…got a Dutch flavour with the last rider of the night being a bit of a surprise.
Anky VG did an exhibition ride, and did a creditable job.
When they announced who was next, I gott say, my mouth hung open for a minute!
NJR
Why did she do an exhibition? Did she not qualify for the individual? If not, I don’t see why she would be the only rider to be allowed an exhibition ride (or were there many)?
Edited to add: I do see from the results that in 39th she didn’t qualify for the individual competition… still don’t know why she did a freestyle? I guess that’s cool for entertainment.
Anky VAN GRUNSVEN competed with the 8th-place-finishing team from the Netherlands. (She was 39th individually.)
The Exhibition was just that - to show off the sport of musical freestyle reining after the medal competition was over. There were 14 invited to perform (not compete), including Trevor Dare, Drake Johnson, and Pete Kyle (2008 FEI World Reining Champion).
I would imagine because she’s one of the few riders in the history of the games to cross-discipline in separate years.
I watched her run a couple of days ago. A HUGE improvement over what I viewed of her rides last winter/early spring. She’s come a long way.
She’s sitting on a really nice horse - a little strong, perhaps, but a nice, well-bred horse. That helps. It’s quite clear to me that she’s an extremely gifted and talented rider. To come that far in that amount of time speaks volumes.
Here’s a link to the freestyle ride:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iClJgY2DyrI
Thanks Go Fish and Mare’s Tail for the extra info!
