Andrew Hoy and Vassily de Lassos are placed 13th individually after the dressage phase. 

© FEI/Christophe Taniére

Australia paced 6th after the eventing dressage phase, with Great Britain the top team and Michael Jung the top individual at the completion of the dressage phase

By Equestrian Life

Triple gold medalist Andrew Hoy showed his immense experience and skill today, producing a very polished and accurate test with the elegant chestnut Vassily de Lassos to score 29.60 penalties. The result sees the pair occupying individual 13th place heading into Sunday’s cross country phase, while the Australian team of Andrew Hoy, Shane Rose and Kevin McNab are now placed 6th at the completion of the dressage phase.

Reigning Olympic Champion Michael Jung and Chipmunk FRH head into cross country day in the gold medal position after producing an outstanding test this morning that scored 21.10 penalties, with all three judges placing the pair at the top of the leaderboard. What a wonderful way for Michael Jung to celebrate his 39th birthday! Day 1 leader and World number 1 ranked rider Oliver Townend is 2.50 penalties behind Jung in the silver medal position on a score of 23.60 penalties, with China’s Alex Hua Tian just behind him in the bronze medal position on 23.90 penalties.

Michael Jung and Chipmunk FRH

© FEI/Christophe Taniére

Great Britain are in the gold medal position on 78.30 penalties heading into tomorrow’s cross country phase, with a lead of 2.10 penalties over team Germany, who sit in silver medal position on 80.50 penalties. New Zealand currently occupy the bronze medal position at the conclusion of the dressage on a score of 86.40 penalties, ahead of Japan in 4th on 90.10 penalties, Sweden in 5th on 91.10 penalties, and Australia in 6th on 93.40 penalties.

With scores extremely close in both the team and individual leaderboards, there is no doubt that the jumping phases will be extremely influential. As fans wait in earnest to see how the new format will play out, the riders will now focus on preparation for a challenging day of cross country action.

The Tokyo cross country course will be 2 minutes shorter than the Rio course due to the hot climate, with 36 jumping efforts if direct routes are taken. This number rises to 45 if riders choose the long route on the Derek di Grazia designed course.  The track can be viewed on the online interactive map here.

Full results from the dressage phase can be found here.

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