And Pearson was initially inclined to agree. However, events conspired to gift Pearson with three of the best horses she had ever worked with. The opportunity was too good to pass up and Pearson is now eyeing a sixth Asian Games appearances in Hangzhou in 2022, when she will be 55.

“I said after Incheon I would retire. I felt old, my body was broken but equestrian is like a really bad addiction. You can’t get enough, you want more and it costs a hell of a lot.

“I carried on basing myself in England most of the year and thought if it happens, it happens. Then we went to the Jakarta Games [in 2018]. It was a fabulous experience but I made some stupid penalties.

“Coming into 2020, I thought things were not great, there were injuries to me and the horses and I thought at the beginning of the year it was the end for me and that was it.

“Now I’m sitting on three of the best horses I’ve ever had in my life. It’s been a terrific year and despite the lockdown, I’m on a horse that is extremely exciting for the future. We’ve got all the potential to win another medal and hope to make another Asian Games comeback.”

Pearson has been riding since she was five years old. Her father owned race horses, she grew up with them and started competing at a young age, initially in show jumping but she switched to eventing for the Busan Asian Games because she enjoyed the rugged challenge of cross country riding.

She earned a team bronze in Incheon riding The Navigator, who is now retired. The three horses she is now working with are Hanerina SSF, Dassett Golden Touch and Vihara du Causse, the horse she rode at the 2018 Asian Games.

Pearson is usually based in England for nine months of the year and spends winter time in Hong Kong with her husband. She is fully funded by the Hong Kong Jockey Club and Hong Kong Equestrian Federation and hopes to return to the United Kingdom early next year to continue her preparations.

“I’ve had a very challenging year but the lockdown in England is the best thing that happened to me,” said Pearson, who studied hotel management at university. “I moved house and moved yards and changed trainers. I had some wonderful trainers but the area was not working for me, and the new yard is fantastic.

“They are giving me total support and it has been life changing for me. I’m in my 50s and it’s just nuts. But I keep saying the day I go in that start box and I don’t want to be there is the day I retire.

“I must be crazy but I still keep going there. Once I start, everything just falls into place and you do your job. It’s about the horses you are sat on and I’m fortunate to have great horses and I hope we can stay injury free.

“I’ve got some fantastic horsepower and it would be crazy not to give it a go. I can’t just say I’m not going to try because I’m too old.”

Pearson knows that she needs to earn a place in the 2022 Asian Games squad and, ironically, some of her competition may come from the young riders she helped to nurture.

Ho, in fact, can thank – or blame – Pearson for his return to eventing after a brief break from the sport. It was Pearson who convinced Ho to leave his hotel job and try for the 2014 Asian Games, his sacrifice worth the effort when they took home bronze. She is hopeful they can form a strong squad for the Hangzhou Games.

“We’ll be fighting for spots now,” Pearson said. “I dragged Tom out of his life so we could come together as a team. It makes me very proud. I’ve watch these kids and what they are doing is giving me a lot of satisfaction because we were part of the process.

“It’s always been about the team. There are six of us fighting for spots. A lot can happen between now and 2022. I’m learning to be practical and pragmatic. They can always let you down when you least need them to but if I can go with the horses I’ve got, I hope to be competitive.

“Not one is guaranteed a place. Now there are so many young kids coming up, so we have to earn our spot, which is good.”

Pearson can take heart from her performances in 2020 in the UK, returning to three-star level for the first time in three years. Next year, she hopes to take a break from competition and focus on training.

“It’s a young horse and given the lack of competition, it was very satisfying to get back to that level,” Pearson said. “The results were not that exciting but it was exciting to get back.

“We don’t know what Covid will throw at us but next season I don’t have any championships on the horizon. I want to focus and train and get the horses to a place where they and I are competitive.

“We want to concentrate on that, keep everything ticking over and keep the boat sailing.”