Two new Olympic eventing dressage records have been broken to cap off a thrilling first day of competition at Chateau de Versailles in Paris.
Hotly favored to defend the gold medal won in Tokyo, Great Britain sent forward a strong and experienced team of three plus a Traveling Reserve to Paris. Early into the competition, the selectors’ decisions are looking prime. Preceding this weekend, the record team score following dressage was 68.6, earned by Australia at the Hong Kong Olympics in 2008. The Brits beat the previous record with their collective team marks giving them a first-phase score of 66.6. Their score is 7.5 penalties ahead of current silver-placed Germany (74.1) and 14.6 points ahead of bronze-placed France (81.2). The U.S. is currently in sixth on a team score of 88.9, and Canada is in 14th with a score of 106.4.
Collett (GBR) and London 52 Sit Atop the Individual Leaderboard
And that wasn’t the only record to fall today. The second British pair in the team rotation were none other than multiple CCI5* winners Laura Collett and London 52 (Landos – Vernante, by Quinar), who danced their way to an astonishing 17.5 early in the afternoon session.
This score bests the previous record held by U.S. Olympic gold medalist David O’Connor, who scored a 19.3 (adjusted for current scoring formulas) en route to winning individual gold and team bronze at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
For her part, Collett said she thoroughly enjoyed the ride today. What a time to throw down a record-breaking score with a gold medal on the line, and to have so much enjoyment is surely icing on the cake.
“I loved every second of it,” Collett enthused after her ride. “That horse is unbelievable. What he’s done throughout my whole career is amazing, and he just keeps on delivering. So I’m just very grateful to him.”
In a sport where a strong relationship is vital, Collett certainly boasts this in spades with the 15-year-old Holsteiner gelding owned by Keith Scott, Karen Bartlett and herself, whom she’s had in her program since his seven-year-old year.
“It takes years and years of hard work [to develop a relationship], and he’s a horse that’s actually very shy,” Collett said. “It’s taken him quite a long time to understand cross country, mainly because he’s a very shy horse.”
Primed for Success
Collett is familiar with the concept of chipping away, sculpting a true athlete and an eventual five-star winner. She’s experienced her fair share of “rollercoaster” moments with the horse as he grew into himself. To reap this reward—yes, still there is much to do that lies ahead of the competitors with two phases yet to complete—comes as a result of dedicated and intentional hard work.
“You never really think you’re going to do it, but everything’s been gearing towards this,” Collett said of this start to the Olympic weekend. “It’s been three years in the making since the moment we stood on the podium in Tokyo. We thought there [that] he was still young enough to aim for Paris, and I’ve been very lucky that everything’s gone to plan in the lead up. He’s just a horse that luckily gets better and better with age.”
Collett and “Dan” are not short on championship experience, delivering a clear cross country inside the optimum time in Tokyo in 2021. They also were featured on the British squad for the 2022 FEI Evenitng World Championships and two FEI European Championships (2021, 2023). Admittedly, the pair has had some errors in the jumping phases that have kept them from collecting additional medals in the past.
Collett isn’t focusing on the past, though. The cross-country test on Saturday, designed by 2023 FEI European Championships and Pan American Games designer Pierre Le Goupil, offers more than enough to focus on in the present moment. “I think it’s as tough as any other cross-country course,” she said. “You’ve got to be on your A game from start to finish, and you’re not home until you’ve gone through the finish flags.”
Jung (GER) and Chipmunk FRH Lie in Second
Strength of partnership would keep Collett from setting sail in the first phase, however. Hot on her heels and also earning an astounding score are German Olympic gold medalist Michael Jung and his Tokyo partner, Chipmunk FRH (Contendro I – Havanna, by Heraldik). Following Collett’s test in a later session, Jung achieved a 17.8 to nearly overtake his competitor and set a record himself.
It’s a testament to experience and understanding between horse and rider to go into the Versailles stadium, in front of raucous crowds, to deliver such a score. For Jung, the preparation has been all about executing a formula that’s worked for this horse and has led to a CCI5* win (Kentucky – 2022) and a World Championships team gold medal (Pratoni – 2022).
“At every competition, everything I did was experience and learning, trying to get a better partnership with him together, get information, and everything was training for this competition,” he elaborated. “I think everybody had the same idea because the Olympic Games are such a special competition and everyone is really, really well prepared.”
