The Brits will head to Paris as underdogs, however it’s going to be an attractive combat on the best, says H&H dressage editor Oscar Williams
Britain has a stellar dressage file on the Paralympics and has gained crew gold at each Video games for the reason that self-discipline joined the programme in Atlanta in 1996 – however the tides are turning.
In 2018 British dominance and a 22-year unbeaten streak at para dressage championships had been damaged by way of the Netherlands who took gold on the International Equestrian Video games, relegating the Brits to silver by way of 0.6%. On the Ecu Championships the next yr the Dutch gained gold once more, extending their margin of victory over the British to nearly 6% this time.
All of that intended that the British crew went to the Tokyo Video games as underdogs. With an green line-up of horses – all of whom had been making their championship debut – the drive used to be off with a lot of the click billing it as an opportune warm-up for Pairs.
However within the absence of expectation got here a freedom to take dangers, and the British crew delivered 3 exceptional, emotional assessments to scoop their 7th consecutive Paralympic name towards the percentages.
Since then, what we’ve come to understand as commonplace provider has resumed with the chastened Dutch conserving their international champion standing in 2022 – whilst the Brits slumped to their lowest-ever championship end in fourth – and their Ecu name remaining summer time.
So can the British crew disenchanted the percentages once more or do we see the Dutch do what they did not do in Tokyo and whole their championship assortment?
Smartly, regardless of now not but understanding which 3 combos will contest the crew pageant, be expecting the British riders to come back out more potent than on the Europeans.
Natasha Baker – competing at her fourth Video games – returns to the crew along with her Tokyo medallist Crack of dawn Refrain whilst debutante Mari Durward-Akhurst is the present international primary and can be driving the all-star Athene Lindebjerg, who competed on the Rio Video games in 2016 with Sophie Christiansen to win triple gold.
But it surely’s nonetheless onerous to seem previous the Dutch riders. Their two absolute best scorers from the Europeans – Demi Haerkens on Daula and Sanne Voets at the bona fide legend Demantur – are at the crew once more whilst Annemarieke Nobel on Doo Schufro and Rixt van der Horst on Royal Fonq are trending on upper ratings than the combos they’ve changed.
Ecu silver medallists Germany may even threaten the highest spots.
The well-backed USA squad also are a lot fancied and are below the tutelage of Michel Assouline, who led the British crew right through their golden run.
Whilst the upward thrust of those challengers might spell the tip of Britain’s duration of Paralympic dominance, prime requirements display how a lot the game has improved since Atlanta in 1996 the place athletes had been driving borrowed horses.
Regardless of the end result, it’s going to be an implausible watch with the equestrian venue at Versailles one of the most first two Paralympic venues to promote out – a stark distinction to the vacant grandstands of Tokyo.
H&H’s dressage editor’s Paralympic podium
Who gained the Paralympic dressage crew medals since 1996
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