First Olympic team named, a Paris qualification row going to court, and other things the horse world is talking about
US riders bound for Paris
Team USA has been the first to release details of its three-strong Olympic eventing team, plus one travelling alternate, who may be swapped into the team in certain situations. The riders carrying US hopes at the Paris Games will be Boyd Martin (Fedarman B), Will Coleman (Off The Record) and Caroline Pamukcu (HSH Blake), while Liz Halliday has been selected as the alternate with Cooley Nutcracker. Significant omissions include Lauren Nicholson with Vermiculus and Tamie Smith, who ruled Mai Baum out of team contention.
In other Paris 2024 news…
Chile is fighting to regain its Olympic dressage place, achieved thanks to Svenja Grimm’s performance with Doctor Rossi at its home 2023 Pan American Games in October, after it was reallocated to Brazil. Brazil had secured an Olympic team dressage place with its silver medal at the Pan American Games, but was unable to submit the national Olympic committee (NOC) certificate of capability by the deadline. As a result Brazil was then entitled to one individual place instead, which had to come from the same FEI Olympic group (D&E). This resulted in the individual slots from group D&E being reassigned to Brazil, Ecuador, Dominican Republic and Venezuela. Chile is appealing against the change and said it “will resort to all necessary international bodies to reverse this decision, which is clearly incorrect and unfair”.
Looking ahead to Brisbane 2028
Lissa Green, daughter of British eventing legend Lucinda Green and Australian Olympian David Green, talks about the pressure of growing up as the daughter of the six-time Badminton champion, her own journey to five-star, and what it’s like becoming a mother, on the 149th episode of The Horse & Hound Podcast. She also explains why she chose to switch nationalities to ride for Australia, and outlines her ambitions to compete at a “home” Olympics, in Brisbane 2028: “This something I really, really, really want to do,” she says. “My dad rode for Australia in three Olympics so it’s a really nice family continuum and also it means I’m less likely to be compared to Mum as I’m not the English rose that she was – just trying to do something a little bit different, that’s also the same!”
Listen to this podcast episode
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