Unbreakable by Richard Askwith

Author:Richard Askwith
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781473555525
Publisher: Random House

What followed was a blur. Herold, amazingly, finished a distant third; followed, eventually, by seven other defeated runners. Herold was loudly applauded: whatever uniform Lengnik wore, he and his horse had proved that they were warriors. Lengnik and Lata were able to exchange congratulatory words; some said that it wasn’t clear who was congratulating whom. Wiese, too, found time to shake Lata by the hand, saying simply: ‘At last, it is done.’12 Soon afterwards, Lengnik collapsed. The East Prussian would spend several days in a Pardubice hospital before he could return to Germany.

Ra quickly found his way to Norma’s side. So did Josef Soukup, the groom, who had earlier prepared a big white V-for-victory sash (actually V-for-vítězství),13 which he was now wearing proudly across his chest, neatly matching the enormous smile on his face. But nothing matched the radiance of Lata’s own smile as the four of them – Lata, Ra, Soukup and Norma – made their slow, proud way towards the winner’s enclosure. The silk cap had been ripped from her hard hat by then: it is not clear who by. Someone offered her an overcoat, but she could have kept warm from joy alone. There was so much to celebrate: an 80,000-crown prize for Ra; the third-fastest Velká Pardubická time on record (ten minutes, forty-seven seconds); the pleasure of having stood up to and vanquished a seemingly invincible enemy; and the bewildering realisation that a long-cherished dream had come true.

Yet the greatest happiness, according to Lata, was the fact that the delight was shared. ‘I will never forget the moment when thousands and thousands of hands waved and everyone shouted “Norma!”,’ she said later. ‘And when everyone rejoiced, applauding and cheering for our victory, it seemed to me that never before were people so truly and amicably united …’14

For a shy woman who had spent half a lifetime sitting awkwardly on the edge of life’s dances, the intensity of the acclaim was disorienting: ‘It moved me to tears,’ she confessed. At some point she dismounted. In a photograph showing her doing so, she looks as though she is about to swoon from happiness. She was still wearing her capless hard helmet, like a soldier’s. Karel Šmejda joined them. Behind him, what felt like an ocean of friendly faces lapped against their little group. Even Norma seemed thrilled, ears still pricked forward, nose held high, keeping her head close to Lata’s as she surveyed the excitement.

‘I walked with my beloved Norma to the winner’s enclosure, and forty thousand people were mad with joy. I could see Norma leading the way, while I enjoyed the delight and the applause of the spectators.’ Lata wanted to share the victory with Norma: ‘Three-quarters of that glory belonged to the horse.’ Since Norma didn’t like treats, it was difficult to reward her. ‘But I believe she did understand the praise and flattery with which she was showered; and she understood how genuinely I shared the victory with her.’

Then she added, with just the

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