Ladies in waiting
THEY dominate in Olympic dressage, but where are the women at the top of the podium in showjumping and eventing?
It’s a little-known fact that there has never yet been a female Olympic individual gold medallist in either of these two disciplines. A few riders have come close, including Sweden’s Sara Algotsson Ostholt, who had to settle for individual eventing silver in London in 2012 after rolling a pole at the last fence in the final phase, and women have appeared on winning teams. But even if we only go back as far as the 1964 Games (the first time that females were permitted to compete in Olympic eventing, eight years after the doors opened to them in showjumping), that’s still 14 consecutive male victories in each discipline.
Considering that the current world champions in dressage, showjumping and eventing are all female, it’s an interesting anomaly. But many
