By Shadia Nasralla
TOKYO (Reuters) – Britain’s Oliver Townend, Laura Collett and Tom McEwen won team gold in equestrian eventing at the Tokyo Olympics on Monday.
Australia claimed the silver medal, improving on their third place in Rio 2016, and defending champions France took the bronze.
Individual eventing medals will be decided after further jumps later on Monday, with Germany’s Julia Krajewski in the lead, ahead of world number one Townend and McEwen.
Germany’s Michael Jung, winner of the individual gold in Rio and London, picked up penalty points on the cross-country course on Sunday and is a long way off the medal places as he will start the individual jumps on place eight.
Monday marked the culmination of eventing, sometimes referred to as horse triathlon, with its three tests of dressage, cross-country and show jumping. Men and women in equestrian sports compete on equal terms in the same tests, often beyond the age of 50.
Australia’s Andrew Hoy, 62, who took part in his first Olympics in 1984 and won team gold in 1992, was asked whether it was experience that had taken his team on to the podium.
“I think it’s age,” he said with a smile.
(Reporting by Shadia Nasralla, editing by Ed Osmond)
