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Harry Charles was 13 years old when he watched his father Peter win team show jumping gold at London 2012.
It was in that moment that he realised exactly what he wanted to do – abandoning a fledgling golfing career to focus on equestrian.
Even in his wildest dreams though, he could not have imagined that he would match his dad in taking Olympic gold, and what is more, alongside Scott Brash and Ben Maher who were also part of the team in London.
In doing so, the Charles’s are the first father-son combination to win Olympic gold for Team GB since 1948 – rowers Dickie and Charles Burnell (1908) the last to do it.
But Harry Charles must surely be the first to have won alongside his dad’s teammates, the triumphant quartet in London being Maher, Brash, Peter Charles and Nick Skelton, in a slightly different format.
Harry said: “I was at Greenwich Park; I was 13 when I watched these two boys. It’s pretty cool. They are both my heroes, guys I’ve looked up to since I started riding. To be on the podium with them, my inner, younger self is freaking out a little bit.
“It was probably that moment that I realised. My dad wanted me to be a golfer, so I was playing a lot of golf and riding a few ponies at the same time. I realised I was a lot better at riding a horse than swinging a golf club. So that was definitely the most pivotal moment.
“Before the competition, my dad said to enjoy it, whatever you do. You’ve worked hard to get here. And after he said, ‘Enjoy it, enjoy every minute of that ceremony, this will probably be the best moment of your life.’”
At 25, Charles is the baby of the showjumping world – all the more remarkable when you consider that he is not even an Olympic newcomer, having made his debut in Tokyo.
There, GB could only manage seventh, but this time around they led from start to finish.
Maher kicked things off with a fantastic performance on Dallas Vegas Batilly, scoring just one time penalty point, as he was one of just two people to go clear, and the quickest of the two.
Charles then followed suit on Romeo 88, going clear despite clipped the 10th jump, as GB maintained a two-point lead over host nation France - one point to three.
By the time Brash was up on Hello Jefferson, the equation was simple, go clear and pick up at most two-time penalties and Great Britain would be champions.
Like Charles, he clipped a fence, playing with the nerves of those watching on, but most importantly, holding his own.
A second time penalty meant that Britain finished on two points, two clear of the USA in silver, with hosts France taking bronze on seven.
With this win, Maher joins Charlotte Dujardin and eventer Richard Meade as the only equestrian riders to win three gold medals for Team GB.
And with Peter in attendance supporting the team, Brash admitted it was quite a surreal feeling to have now won Olympic gold alongside two generations.
He said: “Me and Ben feel a bit like the old veterans. Pete played a massive role, even here. It’s invaluable having him on our shoulder, giving advice. Having that mentor is really good for all of us.
“Harry is only 25 but he’s very experienced already. It’s amazing to have good riders coming up in our country and I think the future looks bright.”
Maher, meanwhile, had put Great Britain into the perfect position, and even after all he has achieved as a three-time Olympic champion, explained that days this flawless come few and far between.
He said: “I would probably say none of us could have done a better job today than we did. It’s not like we will go home and think we could do something better than we did and it’s very rare in our sport. Everything came together and it was just an amazing feeling.”
Just as had been the case 12 years ago, Maher, Brash and a Charles stood on the podium celebrating Olympic gold.
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