Para Equestrian Digest: Michael Murphy

3 December 2022

The Para Equestrian Digest, speaks to Irish Para Dressage athlete Michael Murphy about how he overcame his Tokyo 2020 disappointment. This edition celebrates International Day of Persons with Disabilities, on December 3, which aims to promote the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities in all spheres of society…

“Travelling to Japan to participate in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games was, of course, the most exciting moment of my life. Unfortunately, things didn’t go to plan – far from it, in fact, as I lost my reins and missed out on not just a medal but the opportunity to do a freestyle. It was heart-breaking in the moment and immediately afterwards.  

As time passed and I reflected on it more, I realised just how fortunate I was to have gone to the Paralympics with an amazing team and my horse, Cleverboy, who we call Charlie. To compete in these big competitions and championships is something that I dreamed about as a child.

But when you're in it, you can sometimes get a bit lost. It was only when I took take a step back that I realised I really was living the dream and should appreciate things a bit more.

I had gone to Tokyo full of confidence with Charlie after enjoying a good first year with him. However, a year on I could see that our partnership was still so new when we went to Tokyo. By the time we went to Herning we had been together for two years, and he was much more comfortable in the atmosphere of a big event. I was more comfortable with my situation, too – before getting Charlie, I was lucky to make the top 10, but now I had a horse who had the potential to win medals.

On reflection, myself and my team concluded after Tokyo that nothing had changed and there was nothing that was fundamentally wrong. I was still in an amazing position, and I knew I just needed to get my perspective back, so I could get going again. I needed to learn how to enjoy the moment, take the pressure off, and be a bit more patient with things coming together. I also developed a bare fearlessness about going into competition.

At Herning we weren’t thinking about medals or scores, it was about following our gameplan and executing that. To win the medals was so rewarding. Maybe after the disappointment of Tokyo it was all the sweeter, and it felt as though all the hard work put in by not just myself but also my support team was worth it.

As well as developing a new approach mentally following Tokyo, I had also dedicated myself to working harder physically with and away from my horse. The subsequent improvements made a big difference in the heat of the summer in Herning. These are the kind of marginal gains that can move you up the standings at the elite level. It’s easy when everything's going well, but when things get difficult, that's when you need to draw on all your reserves.

After Tokyo, I developed a training plan with a personal trainer and doubled the amount of time spent working out. Most of my physical work is swimming, which I do every weekday. It’s a good combination of strength, stamina and cardio. I also do some work in the gym with weights and on the bike. The exercise bike is not so easy as I need to be helped on to it. Swimming is much better for me because of muscle memory as it’s something I did a lot when I was younger during a period where I had better mobility.

I was born with a rare and progressive disease called Dejerine-Sottas syndrome (DSS), which is a neurological condition that gradually affects the ability to move. Despite my challenges, my family was keen that I should be active and participate in sports from a young age. I was helped on to a horse for the first time when I was four years old. I actually walked independently for the first time when I was seven and had that ability until I was around 16 to 18 years old.

Sport and activity is so important for me – not only does it make me feel good but it can prevent further physical deterioration. I would say that my condition has plateaued over the last five years, since I was around 20, with no further deterioration.

I’ve been training with Charlie in Bath (UK) every weekend, which is about two hours away from where I live. We drive down on the Saturday, ride the horses over the weekend and then go back home to start work on Monday. In my view, this extra training is important for Para riders because we cannot ride the horse as much and most of the horse’s training is done by our able-bodied trainers.

I started with Charlie, who is owned by Bronte Watson, in November 2020 and I realised he was an amazing horse straight away. I think he soon started to enjoy the work with me. For him, working with a Para athlete offers the same mental stimulation but it is not as physically demanding because he doesn’t have to do piaffe and passage.

Charlie is so willing and smart and always wants to do his best in training and competition. We have developed a strong bond. He gets very excited when he hears my electric wheelchair coming down to the stables – although that may be because he knows there’s a Polo mint coming!

One other change after the experience in Tokyo is that I now have my reins stitched rather than glued so that we don’t drop the reins again. The issue in Tokyo was that they were glued on, but the stopper slipped. I am not able to lean forward so once they were gone, they were gone. We won’t have to worry about that in the future.

While it can be difficult to keep a work-life balance, I’ve been fortunate to work for a company that’s really supportive of my sporting career. J Murphy & Sons is an engineering firm, who I joined as a SHES (Safety, Health & Environmental Strategy) Advisor two years ago.

They allow work-from-home which is beneficial to people with disabilities, as it can be quite challenging getting in and out of an office, and many offices in the UK aren't wheelchair friendly.

Working from home gives me the freedom to choose when I go into work and this has definitely made things easier for me.

From the moment I joined the company, the management was keen to see what could be done to make the office space more accessible and even went as far as to renovate one of the lifts.

They are a really good example of a company taking a proactive approach to accessibility. Their philosophy is not: “What's the bare minimum that we can get away with?” It is: “How can we make you feel like you have the same access as everyone else in and around here?”

I was involved in all the conversations around accessibility and it’s good to be part of a company that engages with people with disabilities and asks, “How can we make this better?”

Accessibility should be non-negotiable and it's not something that we should compromise on. I know it’s a lot easier for larger companies to make changes, but it’s definitely a mindset that requires cultivating whatever the size of the company. There is always a creative solution to be found.

I was expecting my working life to be quite difficult, but that has not been the case. I feel that aside from the obvious physical and mobility challenges, my disability has not affected my life too much. I went to a mainstream school, then studied Biology at the University of Warwick and now work. 

To this day, I’m still in awe when I’m around the likes of Lee Pearson, Sophie Christensen, Sophie Wells, and other members of the British team who I grew up watching. Being among them still feels a bit surreal. It’s definitely inspiring and motivating to see them in action. I have a few medals to go before I can catch up with Lee Pearson, but I’ve got some years ahead of me!”