Fortune favours proud O’Connor

“This means everything to me. This bronze medal is worth much more than the gold I won in Athens,” said Cian O’Connor last night after his stunning performance in London yesterday with Blue Loyd.

A mere two-hundredths of a second denied the Dublin-born rider a chance of replicating his 2004 gold medal-winning performance, while an injudiciously-fast approach to the last in a jump-off saw him give up silver.

But the smile on the face of the 32-year-old showed the bronze medal was just as precious as any of its more illustrious equivalents.