DeRosa Daily Equestrian Olympic News
Horsesdaily Veteran Olympic Reporter Diana DeRosa Brings Us Into Her World

U.S. Meets Its Bid for A Second Olympic Gold Medal

Victory for the U.S. team has been especially sweet.  They won the Gold in Athens but only after the top placed team lost it after testing positive to drugs.  Naturally if you are going to win a Gold Medal you’d like to do it at the Olympics and not afterwards.  So this time getting the Gold on Olympic soil was gratifying, especially to McLain and Beezie who were also part of the Athens Team.  Their other teammates then were Chris Kappler and Peter Wylde.

The question did come up in the Press Conference and a comment was passed that the U.S. had won in 2004 by default and McLain was quick to defend the U.S. team noting, “We didn’t win by default.  Someone was caught not playing by the rules.  Today was not an explanation point for the United States but for North America in general.”

McLain added, “We did it and it’s really exciting.  There are a lot of people behind us to make it happen, and we want to thank them.  Without them we are nothing.”

In the first qualifier Beezie’s was the drop score but in the second qualifier it was Simpson.  He made a bold dash for the water but got a fault there and then later in the course his horse dropped a rail.   Yet he wasn’t dismayed.  “He is a very smart horse and he made a very good effort.  He was brilliant.”

Rarely does a jump-off for the team medal happen and the riders weren’t totally prepared when they found out the U.S. and Canada were tied.  “We were a bit dazed and confused.  We were running back to the stable trying to find our horses and get organized,” explained Kraut who was riding the least experienced horse in the group.  “All we knew is we had to jump a clear round and go fast and McLain set us up for that.  But the Canadians made us fight for it.”

Despite Cedric’s greenness, “He won the Olympic Trials and it was a bit of a surprise,” explained Laura. “I wasn’t sure after if I would go to the Games or not but George had a lot of faith in me.  He (Cedric) knew when to shine and I felt really happy for him.”

Laura admitted that this Gold was very important to them.  “It’s like a dream come true, amazing.  And dreams do come true.  We wanted a Gold medal very, very badly.  I’m thrilled at what we did.  We are on the top.”

Beezie also spoke up about not having to compete in the final round.  She was the drop score in the first round when her horse reacted strangely and missed a jump.  In the second round she had a foot in the water.  “I wish I had sealed it the second round,” she commented.  “It was a great feeling that we had won the Gold medal so I was very happy that I didn’t have to ride.”

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