Smith was selected to be part of the team for the first Nations Cup competition of 2017. But Smith was told his horses were unable to travel to Al Ain, which meant the British team only had three riders Louise Saywell, Nigel Coupe and Joe Clayton. The team finished on the eight place with 37 faults in total.
“There were difficulties with the import license,” performance manager Di Lampard told H&H. “It was one of those things that wasn’t brought to light until it was too late. The horses needed to be in isolation 15 days prior to the show.
“It was obviously disappointing and hard without a discard score.”
Two weeks ago, Robert was competing in the CSI5* World Cup show in Bordeaux, France, oblivious to the fact that his horses should have been in quarantine.
“I only found out at the 12th hour that my horses were supposed to be in quarantine two weeks before the show, instead of competing in Bordeaux,” said Robert.
“It was only as the vet was about to sign the horses away that it came to light.
“It certainly wasn’t for me not wanting to go — but somewhere between Abu Dhabi and here, something stuffed up.
