“The routine’s becoming monontonous - we just want to get started” William Fox-Pitt, a member of Britain’s three-day-event team said yesterday in between the ferocious downpours of tropical storm Kammuri which beset Hong Kong yesterday.

Fox-Pitt and his four team mates - Mary King, Daisy Dick, Sharon Hunt and Tina Cook - are full of praise for the state-of-the-art facilities offered at Sha Tin racecourse where the equestrian olympics take place - air-conditioned stabling, mobile cooling units and superb indoor training arena - but after eight days of riding either in the arena or on the limited space offered by the race track cabin fever is setting in.

“So far, the horses are all feeling well but they had a week in quarantine before they came out and then with the daily routine here I think they’re as keen to get going as we are” Fox-Pitt said.

Despite starting as one of the favourites at each Olympic Games for the last 32 years Britain has not won the team gold medal since 1972. There have been three silver medals since, most recently in Athens - where Leslie Law and Shear l’Eau won individual gold - but the team gold has eluded them.

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This week, with the heat and humidity an added factor, the task is harder than ever. The contest, which begins at 6.30am on Saturday with the dressage phase, is the most open of recent years with six teams - France, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Britain and the United States - all having a realistic chance of winning the gold medal.

Although the loss of the world champions Zara Phillips and Toytown has deprived Britain of one of its main individual medal hopes - and there was a further setback when Lucy Wiegersma’s Shaabrak had to be withdrawn - Yogi Breisner, the team manager, remains optimistic. “The two reserve riders called in are of such high calibre that we still have as good a chance as any of the teams” he said.

Daisy Dick’s Springalong, who replaced Toytown, proved his credentials at the World Championships in Aachen in 2006 where they were in the silver medal winning team and finished 12th individually. Although 15, Springalong is a “tough cookie” in the words of his rider, which should stand him in good stead in these stamina sapping conditions.

Tina Cook has the classiest horse of the five in the thoroughbred Miner’s Frolic. The 10-year-old was runner-up at Blenheim last year and third at Boekelo. He has the advantage of having few miles on the clock due partly to Cook taking time away from the sport to start a family - she is the mother of Isobel, 3, and Harry 18 months.Both Cook and Hunt - who rides Tankers Town on which she was fifth at Badminton this year - are making their olympic debut.

Mary King, in contrast, is competing in her fifth olympic games - and Fox-Pitt in his third. King, 47, winner of a team silver in Athens, rides Call Again Cavalier on which she won team silver at the 2006 World Championships and individual silver at the 2007 European Championships.

Fox-Pitt, 39, who lost his chance of an individual medal in Athens when Tamarillo was injured on the cross-country - is riding Parkmore Ed on which he won Burghley last year. He has been foot perfect in all his outings this season and Fox-Pitt, long overdue for honours at this level, is one of the favourites for an individual medal.

Despite the impressive credentials of these five they face a formidable opposition. France, the 2004 olympic champions, are led by this year’s Badminton winner Nicolas Touzaint on his 2007 European Champion Galan de Sauvagere. The German team contains three of the riders - Ingrid Klimke, Frank Ostoholt and Hinrich Romeike who were in their gold medal winning team at the 2006 World Championships.

New Zealand are buoyed by the return of the dual olympic gold medallist Mark Todd - after eight years in retirement. Australia’s olympic record is second to none having won the olympic team gold on three successive occasions from 1992 - 2000 inclusive.

Although their five riders are all making their olympic debut they are not short on experience. Heading the team is the husband and wife partnership Lucinda and Clayton Fredericks - the former riding Headley Britainnia on which she has won both Burghley and Badminton.

So great is the rivalry between the top six that Breisner would not disclose the team order yesterday - “because it might give ammunition to the other teams if it was released too early.” He will give the order later today after the riders have had their first sighting of the cross-country course. Despite Breisner’s meticulous preparations he knows that there is nothing he can do to guard against the vagaries of Hong Kong’s weather. “It’s the great imponderable which all 11 teams are up against “ he said.