Eqn: Aussies on track for best ever team show jumping result

AAP General News (Australia)
08-18-2008
Eqn: Aussies on track for best ever team show jumping result

By Melissa Jenkins

HONG KONG, Aug 18 AAP - Australia is on track for its best team show jumping performance
at an Olympic Games, having progressed to the team final tonight.

The nation finished on 20 penalty points - equal to Germany - which was the lowest
score of the top nine teams.

But there are less than two rails - at four penalty points each - between Australia
and the leaders.

Switzerland and the United States had the best score of 12 penalty points each, followed
by Sweden (13), Great Britain and Canada (16) and the Netherlands and Norway (17).

The best team Olympic result for Australia was seventh at the 1964 Tokyo Games.

Edwina Alexander, 34, was the stand-out Australian rider last night, completing a clean
round, while 23-year-old Matt Williams excelled in the pressure position of last team
rider aboard Leconte.

The only blemish for Williams, who lives in Belgium, was one rail on the last jump.

"The horse was on the job," Williams said.

"At the moment he is jumping out of his skin, I couldn't ask him to be any better.

"I just choked a bit at the last (jump), grabbed him a bit too much and sort of was
in a rush to finish.

"Next time I'll learn from my mistake."

Australia's oldest Olympian at these Games, Laurie Lever, 60, and Brisbane based Peter
McMahon incurred 16 penalty points each. The top three scores out of the four riders for
each team count towards the team's total.

Australia most recently jumped in the final at the Sydney Olympics and finished 10th.

Chef d'equipe Stephen Lamb said Australia was heading towards its best-ever performance.

"It is the best we have been in recent memory anyway, the team's standing," he told AAP.

Lamb said it was fantastic to be just two rails off the leading team.

"We are equal to Germany, so look, they all did a great job."

Alexander wanted to ride third out of the four Australians riders because she rode
in that position at the World Equestrian Games in Aachen, Germany, two years ago, Lamb
said.

Lamb said despite Williams being the youngest member of the team he had the maturity
to be able to handle riding last.

"The guns go last. He is young and it's a big job to do it but he did it really well," he said.

"He is a hard, competitive rider and he just stepped up to that really well."

Last night's team qualifier doubled as the second qualifying round for the individual
competition.

All four Australian riders finished in the top 50. If they are placed in the top 35
riders after tonight's round, they will progress to the next stage of the individual competition
on Thursday night.

There will be two rounds on Thursday. After the first round riders will be whittled
down to the top 20 competitors who will progress to the final round.

AAP mj/vm

KEYWORD: OLY08 EQN AUST NIGHTLEAD

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