The Canadian Eventing Team could not have foreseen the unfortunate incident that took out one of their members, but the three remaining riders rallied and stayed in the medals.
Drizzly Dressage
A cold, wet day for the dressage phase did not dampen the spirits of the athletes or fans at the Caledon Equestrian Park. A number of the horses found the big atmosphere a bit disconcerting, including Bill Owen, ridden by Waylon Roberts, the first up for Canada. The 11-year-old CSH gelding historically turns in a solid dressage test, but had trouble focussing, which was reflected in their score of 65.10 which left them in 33rd position on day one. “As soon as he went in that arena, he was looking up into the stands the whole time,” said Roberts. “I think the atmosphere in there was a lot for him and he got very expressive.”
Colleen Loach and the lovely grey Selle Francais gelding Qorry Blue d’Argouges fared much better, scoring 51.80 and landing in 10th spot. “I was really happy with him, I don’t think we could have done much better for where we are now,” said Loach of their performance in her first major games.