U.S. horses cleared for equestrian competition

Friday's Beijing Games were highlighted by the opening ceremony in the Bird's Nest. But the day also included the necessary business of preparing teams for the competitions that resume on Saturday.

At the equestrian competition center in Hong Kong, that meant riders leading their horses through an initial inspection. The U.S. Eventing team cleared each of its five horses during the review.

The U.S. horses are: Connaught, Courageous Comet, Mandiba, McKinlaigh and Poggio. The U.S. Equestrian Federation reports that "all looked very fit and sound" when they were presented before equestrian officials at the Hong Kong venue.

During the Games, the five-horse team from the U.S. will be one of 11 teams vying for medals. The U.S. team begins its competition early on Saturday morning in Hong Kong.

-- Greg Johnson

Photo: Two officials watch an eventing rider show his horse on Friday during the first inspection for the eventing competition in Hong Kong. Credit:Jochen Luebke / European Pressphoto Agency

U.S. equestrian team replacements named

Heidi White has withdrawn Northern Spy from the U.S. Olympic team in eventing, citing veterinary reasons. The U.S. Equestrian Federation named three-time Olympian Karen O’Connor and Mandiba as the replacement rider and horse.

The following horse/rider combinations have been named to the 2008 U.S. Olympic team in eventing:

Phillip Dutton/Connaught; Becky Holder/Courageous Comet; Gina Miles/McKinlaigh; O'Connor/Mandiba and Amy Tryon/Poggio II. Replacements: Bruce Davidson/BallyNoe Castle RM; Phillip Dutton/Woodburn and Bonnie Mosser/Merloch.

The horses will be shipped to the Hong Kong equestrian venue on July 30, the equestrian federation said.

Chinese investigate bird deaths at equestrian venue

Two dead birds were discovered at the Olympic equestrian venue in Hong Kong, Associated Press reports, and Chinese authorities are testing whether they were infected with the bird flu virus.

The birds were found last week, equestrian competition official Mark Pinkstone said Monday.

Though the H5N1 bird flu isn't a threat to horses, it can be lethal to humans. Hong Kong has struggled with bird flu over the years. Six people died during a 1997 outbreak.

Olympic equestrian events, which will be contested between Aug. 9 and 21, were moved from Beijing to Hong Kong because of a rash of equine diseases and substandard quarantine procedures on the mainland.

The Veterinary Department Equine Clinic is part of a state-of-the-art facility at the Shatin Olympic Equestrian Venue in Hong Kong. Credit: Philippe Lopez/AFP/Getty Images

Horses on their way to China

The first of more than 200 horses that will compete during the Beijing Games' equestrian events deplaned in Hong Kong earlier today. The early arrival is supposed to help the animals get acclimated to the city's hot and humid weather.

Airplanes carrying the horses are landing at Hong Kong International International Airport. After landing, horses undergo preliminary quarantine testing.

"All traveled very well and the disembarkation process went very smoothly,” veterinary surgeon Christopher Riggs told Associated Press.
Horses traveled to Hong Kong from Belgium, Denmark, Korea, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Canada, Germany and the United States.

About 230 horses will land in China before the end of this month.

The Olympic equestrian events will begin Aug. 9. The competitions were moved from Beijing to Hong Kong because of equine diseases and substandard quarantine procedures on the mainland.

The horses are being cared for by The Equestrian Company, a Hong Kong-based company that has recruited more than 1,800 volunteers.

-- Greg Johnson

Photo: Hong Kong has built state-of-the-art facilities for the equestrian teams that will compete in the city as part of the Beijing Games. Credit: Philippe Lopez/AFP/Getty Images

A 'deadly ride' on HBO 'Real Sports'

The second segment of tonight's HBO "Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel" (10 p.m. EST/PST) deals with equestrian eventing, specifically, the cross-country portion in which horse and rider jump over fences.

When athlete and horse safely clear fences that often are designed to look like such whimsical things as houses and animals, the sport is, as "Real Sports" correspondent Frank Deford describes it, "the most exhilarating Olympic sport that you've never even heard of."

But when things go wrong, it turns into what "Real Sports" calls a "deadly ride." The cable television program reports that the cross-country portion of equestrian eventing is under scrutiny because of a deadly string of accidents during the last two years that has left 15 riders and a dozen horses dead.

Tonight's show isn't for the faint of heart because it includes often-graphic footage of horses falling on top of riders.

The show includes an interview with top rider Darren Chiacchia, who tells Deford about a near-death experience after nearly being crushed to death when his horse toppled onto him during a failed jump. Deford also interviews the mother of two children who died in separate horse-jumping accidents.

U.S. Equestrian Federation President David O'Connor agrees that "it is a crisis" because so many unexplained deaths have occurred in such a short period of time.

But O'Connor also tells Deford, that, in the end, it is the "rider's responsibility" to ensure that athlete and horse remain safe.

Equestrians and fans of the sport have created the Equestrian Aid Foundation to help riders who have been injured.

The nonprofit organization's website currently is collecting funds for rider Laine Ashker, who was severely injured in a cross-country accident on April 26 in Lexington, Ky. The fund reports that her recovery will be "long and extensive."

Other segments on "Real Sports" include a look at the rough-and-tumble world of female gymnastics and the story of Lopez Lomong, who grew up in war-ravaged Sudan and now runs for the U.S. Olympic team. Diane Pucin blogged about the gymnastics segment at "Ticket to Beijing" on Monday.

-- Greg Johnson

Weather a worry for equestrian events

Olympic organizers may postpone some equestrian events in Hong Kong if typhoons or extreme heat threaten the safety of the horses.

Emergency measures are being mapped out, Mark Pinkstone, spokesman for the Hong Kong equestrian committee, told reporters in Beijing today.

Bloomberg News quoted Pinkstone as saying, "We will only postpone if it's unsafe for the horses. We may postpone the start of an event for an hour or two if conditions proved to be unsafe."

Between April and November, Hong Kong typically faces heavy rain and extreme heat as typhoons and tropical storms sweep through the South China Sea.

Switzerland’s equestrian dressage team in January withdrew from the Olympics on concerns that its horses would be stressed by the journey and would struggle to adapt to conditions.

Hong Kong has built elite-level facilities, including stables equipped with air conditioners and misting fans to cool the horses, Pinkstone said.

-- Debbie Goffa

Photo: Tony Shea, Olympics stable manager, checks the stables at the equestrian site for the Olympic event in Hong Kong. Credit: Mike Clarke / AFP/Getty Images

Dutch show jumper breaks leg

Dutch show jumper Albert Zoer, who has been considered a favorite to win an equestrian gold medal in Beijing, broke his leg in two places today, according to the Associated Press.

The 32-year-old rider was training a young horse when he fell, according to a statement issued by the Royal Netherlands Equestrian Union. The union did not say which leg was broken.

The union's statement describes Zoer as "one of the pillars of the Orange quartet for the Olympic Games in Hong Kong," but added that "it is too early to say" whether the rider will be able to compete.

-- Greg Johnson

Photo: Dutch showjumper Albert Zoer celebrates a July 6 win in Germany. Credit: David Hecker   AFP/Getty Images