- Only two German show jumpers reach Olympic finals
Only two of the three German show jumpers made it to the individual Olympic final on Tuesday. It was a nail-biter before Philipp Weishaupt with Zineday and Christian Kukuk with Checker managed to qualify. Only the top 30 out of 74 pairs could advance to the medal round.
"We would have preferred if all three had made it," said national coach Otto Becker, commenting on Richard Vogel's elimination with United Touch. "Now we have two horses in the running, but we'll have to ride clean if we want a shot at the podium. None of our riders managed that in qualifying, so Weishaupt and Kukuk's spot in the final wasn't guaranteed."
Team leader falters
Christian Kukuk, the German team's leader, was first to go, just as in the team competitions. Like in the final that ended with a fifth place, the 34-year-old from Riesenbeck had four faults with his horse. "I had two scenarios in mind beforehand. Either I ride clean and have a great starting position in the final, or I have a speed fault but still have a chance because I'm among the fastest. That's what happened."
Bitter Olympic farewell
Richard Vogel had a bitter Olympic farewell. The 27-year-old from Marburg picked up 12 faults with United Touch and missed the final by a wide margin. After the first knockdown, Vogel was under pressure. "I had to make a quick decision," said the debutant. He had to speed up, but two more knockdowns followed. "It was a bit too hectic, too rushed," said the rider. "I lacked the necessary calm to execute the jumps cleanly from that speed."
Philipp Weishaupt, the last German rider to go with Zineday, also had four faults, like his stablemate Kukuk. However, he didn't have to wait as long to qualify 30th and last for the final. "That's fine," commented the 39-year-old from Riesenbeck on the close call.
"Despite the challenges, we're still hopeful for a podium finish with two German show jumpers in The Olympic Games final. Philipp Weishaupt and Christian Kukuk are our representatives after qualifying."
"The Olympic Games final is just around the corner, and we're eager to see how Philipp Weishaupt and Christian Kukuk perform, following their qualification despite having four faults each."
