Alfie Buller competed in the team three-day eventing at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games at the Georgia International Horse Park in Conyers, riding Sir Knight.

A stud farm proprietor from Scarva, Co. Down, who also operated a property business in London, Buller was a part-time rider who competed at weekends – yet he produced a remarkable cross-country performance in the intense Atlanta conditions, completing a clear round with just 15.6 time penalties.

He recovered superbly from a bitterly disappointing dressage round. Unfortunately, Sir Knight was deemed unfit to compete in the show jumping phase after the veterinary inspection, and both Buller’s horse and Eric Smiley’s mount Enterprise were withdrawn on veterinary advice, effectively eliminating the Irish team.

Alfie Buller’s father Bill represented Ireland at the 1972 Munich Olympics and was President of the FEI in 1996.