British rider Jake Saywell said he is “honoured” to have jumped at the Youth Olympics in China — despite finishing out of the medals in the individual championship.
The Nottinghamshire-based 17-year-old was part of the gold medal-winning European team last week, but was only 10th in the individual at the weekend (23-24 August).
His teammate, Ireland’s Michael Duffy, finished fifth.
Gold went to New Zealand’s Emily Fraser. Martina Campi from Argentina won silver and Australia’s Jake Hunter took bronze.
The event — which hosts showjumping only — took place in Nanjing (16-28 August) with riders competing on borrowed horses.
“I was actually really pleased with my individual performance. My horse went a bit green going into the combination and just touched the first and the last part,” said Jake.
“It was a tough course, but I believe my horse could have gone clear if we had just a little bit of luck going into the combination, but that’s life. He has come on a lot this week and overall he jumped very well with just a few green mistakes.
“However, you can’t complain with going away with a gold medal so I am happy”.
The British Equestrian Federation’s Will Connell said Jake will have “learnt and benefitted” from the “multi-sport environment, the travel and the Olympic culture”.
“Clearly Jake gave his all for the European team and as an individual and his skill as a jumping athlete showed through in the way he improved what was a difficult horse. I hope we will see him on many a British team in the future.”
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