The stunning venue at Baji Koen set the stage for the long-awaited start of equestrian competition at these delayed Olympic Games. A hot, humid evening and an empty stadium greeted horses and riders as they kicked off dressage with the Grand Prix.

Three groups of 10 horses/riders compete on each of the two days, with the top two athletes from each group, and the six athletes with the next best scores (including ties) qualifying for the Individual Final (Grand Prix Freestyle). The members of each group are determined by World Rankings so that there are top riders included in each flight.

The FEI Grand Prix test, in which all athletes must participate, is also a qualifier for the team competition. The qualification ranking will be decided by the results of all three team members (no drop score as in the past).

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