FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
SIDELINES AUGUST 2012 47
Peter Leone listens to a student.
Photo by Carrie Wirth
four and fve, the two-rounds at Old Salem. Robert Ridland was
the course designer. Despite my injury, I managed to get one
good score in.
The Olympic trial format is different every year. That year the
selection trials had eight rounds - you could discard two of your
scores. So if something strange happened, like stumbling or
slipping on route to a jump, you weren’t necessarily out of the
Games.
We did the course walk at Old Salem. Then my brother, Armand,
drove me quickly to Mt. Kisco Hospital. We arranged to have an
anesthesiologist locally inject the fracture site. I couldn’t take any
pain medication, but I was allowed to have a local. Then he drove
me back. In the meantime, my brother, Mark, had warmed up
Legato. I got on, jumped a couple of jumps, went in the ring and
put in one good, useful score, a four-fault round.
Two hours later was the second round. I was in a lot of pain and
was unable to ride effectively, resulting in three down. So, I used
this score as my second and fnal discard.
The two-round trial at Devon followed two weeks later. This
time, we got the anesthesiologist on site. He was in the little
medical room underneath the grandstand near the main entrance
to the Dixon Oval.
I got the fracture site touched up for round one. Went clear.
Then got touched up for round two. My brothers were in this
with me all the way, with Armand helping me, and Mark, again,
preparing Legato.
I had three weeks before the fnal trial at Gladstone. We, again,
got the anesthesiologist on site, went clear, won the fnal trial and
qualifed for the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.
In one of the most spiritual moments of my life, Legato and
I went on to contribute the best scores for the United States to
secure Team Silver. This achievement could never have been
realized without the love, help and support of Team Leone -- my
parents, my family and most of all, my brothers.