July 24, 2024—In a statement released by US Equestrian, chef d’equipe of the U.S. Olympic Eventing Team Bobby Costello confirmed that Will Coleman will now be competing at the 2024 Paris Games aboard his direct reserve mount Diabolo.
The 2012 Holsteiner gelding (Diarado x Aljano 2) is owned by the Diabolo Group and cared for by Hailey Burlock and Erin Jarboe. Diabolo will replace Coleman’s initially selected mount Off The Record, a 2009 Irish Sport Horse gelding (Arkansas x Ard Ohio).
Diabolo will now join the three-member team with Coleman, along with Boyd Martin and Fedarman B and Caroline Pamukcu and HSH Blake. Liz Halliday and Cooley Nutcracker are the traveling reserve combination.
Verge of Greatness
After winning the 2024 CCI4*-S with Diabolo at the Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event this past April, Coleman said he was pleasantly surprised but not shocked.
“He was giving me the feeling that he was on the verge of doing something competitive at a big event,” Coleman noted. “We kind of have just been patiently plotting our time until he was ready to show it to the rest of the world. I’m really keen on him and am excited about his future.”
With a score of 29.9, Coleman and Diabolo were in sixth place following the dressage competition at Kentucky. They went on to jump a fault-free cross-country round, which advanced the pair into second place on the leaderboard.
Going into the show-jumping phase at Kentucky, they were only behind Halliday and Miks Master C. But the pair set themselves up for the win by riding a clear show-jumping round. After Halliday and “Mikki” knocked down the second-to-last fence, the victory went to Coleman and Diabolo.
Challenging Transition
Diabolo originally came from Australia, and Coleman said the gelding had a difficult time transitioning to the Northern Hemisphere. He struggled with equine protozoal myeloencephalitis, gastrointestinal issues, ulcers and a number of other health issues.
“I think his system was in a state of shock. There are all sorts of things that can very subtly affect horses,” Coleman said. “And you could just tell he was struggling a little bit.”
Due to Diabolo’s challenges transitioning to the different climate, Coleman noted that he was extremely patient with the gelding and didn’t do a lot with him last year. He added that Diabolo’s health gradually—and eventually dramatically—improved.
“We just waited for him to tell us when he was feeling ready to go and start competing again,” Coleman said. “For much of last year, we kind of laid low and were pretty quiet while I got to know him. But I actually think that served us well.”
