– The Olympics have always been a dream for me, but the competition is very tough in the US. In our sport, a lot is about timing, hJessica Springsteen previously told in a DN interview.
– We are a strong jumping nation with both many established stars, and many young people who are on the rise.
This time, the timing was perfect for Jessica Springsteen, who is the daughter of rock legend Bruce Springsteen and singer and guitarist Patti Scialfa.
During the spring and summer competitions, she and Don Juan van de Donkhoeve have been responsible for strong efforts, and according to the American national team captain Robert Ridland, it is the form of the day that has decided which four crews he has taken out.
In addition to Jessica Springsteen The American team consists of Kent Farrington on Gazelle, Laura Kraut on Baloutinue and McLain Ward on Contagious.
At 29, Jessica Springsteen is the youngest in the gang, and the Olympics will also be her first senior championship ever.
The three other riders, on the other hand, have lots of championship routine.
45-year-old McLain Ward was involved in taking Olympic gold in teams as early as 2004. Four years later it became a new gold medal and at the Olympics in Rio 2016 he was part of the US silver team.
55-year-old Laura Kraft was part of the US gold team in the 2008 Olympics and Kent Farrington in the silver team in 2016.
McLain Ward and Laura Kraft also took part in the World Cup gold in 2018 when the USA defeated Sweden after a dramatic jump-off.
A rider which was highly topical for the team was 57-year-old Beezie Madden, who has ridden home a large number of Olympic and World Cup medals, but on Sunday she announced that her horse Garant was not ready for a championship.
“Right now he is not ready for what will be required of him in an Olympics,” he wrote Beezie Madden on Instagram.
Even though four riders have been selected for the team competition, only three will be allowed to ride. Even in the individual competition, only three are allowed to start. However, it does not have to be the same three as in the team competition.
The press release does not say whether it is already clear who will be the reserve.
As usual, the USA is considered a strong gold candidate in the team competition.
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