if I require the support. I really do feel very fortunate. But not everyone can access this expert support, so this is definitely an area that needs consideration and development across sporting organisations and female sports as a whole.
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What’s some of the best advice you’ve received regarding competition?
Always believe in yourself and dream big — Yogi Breisner gave me this advice at my very first European Championships, just before I set off on the cross-country trial. It’s stayed with me my whole career.
Do you have any tips for young riders looking to follow in your footsteps?
Never think your dreams are unachievable — hard work and dedication is the key! It might feel really hard at times, but I’m a firm believer in the saying that what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger.
It’s so important not to try to run before you can walk — take each step as it comes. You should be totally confident and find the level easy before upgrading. I started my journey at the Pony Club, which is a brilliant place to learn.
National Lottery players raise more than £30m a week for Good Causes and support our Olympic athletes to live their dreams and make the nation proud. For details, visit lotterygoodcauses.org.uk
