Medalist Zara makes mother proud (From Hereford Times)

Medalist Zara makes mother proud

3:28pm Tuesday 31st July 2012 in National News © Press Association 2013

Zara Phillips has gone one better than her mother - by winning an Olympic silver medal with Britain's eventing team.

As the Princess Royal looked on proudly, Zara received a rapturous reception from the home crowd at Greenwich Park, which also included the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.

The Princess Royal is an eventing Olympian, having competed in Montreal in 1976 where she did not win a medal. She will now present the silver medals to her daughter and the rest of the eventing team, Nicola Wilson, Mary King and Kristina Cook and William Fox-Pitt.

The last time Team GB won an Olympic team eventing gold was in Munich 40 years ago, when Captain Mark Phillips - Zara's father - was a competitor. In 1976, the Princess Royal came 24th in the individual eventing and the team came 9th. Zara's father - now coach of the US eventing team - won a team gold in 1972 and a silver in 1988.

The team's success came despite Zara admitting "I messed up" after a disappointing round in the showjumping - but her team-mates came to the rescue to ensure the silver medal. Attention now turns to the individual competition, which could bring further British success.

Another slim Team GB medal hope later includes Beth Tweddle and the women's individual all-around gymnastic team, but there was disappointment in the canoe slalom for world number one and Beijing silver medallist David Florence, who crashed out.

As the rain fell on spectators, Games organiser Locog said more than two million people turned out to watch the first three days of competition.

But there were concerns about the effect the Olympics is having on London's economy, with a suggestion that an expected hotel booking bonanza has fallen flat and businesses claiming the Games has left the host city a "ghost town".

It appeared that tourists and residents were taking heed of messages from Transport for London to avoid the capital. Theatre companies said they were seeing a "mixed picture", with many struggling due to lack of footfall in the West End.

Steve McNamara, general secretary of the Licensed Taxi Drivers Association, said cab drivers had been hit hard, saying: "I don't know where all these tourists are or how they're getting about but London is like a ghost town."