Picture a hippopotamus riding a horse at the Olympics and that's how Chris Burton wants you to think of Shane Rose.
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Burton clearly had a word of the day as the Australian three-day eventing team fronted the media at the Versailles competition venue, ahead of competition starting on Saturday.
Apart from their weight of experience - between Rose, Burton and Kevin McNab they boast six Olympics and five medals - these are teammates who enjoy each other's company.
"I love being on teams, particularly with these guys. I have my mate Kev and getting to know the lovely Shenae (reserve Shenae Lowings)," Burton said.
"We've got our very good commander here, Shane Rose, he's an absolute anchor - he's like the hippopotamus of the team."
Rose bore the ribbing with good grace.
"The old man, the hippopotamus. Where's Andrew Hoy now when you need him?," the 51-year-old said of his legendary fellow rider, the eight-time Olympian who missed out on selection for Paris at the age of 65.
Rose is also resilient, given what the three-time medallist has overcome this year to compete at his fourth Olympics.
As it turned out, the controversy around him wearing a mankini at a fancy-dress showjumping in February was the least of his problems.
The following month, he suffered a fractured pelvis, ribs and a badly broken leg when he fell from his horse Virgil during a cross-country session.
When he woke up Rose couldn't remember the fall, and asked people around him what year it was and what horse he had been riding.
But he was back in the saddle eight weeks later.
One of the keys to his durability is a determination to be the best.
"I put more pressure on myself every day - I was as nervous for our training camp dressage test as I will be for the Games," Rose said.
"I feel that every performance, every time I'm putting myself out there, I want to do as well as I can.
"We're very aware of the fact that it's a team-first mentality, we have to do our job."
Rose was a member of the Australian team that won silver behind Britain at the Tokyo Games.
Australia has not won gold in the event since Sydney and the British loom again as the team to beat.
"Of course they're very strong and they have so many wonderful riders," Burton said.
"They seem to have come together well, but the thing about championships is anything can go wrong and that's where the strong Aussie spirit tends to come through, in three-day eventing."
Australian Associated Press
