There was shock in the Paris Olympic eventing cross-country as Germany’s second team rider Christoph Wahler was eliminated after a fall from Carjatan S.
The pair opted for the right hand route at fence 16abcd, The Viewpoint over the Grand Canal, when Christoph became unstuck after the ditch before the arrowhead.
“I can’t really tell you what happened. He just stepped into the ditch with his hind leg and I got bumped out of the saddle. He was going brilliantly before,” said Christoph.
“Thank God he is absolutely fine. He’s happy as always, just wondering why it was such a short course. I wish it wouldn’t have happened today, but there’s not much more to say and I can’t really tell you why it happened. He went down the step ok, had a short three strides which was the plan, and then just sort of stepped into it.”
Germany had been in silver medal position ahead of the cross-country phase, 7.4pen behind Great Britain. They can now swap in their alternate combination Calvin Bockmann and The Phantom Of The Opera for the final showjumping phase, but will carry 200pen for Christoph’s fall, and 20pen for the substitution. Or Germany can still use Christoph and Cartajan S, as it was not a horse fall, and this would only carry the 200pen, and no substitution penalties.
The German team was not the only to face disappointment, with Australia’s Kevin McNab and Don Quidam opting to retire in the latter stages of the course. Kevin quickly pulled up when he felt Don Quidam didn’t feel right, and he’s been taken to the vet clinic to be checked. Australia can now swap in alternate combination Shenae Lowings and Bold Venture.
Liz Halliday on her Olympic cross-country: “It felt fantastic”
Liz Halliday and 10-year-old Nutcracker, who were called up last minute to the Games, put in a sterling performance for the USA in the Olympic eventing cross-country, jumping clear with just six time-penalties to add to their 28 dressage.
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“It feels great to have it done. They always say what’s your favourite jump and I always say the last!” laughed Liz.
“It felt fantastic. The ground is definitely influential, he had huge studs in and he still slipped on me pretty early on. Before going out we had discussed maybe going the left side of the bank (fence 16abcd) and I had a split second in my brain because he tripped in the first ditch (fence 15) but I thought ‘No he’s careful, that will tune him up for the next one’ and he did it perfectly.”
Liz said Nutracker noticed the “incredible” crowds early on.
“He’s a sharp, sensitive horse and I just gave him a bunch of pats, talked to him and said ‘You’re alright buddy’. So maybe I was a little slow to fence three because I just gave him a bit more time, and that kind of suits him. But once he did the first water, he settled in and he never looked at the crowds again. He was just on his job 100%.
“He had some slips and I thought ‘Ok, this is not the day to fall on the flat’ and that’s where I would say all my time-faults came from. I was just being a little bit careful on the turns, because he’s a big powerful horse and I really wanted to get the job done well, because it’s also his future. But all the jumps rode well, and he was outstanding.”
End of day update: Following the conclusion of the Olympic cross-country Liz Halliday and Nutcracker lie 22nd individually, with USA ninth in the team standings. The German team are 14th, and Australia 15th.
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Since joining H&H in 2018, Becky has covered a broad range of equestrian news including welfare matters, veterinary studies, FEI Tribunal hearings and road safety campaigns. She has also interviewed top riders including Scott Brash, John Whitaker and Ian Stark, to name just a few. Becky’s reporting has taken her to Canada for Spruce Meadows and France for Pau five-star, as well as the Royal Highland and Blair Castle International Horse Trials closer to home. She was also a key part of the remote reporting team for the Tokyo Olympics and the Europeans.