Getting Goosebumps Entering the Arena
Jung intentionally kept Chipmunk to a lighter schedule ahead of Paris, relying on his experience to prepare him. It’s a testament to how well he knows the 16-year-old Holsteiner gelding owned by Deutsches Olympiade-Komitee für Reiterei e.V., Klaus & Sabine Fischer, and Jung’s father, Joachim.
“It was an amazing feeling to gallop into the stadium—it was a goosebump feeling, but at the same time a really great feeling, because Chipmunk was so well concentrated and so good with me, so well listening,” Jung said of his test. “It was so nice to ride every second—and directly before I start with the dressage, I know I can take all the risk and I can try everything.”
Hua Tian (CHN) and Jilsonne van Bareelhof Tied for Third
China features in podium position after dressage, having sent two individual riders after losing its team qualification at Millstreet last year due to a failed equine drug test. Alex Hua Tian skillfully guided the 15-year-old Belgian Warmblood gelding Jilsonne van Bareelhof (Nevado van de Rostal – Gilsonne van Bareelhof) to a competitive 22.0 mark. Hua Tian is first-ever rider from the People’s Republic of China to contest an Olympic equestrian event (Beijing – 2008).
“He is good in this space,” Hua Tian said after his ride. “You never know going into an arena like that, especially with a horse like ‘Chocs.’ He’s very extravagant, and he knows it, and he’s very arrogant; he loves the attention. I think for him, he was always going to trot in there and think, ‘Oh, I found a venue of similar majesty to myself.’ That was either going to go this way, which thankfully it did, or it was going to go the other way, and he was going to get over the top about it.”
The Talented Jilsonne van Bareelhof
The 22.0 is a tick above the horse’s personal best at the CCI4* level (which is a level below this test, a specially-written and shortened Olympic CCI5* level test). However, it is certainly an incredible effort that for some might fly under the radar of mainstream coverage. Despite the fact he is based full-time in the UK, Hua Tian has garnered a reputation as a generous ambassador for his home nation. He remains a stalwart producer of horses for world-class competitions such as this.
“Chocs is the most talented horse I’ve ever sat on in my life,” Hua Tian continued. “There are other very talented horses that have been more consistent, more successful than him over years, but if you look at him in each phase, he just goes extra—and I think because of that, through his career he has picked up little bits and pieces on his way to big events.”
Burton (AUS) and Shadow Man Round out Top Three
Tied with Hua Tian and making a splash return to eventing after a hiatus to pursue show jumping is Australia’s Christopher Burton. He also earned a 22.0 with the 14-year-old Belgian Warmblood Shadow Man (Fidjy of Colors – Favorite van de Keezerswinning, by Winningmood van de Arenberg). Burton initially returned to eventing to make a bid for the Australian eventing team in Paris, acquiring the ride on the former Ben Hobday (GBR) CCI5* mount.
Burton has had just six FEI starts with Shadow Man since he took over the ride, but he said, “Riding doesn’t change, does it? Riding horses is riding horses. I was away from [eventing] for a while and I was delighted when I got back to it. Your skill set doesn’t leave you. I got very nervous at Aachen actually, because I thought, ‘What if I ruin my career and what if I’m old and I can’t go fast anymore?’ But that was nice to see that it doesn’t leave you. I am old though!”
“I’m really happy!” Burton enthused about his test and competitive score with Shadow Man, who is owned by Burton as well as Guy Bloodstock Ltd. “[Shadow Man] got on his toes! He’s a very relaxed horse and he got really excited because some guy [Michael Jung] went before me that the crowd liked to cheer for, but then I was just delighted with him—he went back to work, showing what a lovely gentleman he is and showing how well schooled he is. That was a real treat for me, and it’s always a buzz to be at the Olympics. He is a pretty cool guy—if they are a good nature, they’re a good nature.”
Halliday and Nutcracker Lead the U.S. Contingent
Elisabeth Halliday is the top-placed U.S. rider after dressage, joining the team after the withdrawal of Will Coleman and Diabolo. She sits in 19th place individually with The Nutcracker Syndicate’s Nutcracker (Tolan R – Ballyshan Cleopatra, by Cobra), scoring a 28.0.
“It’s a really odd place to be in emotionally, because the first thing I felt was devastation for Will, because I’ve been there. Before Tokyo. I was in the spot, and I didn’t get to go and so you’re overwhelmed with the fact that you move into the spot and also overwhelmed with sadness for your teammate, who equally earned his spot here,” Halliday commented, noting that she was able to shift her mentality and rely on her preparation to get into a headspace to step in for the team on such short notice.
