‘We’re running out of time’: gold medal-winning horse ruled out of Olympics

Two-time senior championship team gold medallists Jens Fredricson and Markan Cosmopolit have been ruled out of selection for the Swedish Olympic showjumping team.

The combination, who were on the victorious squad at the 2023 European and 2022 World Championships, will not be available to travel to the Paris Games this summer, where Sweden will be defending the Olympic title won in Tokyo, after the 13-year-old gelding suffered a minor injury.

Jens said the Swedish warmblood had been resting after he picked up the slight injury at CSI3* event in Mannheim, Germany, early this month.

“He’s back at work and mounted, but we’re running out of time and so we’ve decided to forgo this summer’s Olympics,” he said.

Jens and “Cosmo” finished fifth individually at last summer’s Europeans in Milan; the pair had not touched a pole all week until the individual final and Jens described Cosmo as his horse of a lifetime; “very athletic, very clever and a beautiful jumper”, with a “really lovely personality”.

Strömsholms Marketenteri and Interbreed AB’s Cohiba gelding was once owned by a “deluxe riding school”, where Swedish riding instructors are trained, but was a bit too sensitive for the job; Jens competed him as a young horse and saw his potential.

All nominated entries for the Olympic showjumping, and certificates of capability, must be submitted to the FEI by 25 June. A final team of three horse and rider combinations, plus one alternate, will make the journey to Paris.

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