Susan Fitzpatrick happy having looked at bigger picture instead of Olympics

Hold on to a horse like that, and it can propel your own riding career forward. Accept an offer for it, and the proceeds can future-proof the wider business for years to come.

Showjumper Susan Fitzpatrick with Quite Chacco at Keatingstown House Stud in Kilkenny. Picture: David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

It was Sophocles who wrote how he had no desire to suffer twice, first in reality and again in retrospect. That’s all very well, but it’s human nature to look back sometimes and wonder what might have been, had different decisions been made or paths taken.

The choice facing Susan Fitzpatrick last year was binary, but complicated. The Kilkenny showjumper and her parents agonised over whether they should hold on to the talented nine-year-old Fellow Castlefield, or surrender to one of the gelding’s growing army of suitors.