At WEG, France takes the team Gold but Spain gets an individual endurance victory
He took the lead a few kilometres before the finish: After 100 miles (160km) and over nine hours in the saddle, Miguel Vila Ubach (ESP), was the first rider to reach the finishing line in the main stadium of the Soers.
In an exciting finish the 32-year-old cantered past his two French fellow competitors and was greeted by the 20,000 spectators with a burst of ecstatic applause.
“My horse can fly,” commented the rider, who took the European Championship title in 1999 and who also came 14th at both of the World Championships in Dubai (1998) and the Hague (1994). Before the last leg the participant from Catalan was dragging four minutes behind the fastest rider. The two French competitors, Virginie Atger (21) and Elodie Le Labourier (24), who were pipped at the post, crossed the finishing line almost simultaneously.
Elodie who came in third said elatedly: “We rode together and now we want to collect the medals together.” Her wish came true: The French team won the gold medal for the second time after also taking the team title in 1994.
The World Championship competitors had to complete six legs through the hilly terrain of the German/Dutch/Belgian border area and pass six vet checks. The competition came to an early close for many of the riders.
Only around half of the overall 159 riders from 42 nations completed the ride. They were either withdrawn from the competition by the vets at the “vet gates” or the riders retired. The subsequent horse inspection after the ride is unique to endurance riding: The horses have to be presented to the vets again half an hour after completion of the ride. The competitor’s result is only valid if the horse passes the vet check.
The World Championships took a disappointing turn for the Germans. Sabrina Arnold was the only rider who managed to finish among the top rankings, taking 13th place. Her elder sister, Melanie, was eliminated together with the individual German rider, Marianne Hähnel. The other two team members, Belinda Hitzler and Susanne Kaufmann, didn’t finish high up in the rankings, but finished the ride.
The Belgian team who were leading at the halfway mark, had one of its riders eliminated. And with the elimination, all hopes of winning a medal were shattered.
The riders from the United Arab Emirates wre also eliminated. The team was made up of four of the reigning Sheik’s sons. Two riders were eliminated after the second and third vet gates and the other two, who were in the lead, failed to pass the fifth vet check.
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