Dressage star Charlotte Fry admitted she had to pinch herself after claiming her first Olympic medal in Tokyo.

Fry won team event bronze as team-mate and idol Charlotte Dujardin secured her fifth medal, becoming the most successful British female Olympian of all-time in the process.

Completing the trio was Carl Hester, with his third medal, all quite inspiring for the 25-year old.

“I’m pretty speechless but very, very proud - and Olympic medallist at my first Olympics, that's amazing," she said, ahead of competing with 12-year old black stallion Everdale in Wednesday's individual event.

"I think it’s pretty surreal that I’m stood here in between the dressage king and queen, if I can have half their success, that would be amazing.

"This whole experience has been amazing, I'm learning so much and it's only three years to the next Olympics.

"I couldn't be happier with Everdale, he seems to deliver on the big occasion and that just fills you with confidence."

Defending champions Germany proved just too strong again and the USA scored marginally better to drop Britain's trio down to third - the same podium as 2016 with just the one switch of places.

Dressage may remain one of the most puzzling spectacles at the Olympics, a combination of horsemanship, grace, training and athleticism but Great Britain have quickly established themselves as one of the powerhouses of the discipline.

And you don't have to understand these majestic dancing horses to appreciate these stats.

Team GB didn't medal at the first 22 Games in which dressage was staged - in the last three they've won three golds, one silver and two bronzes – Dujardin contributing in all but one.

In London and Rio she delivered success on her 'horse of a lifetime' Valegro, who retired in 2016 to a life of luxury in a lush green field. But she's hoping Gio could be a worthy successor, with the pair going for more success in Wednesday's individual competition.

“That’s the second time Gio has ever gone through that, he’s a very inexperienced horse," said Dujardin.

“You could see that in the few mistakes he had, it’s his lack of experience but I’m absolutely over the moon with him.

“He tries so hard, and with more competitions under our belt, I’m sure it will be more of these medals in different colours and I’m sure it’s going to be very exciting."

If Dujardin's exploits hog the horsey headlines then Hester's contribution to Britain's dressage dominance must not be forgotten.

At 54 he is the oldest member of Team GB in Japan and this is his third Olympic medal, his first coming two decades after his debut at the 1992 Barcelona Games.

It was Hester who gave a 16-year old Dujardin her first job in his yard and he is a former team-mate of Fry's late mother Laura, giving his now team-mate her first dressage lessons aged 14.

“Any medal is a dream come true for any athlete," said Fry, who is able to train full-time and benefit from world class facilities, technology, coaching and support teams thanks to National Lottery funding – which has never been more important in getting her to the start line after a turbulent year.

“I wasn’t entirely sure how it was going to end up because we haven’t been able to compete.

“We’ve had gold in London and this was a hard-fought battle, we’ve got a young Lottie, we all had young horses – it is a dream come true that they all came together. It's so exciting for the future too."

No one does more to support our Olympic and Paralympic athletes than National Lottery players, who raise around £36 million each week for good causes including elite and grassroots sport. Discover more about how playing The National Lottery supports Team GB’s athletes by visiting www.national-lottery.co.uk/tokyo2020 and get involved by using the hashtags: #TNLAthletes #MakeAmazingHappen