Near perfection was the price for a spot in the individual equestrian jumping final after a demanding qualifying session Monday morning that saw several surprise eliminations.
With the team jumping competition already wrapped, scores reset in individual qualifying with the top 30 riders moving on to the final round. Scores are primarily calculated by a rider’s total penalty points — awarded for both jumping and time violations — with secondary importance given to the time in which the rider completed the course.
It was the timing that determined riders’ fates on Monday as 20 riders tallied perfect scores. Hometown favorite Julien Epaillard from France topped the standings, finishing the course in 73.03 seconds, half a second clear of the next closest competitor. It was a strong performance from The Flying Frenchman, who finished runner-up at the 2024 World Cup and will look to win another medal to add to his team bronze.
Ireland also had a tremendous showing in qualification, with Shane Sweetnam and Daniel Coyle taking second and third place and separated by just three tenths of a second. Despite having just one Olympic medal in individual jumping — Cian O’Conner's bronze at the 2012 Games — Ireland has been strong in recent years. Sweetnam was a part of the silver medal team at the 2023 European Championships, while Coyle helped Ireland to a fourth-place finish at the 2022 World Championships. After finishing seventh in the team final, the two Irishmen will look to bring home their country’s second medal in the individual final.
Gold medal favorite and defending world champion Henrik von Eckermann also made it into the final with a perfect score, as did medal contenders Martin Fuchs and Steve Guerdat from Switzerland. All three members of Great Britain’s gold medal team made it through, including defending Olympic champion Ben Maher with four points.
For the United States, Karl Cook continues his sensational Games by making it into the final round, continuing his streak of perfect runs. Despite the fact he was a last second call-up to replace Kent Farrington, Cook has made a case for best U.S. performer and will look to add an individual medal to his team silver in his Olympic debut. He will be joined in the final round by teammate Laura Kraut, who at 58 is the oldest U.S. Olympic medalist in the past 72 years, after she made it through with a four-point score.
Leading the list of surprise knockouts in the qualification round is veteran U.S. Olympian McLain Ward, who despite picking up only four points missed out on the final after riding the course two seconds slower than the final qualifier. Swedish riders Peder Fredricson and Rolf-Goran Bengtsson, French rider Olivier Perreau and Germany’s Richard Vogel joined Ward and missed the final.