Two horses were held for re-inspection at the Olympic showjumping first trot-up, which took place at 7.30am local time (6.30am British time) this morning at the Paris Games.
France’s Kevin Staut’s ride Viking D’La Rousserie and Contendros 2, who is piloted by Mexico’s Andres Azcarraga, will be re-inspected at 4.30pm local time (3.30pm British time) this afternoon.
Former European champion Kevin is hoping to start in his third Olympics, having won team gold in Rio in 2016 and competed at London 2012. He and SAS Finegal’s 15-year-old chestnut Viking were on the team that came sixth at the 2022 World Championships and second at the Nations Cup final that year. They jumped a double clear to help France win the Rotterdam League of Nations in June.
Equine data analytics company EquiRatings say France have a 5% win chance in the team contest and an 18% chance on being on the podium.
Championship debutant Andres Azcarraga has been riding the 17-year-old stallion Contendros 2, owned by his rider and the rider’s father Jaime, for nearly nine years. They recently jumped a double clear in the Aachen Nations Cup.
Assuming the two horses held at the Olympic showjumping first trot-up make it through this afternoon, they will join the rest of the contenders in the team qualifier tomorrow, when the Olympic showjumping kicks off. Riders from all 20 teams will jump one round against the clock with time and penalties combined to rank each competitor. The top 10 teams then progress to Friday’s team medal decider, when they start again on a clean slate of zero penalties.
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Pippa is a true eventing geek and has been H&H’s eventing editor since 2005. She has first-hand experience of competing up to British Eventing intermediate and international CCI2*-L level, and has worked in the industry on a top event yard. Pippa enjoys nothing more than immersing herself in the sport at the highest level, reporting from the five-stars and international championships, including the Olympics.
