Published 15:18 IST, August 7th 2021
German pentathlete bursts into tears after horse refuses to jump, slips from top to bottom
German pentathlete Annika Schleu was left in tears after her horse refused to jump through obstacles and she slipped from top to the bottom of the competition.
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German Pentathlete Annika Schleu was left in tears after her horse refused to jump through obstacles and she slipped from the top to the bottom of the competition. Schleu, who was on top of the charts after the conclusion of two of the five events comprising modern pentathlon, dropped to the 31st position as her horse, Saint Boy, failed to cooperate during the riding part of the competition. Schleu had recorded the highest mark in the fencing event, which took place at Musashino Forest Sports Plaza on Thursday, August 5.
Imagine: You come 4th in Rio, you go again, train so hard, ‘Tokyo will be my Games’. The big day comes and it’s going brilliantly, you have one of the biggest leads in #Olympics history. And then a random horse ruins your dream. Crushing for Annika Schleu pic.twitter.com/sbXI3C8Ox1
— Jason Keen (@Jason_Keen) August 6, 2021
After the conclusion of the first day of the competition, pentathlon's official governing body, UIPM, had called Schleu the "undoubted star". Earlier, Schleu had expressed concerns regarding the horse she was going to use in the riding portion of the event, saying, "I am scared. We don't know the horse and dreams can just die in the riding. You can go from the first place to the last." Athletes are not allowed to bring their own horses to the event as they are randomly assigned their ride before the competition.
Schleu had finished fourth at the 2016 Rio Olympics. The horse that left Schleu without a medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics also refused to jump when Russia's Gulnaz Gubaydullina was competing in the third round of the event. Gubaydullina finished 32nd in the women's modern pentathlon, a rank below Schleu. Kate French of Great Britain eventually finished 1st in the competition and won the gold medal. Lithuania's Laura Asadauskaite and Hungary's Sarolta Kovacs won the silver and bronze medals respectively.
India at 2020 Tokyo Olympics
As far as India's run at the Olympics is concerned, the South Asian country has a total of five medals, including one team medal in the men's hockey competition. India has two individual silver medals in weightlifting (Mirabai Chanu) and wrestling (Ravi Kumar Dahiya) respectively, while two bronze in badminton (PV Sindhu) and boxing (Lovlina Borgohain).
Image: @_kraig_/Twitter
15:18 IST, August 7th 2021