Versailles, France—Aug. 6
There were three medals on offer in today’s individual jumping final at the Paris Olympic Games, and just three riders who qualified to jump off around the shortened course set by Gregory Bodo and Santiago Varela Ullastres. With the knowledge that he was already guaranteed a medal, Germany’s Christian Kukuk was relaxed about the jump-off.
“I knew I had a medal, so I felt zero pressure going in the ring,” he said. “I knew, it doesn’t matter what happens, I have a medal, and that’s already a really huge thing. But I also I knew what my horse is able to do; I knew what I am able to do; we won already two grand prix [classes] this year, so we are very competitive.”
First into the ring, Kukuk knew he needed a jump-off plan that would minimize the risks he took but still put pressure on the two riders to follow, and he was confident in Checker 47. They posted a clear round in 38.34 seconds—enough to put pressure on those coming behind him. He did. Steve Guerdat of Switzerland, on Dynamix De Belheme, and Dutch rider Maikel van der Vlueten on Beauville Z each had a rail to finish with silver and bronze, respectively.
“I was that quick that I knew the other two would have to take some risks, and then, I mean, it can happen that you have one down. That happened to both of them; they had one down,” Kukuk said. “I was the only double clear; that makes me very proud. I’m really happy for my horse. He really deserved this medal also. I think, in the last year, he’s most outstanding horse, and I’m just happy that we really made it.”
This is Kukuk’s second Olympics, after finishing 31st in Tokyo. He was riding a hot streak into this Games after winning the Rolex Grand Prix in Wellington, Florida, in March and the Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of Madrid in May.
“What a win. It’s the most emotional day in my life, honestly, in my career,” Kukuk said. “This is the highest you can achieve in in our sport. I’m one of only a few ones calling myself Olympic champion, Olympic gold medalist. This is something that will stay forever.
“I have to realize that still in the next days, probably is also a lot coming up for me, but in this moment, I’m just really, really proud and happy for my horse, my family, my staff, my groom, my whole team around, that all of them actually are here, and that I can share this moment with them,” he continued. “This is also something very special, because not many times you have all these people around you at Olympic Games. And I know that this is very lucky, and I really will enjoy this day.”
While Guerdat and Dynamix De Belheme were individual gold medalists at last year’s European Championships (Italy), Guerdat said jump-offs are their weakness and a skill he is still working on with the mare.
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“Today, I was kind of confident because it was doable; the time was not absolutely crazy,” he said after his jump-off. “From [fences] one to two, I had a very good turn, but then she overjumped No. 2, so I had to add a stride to No. 3, and then I lost time. Now I have to do—something else has to happen—and then you lose a little bit of focus on the whole because you are thinking about the time, so it was a mess.
“My jump-off was definitely not good enough, but I don’t mind,” he continued. “I’ll have enough time to think about all these things in the future. Right now, I just want to enjoy the medal that I won.”
This is Guerdat’s second Olympic medal after winning the gold in London in 2012 with Nino Des Buissonnets. While he didn’t match his previous medal in Paris, he made a promise to take the time to enjoy being an Olympic medalist and passed that advice on to Kukuk as well.
“I had a few regrets after London—that I felt that I didn’t enjoy it enough, running from show to show, head down,” he said. “Often when I look back, I say, this bloody medal is so difficult to have, [so] try and enjoy if you get the chance to get another one. Now, I got the luck to have another one. I have an amazing family, especially my wife and my daughter, so definitely going to spend a little bit more time in the coming months with them.”
Van der Vleuten is racking up quite the collection of bronze medals with Beauville Z, adding today’s to his medals from the Tokyo Olympics and the 2022 world championships in Herning (Denmark).
“The level is so high these days,” he said. “And of course, if you’re so close, and in the past, you have already a bronze medal, you aim for more. And I took that risk [but had] kind of an unlucky fence down in the jump-off. But still, this medal, it’s unbelievable to be, for the third time on a big championships, in the top three as an individual.”
Kraut Takes Eighth
The U.S. riders did not have the day they were hoping for. Laura Kraut and Baloutinue looked poised to have one of the day’s few clear rounds until they met the final fence wrong to have both rails of the oxer down. They finished eighth.
“My horse was just absolutely on it today. He didn’t deserve that,” Kraut said. “Unfortunately, I was a little worried for the time. I knew I’d taken [time] a couple of places, taking care, and so I felt like I was on the border with the time. So when I jumped second last, I thought, I’m just going to let him just come right on to the last, and unfortunately, the minute I did that, he kind of dropped in.”
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Kraut said she thought that if the final fence was set a bit straighter, it would’ve been fine, but she was almost parallel to it coming in, and she couldn’t get “Ballou’s” right shoulder out.
“Darn if he didn’t try to clear it. He did everything in his power to not have it down,” she said. “Pure rider error there for sure, which I’m gutted about.
“I can’t ask more of him,” she continued. “He’s going to be relieved he gets to go home. He can live without a jump-off. He’s been just spectacular this week. Few little errors each of the last three goes, but at least on this one, I can blame it all on me, which I can work on me when I know I have a powerhouse like him underneath me. I’d rather that than have a horse that’s just short of talent, so I’m a lucky girl.”
After jumping clear all week, Karl Cook and Caracole De La Roque met the double at 12AB wrong and had both elements down to finish 16th on 8 faults.
“We made a mistake around the turn,” Cook said. “I probably cut the turn too sharply and took my first distance and needed to be more patient. I think the one I tried to fit in was the correct one, but it was obviously done impossibly too late. She was jumping amazing before; it just sucks.”
The surprises continued when World No. 1 Henrik von Eckermann of Sweden fell from King Edward after Fence 8 when the pair had a miscommunication about which direction they were turning, and von Eckermann lost his balance. Switzerland’s Martin Fuchs also had a hairy moment with his Leone Jei. After a spectacular effort over the double at 5AB, Fuchs lost his left stirrup and jumped the remainder of the course without it. They were clear until the last, when Leone Jei barely touched it for 4 faults to finish 10th.
This morning, Great Britain’s Harry Charles announced that he would not be competing in the final after his horse Romeo 88 overreached and was not ready to compete. As a result Mario Deslauriers of Canada got into the final on Emerson.
The Chronicle has a reporter on site at the Paris Olympics. See all of our coverage here.