Preparing Nutcracker for the Olympics
Speaking to Nutcracker’s performance as a relatively young horse (he is 10 this year), Halliday said she’s been focusing a lot on pole and cavalletti work to help him stretch and relax over his back. She noted that she has worked on straightness and fluidity in the four flying changes required in this test.
“I’ve sort of changed around some things, just tried to make him more relaxed and just really let it flow, and I think that’s helped,” she said. “Recently, I’ve just been practicing the movements, especially in the canter work, so he wasn’t surprised. I wanted him thinking, ‘Oh yes, I’m gonna half-pass, change, half-pass again,’ just getting him really comfortable with how things went.
“I have practiced a lot with poles on the ground to keep him straight because, when he’s nervous, he jumps sideways a little,” Halliday continued. “I think those are helping the changes—just trying to do whatever I can to help him learn to do [the changes] in a relaxed, happy way…It’s improving and I’m pleased that he’s getting the clean change every time, but that would be a little bit where he gets slightly nervous and is feeling the atmosphere a little bit. It’s a work in progress—it will be there.”
Americans Pamukcu and Martin Are in the Middle of the Pack
Olympic first-timer Caroline Pamukcu sits in 25th overnight as the next placed U.S. rider. She scored a 30.4 with Sherrie Martin and Mollie Hoff’s HSH Blake (Tolan R – Doughiska Lass, by Kannan). Boyd Martin and The Annie Goodwin Syndicate’s Fedarman B (Eurocommerce Washington – Paulien B, by Fedor) scored a 30.5 to sit just behind Pamukcu in 26th.
The Cross-Country Course Awaits
Pierre Le Goupil’s course will test the training, preparation, and partnership of each horse and rider here in Versailles. It’s a unique opportunity to design an Olympic cross-country course. The designer must balance challenging more experienced riders but not punishing riders from smaller nations with less access to stiff preparation. It’s also more of a nuanced task because this piece of ground has not previously host a cross-country track. Not having historical information regarding how a piece of land responds and how a course rides means all riders will be information-gathering as much as competing.
“There’s lots of [fences] that need a lot of respect,” overnight leader Laura Collett remarked. “The water at the top of the hill has a lot of options, and there’s a fence jumping into water [the horses] have not really seen before with the shape of it. It’s gonna come up very quickly because it’s at the top of a long pull up a hill but, to be honest, I think it’s as tough as any other cross-country course. You’ve got to be on your A game from start to finish, and you’re not home until you’ve gone through the finish flags. I’ve been walking it every day since Wednesday; it’s the most beautifully-built cross country course I think I’ve ever seen. It gives it a really nice feel because you want to get out there and attack it, and I’m looking forward to the pictures afterwards.”
An Overview of the Cross-Country Course
The course features an optimum time of 9:02 and 45 jumping efforts on 28 numbered fences. Riders noted that going from shaded tree lines into full sun will potentially affect whether horses read the questions correctly. Also, the three water complexes on the course have most riders buzzing about their potential for influence. The venue installed resodded turf specifically for this event. However, it can potentially mean slick going due to the grass not being as well-established as the native grass. Rain pelted down for much of Friday and Saturday. The grounds crew laid down gravel to aid in traction, but the footing will have changed from the initial course walks.
“It’s a hell of a course out there, but I feel like my horse is tailor-made for this sort of track,” Boyd Martin noted. “I’ve just got to stay switched on for every jump, every stride. I’ve got complete belief in Bruno in the cross country—he’s ready to go. Every jump counts, every moment counts. You can learn a bit by watching some of the others and getting feedback, but then this rain, the ground will be a bit ripped up, and that could be an extra challenge going later.
“I think I have just got to work at obviously going flat out, but then trying to keep him settled in the first mile,” Martin continued in terms of his strategy. “That’s when he gets really fired up, and so I’ve got to try and ride him fast but calm at the beginning. Then I think that there’s tough combinations the whole way around. And there’s nothing I see out there that we can’t do, but there’s a lot of jumps you could have a mistake at.”
More Information
View the full cross-country course on CrossCountryApp by clicking here. The cross-country phase begins at 10:30 a.m. local time/4:30 a.m. ET.
Eventing dressage individual results
Eventing dressage team results
For more Paris 2024 Olympic Games coverage, click here.
