I think there is a maximum number of horses permitted across the Olympic disciplines so smaller teams = more nations able to compete.
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Boyd Martin just posted on his FB- Luke 140 is lame. Sexylegs is in. Hopefully he handles the trip ok!
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So why is there;
??
I don’t see that posted on his page anywhere! Did he delete it maybe?
He must have LOL Damn the one time I dont get a SS.
It is back up.
Most venues are limited in space and can only safely and comfortably house so many horses (plus additional grooms, vets etc.)
Losing my mind laughing at “Sexylegs.” Here is the COTH piece - he still has On Cue on the bench, too.
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LOL Equiratings came up with that and it kills me but it suits him so well, he is Sexylegs.
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Heck - the USA built a custom Equestrian Center to accommodate a ton more horses, and eventing was long format at that time.
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I have not seen the new rules in action before, so I do not yet have a mental picture of how they work. Just what I’ve read, which is confusing.
If the teams are allowed to substitute a horse and/or rider (is that how it works?), don’t they have to have Substitute Horse on the grounds? So isn’t that the same number of horses stabled per team?
Confused. 
I understand the reason to be since the fourth person provided a drop score, the thinking seems to be they shouldn’t get a medal. That leads to a 3 person team. More teams can be put in, but IMHO, eventing is too dangerous to open it up to countries not up to snuff. If they have to pass a certain level of competence, I am OK with that. We will have a traveling reserve and IDK if On Cue goes or not.
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Football (American) players know this: Bench wins championships.
To go the distance, you have to have highest quality backups. I think it is worth noting that Boyd and Phillip traditionally have more than one Olympic-ready horse, as does M. Jung. So those riders are going to the games, it is just a question of which horse.
Coach and/or rider have to be able to turn around to the bench and say “Next up”, and have one step forward that is truly effective on the field.
So many U.S. riders seem to struggle with having more than one ready 5* horse. The U.S. team as a whole does not typically have a next-up bench that is as strong as it is this year. I understand all the reasons that this is so, but nonetheless, “bench” is one of the reasons that the perennial elite are perennial elite - WFP, Andrew Nicholson, Phillip, Boyd, Jung (won Rio on backup #2), etc. They can turn to a quality backup. (There have been years when Phillip’s backup string was better than some of the mounts of the other team riders.)
Stronger & deeper bench (horses & riders) is something that I hope the additional U.S. 5* will help the U.S. develop. 
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The problem with the bench argument is that in the horse world you are reliant on sponsors and owners to get you to the upper level. If it is known, as has been for several years now, that it is going to be Boyd and Phillip and someone else, then owners that aspire to have a horse at those levels are going to go to Boyd and Phillip. It’s a self perpetuating situation.
It seems that possibly the current best pair we have in Ariel Grald and Leomore Master Plan are left out. They just finished 3rd in the Luhmulen 5* which I believe is the first podium finish in a 5* for the US in an overseas event in years. They previously had a 12th at Kentucky and a 10th at Badminton, so obviously she does well in the big events. Given the poor results we have had overseas it would be nice to have someone who has recently traveled and done well.
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I’m not saying that her results were not impressive and no knocks against Ariel, but I feel like comparing riders placings at this year’s Kentucky to this year’s Luhmuhlen is a little apples to oranges.
From my perspective KY seemed to draw stars from all over the world, not just top Americans but top riders from the UK, NZL etc. On top of that, its just two different courses and different weather conditions etc. The best way to compare riders IMO is in head to head competition.
Anyways, Ariel Grald and her horse do seem to perform well under pressure and you can’t ignore her placings from previous KY and Badminton. I am just personally not particularly upset that she was not selected this year’s olympics, but she’s definitely a name to watch for future competitions in the coming years!
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[quote=“luckycricket123, post:76, topic:760216, full:true”]
… I feel like comparing riders placings at this year’s Kentucky to this year’s Luhmuhlen is a little apples to oranges.
From my perspective KY seemed to draw stars from all over the world, not just top Americans but top riders from the UK, NZL etc. On top of that, its just two different courses and different weather conditions etc. The best way to compare riders IMO is in head to head competition. [/quote]…
Perhaps one variety of apple against another variety, after all, both events were set at 5* level?
Kentucky 5* remains a predominantly American affair. There were riders from 8 nations running. Luhmuhlen 5* (even with only 25 runners because of Covid restrictions) had 11 nations.
Kentucky 4* S had riders representing 7 nations, Luhmuhlen 4* S had 15 nations.
For Ariel Grald to come out and be so consistent in different events is noteworthy.
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I agree that Luhmuhlen 2021 will have a bit of an asterisk next to it in terms of finishing positions, just due to the limited field. It’s easier to finish in the top 3 out of 15 finishers as opposed to 43. That said, many exceptional riders fell victim to the course, so while there may have been fewer people competing for the top spot, there is no indication that it wasn’t a true test of competence at the level.
For me, the argument that Ariel should have been strongly considered for Tokyo was not made at Luhmuhlen, it was made at Burghley 2019 (it was Burghley, not Badminton, that they ran after Kentucky) - that year became known as a particularly difficult track, even by Burghley standards. She finished in the top 10, was the best rookie there, the second-best American (Lauren Nicholson finished immediately before her, in 9th), and they backed up their two strong 5* finishes in 2019 (which were both of their first two 5*s ever) with a great finish and a double-clear xc round at the 4L in Tryon in 2020. The Luhmuhlen result is cool and all, but for me it almost falls into the category of Sinead’s podium finish at Burghley in 2021 - it’s confirmation that it was a mistake to leave her out of the conversation, not a surprising result that came out of nowhere.
But hey, maybe I don’t know what I’m talking about. The horse ran just once this spring prior to Luhmuhlen, and while Ariel has said that was an intentional part of her prep, it’s possible they decided on this plan in the first place because they had a veterinary issue earlier in the year that kept them out of the discussion, or maybe they didn’t even declare for the Olympics and chose to pursue other goals. A part of me hopes that’s the case, and that the US didn’t just overlook someone who was proving themselves so consistently. They are a very, very exciting combination.
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Ariel did not compete at this year’s KY, which is probably part of the reason she was not an Olympic candidate. You can look at her and her horse’s FEI record and see why they weren’t serious contenders for an Olympic spot:
https://data.fei.org/Horse/Performance.aspx?p=3A14AB9B351566C636A96AE125B84ABE
I don’t say this to take anything away from them. I’m a huge fan and hope to see her competing for us at WEG! She is on the pre-elite list, so selectors are certainly aware of her capabilities.
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That’s not what I see when I look at their FEI record, but I understand how other people would have differing opinions. For me, thanks to the lack of drop score this Olympics is going to be about one thing, and one thing only: cross-country consistency. They have it, and they arguably have it more than nearly any other US combination.
That being said, I’m sure not running Kentucky (by choice or by injury) factored into selection somehow. I have no inside line on any of this, I just was very excited about their 2019 after what’s felt like quite the dry spell for the US. I, too, am excited for the WEG!
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