Britain snatched team silver in Sydney four years ago

Three of those Olympic winners - Jeanette Brakewell, Leslie Law and Pippa Funnell - are back, with the hugely experienced William Fox-Pitt coming in.

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Medals in the dressage and showjumping eluded the British team, who have a team of 11 heading to Athens four years on and hope to improve on their medal haul.

Jeanette Brakewell: She will be hoping to go one better than her team silver four years ago - her career highlight to date. Once again she will ride Over to You and her form has been good since Sydney. She won individual silver at the 2002 World Championships and team bronze, before landing team gold at the European Championships a year later.

Sarah Cutteridge: This promised to be the biggest stage the 30-year-old had ever competed on, but has been jeopardised by a training injury to her horse, The Wexford Lady. Olympic veteran Mary King is tipped to replace her.

Richard Davison: The Nottingham-based company director first made his mark in the world of dressage with silver at the 1993 European Championships. He has struggled to reach quite the same heady heights since, but did pick up a team bronze at last year's Europeans.

William Fox-Pitt: To most observers, he and Funnell look Britain's best chance for British equestrian gold. He was bitterly disappointed to miss out on the Olympics four years ago but, following his Badminton win, he is one of the major contenders for gold. He is pushing for top spot in the world rankings.

Pippa Funnell: Like Fox-Pitt, she will be feared by the top riders. A fearless competitor, she has tasted Olympic success before, winning team silver in Sydney. She won eventing's $250,000 Grand Slam last September. But the only blip on her card was a double fall at this year's Badminton horse trials.

Carl Hester: This will be the 37-year-old's third Olympics and possibly even his last chance to push for a medal. In 1992 he had to make do with seventh in the team event and eighth place eight years later Down Under.

Emma Hindle: She is the youngest member of the dressage team, almost 10 years junior to the next youngest member of the British quartet. Team bronze at the European Championships a year ago and 11th place in the individual at the World Championships show she is a realistic challenger.

Leslie Law: At the last Olympics, team trainer Yogi Breisner told Law, "come home clear and inside the time" and he duly obliged to help the team pick up silver. Since then, two European Championship golds have been added to his medal cabinet.

Nicola McGivern: The Scot, whose horse Active Walero originally came from Germany, has enjoyed great success recently. She rode the 13-year-old to team gold at the European Championships at Hickstead a year ago - definitely her career-best to date.

Nick Skelton: No-one has represented Great Britain more times at international level than Skelton. The 47-year-old has enjoyed a stunning return to form, having retired in 2001 because of a neck injury and then being given the all-clear to return to racing a year later. This will be his fifth Olympic Games. He already has one team silver - from 1980 - under his belt.

Robert Smith: Son of legendary former showjumper Harvey, this will be his first stab at the Olympics. But his form is proven on the biggest stage. He has ridden for Great Britain in 67 Nations Cup events - winning 13 of them, has won the King George V Cup three times and once won bronze at the European Championships.