Asian Games Show Jumping, Tokyo: Saudi Arabia Wins Team Event Ahead of the United Arab Emirates and Japan
Asian Games in Tokyo: Saudi Arabia Wins Team Gold in Jumping
from Jan Tönjes 
The winning Saudi Arabian team at the Asian Games in Tokyo. Photo: FEI / Yusuke Nakanishi Even without its most successful rider, Abdullah Alsharbatly—who was handed a four-week suspension for receiving two warnings—Saudi Arabia’s show jumping team was unbeatable at the Asian Games. The Saudis’ final rider, Ramzy Al Duhami riding Untouchable, secured the gold medal in the day’s final competition. The defending champions were the only team to complete the two rounds in the decisive show jumping event without any penalty points.
Silver up for grabs
. Behind the Saudis, the United Arab Emirates and Japan were tied with four penalty points each. After the first run, the UAE had been ahead of Japan. The Japanese, who had only three riders competing and thus could not count on a discard, remained error-free in both runs.
But things didn’t go so well for the riders from the Emirates in the second round. Abdulla Almheiri and Omar Al Marzooqi each incurred four penalty points, bringing the team’s total back to four and tying them with Japan. The time, therefore, had to decide the outcome. The United Arab Emirates was 7.35 seconds faster overall than the Japanese hosts. This meant the silver medal also went to the Arabian Peninsula. Qatar finished fourth with five penalty points.
Course designer Louis Konickx had set up twelve obstacles with 15 jumps for both rounds at the JRA Equestrian Park in Tokyo. Both courses featured one double and one triple combination.
Match Winner Al Duhami
“There was a lot of pressure,” said final rider Al Duhami after his clear-round victory. “The team was counting on me; I couldn’t afford to make a single mistake, so I had to stay very focused. I was the anchor of the team, with a lot of experience. I had to be there that day, and I’m very happy that I was.” He continued: “I’m overjoyed. A gold medal is always something special. It was a long journey, with a lot of hard work, and the team pulled it off.”
The jumping competition continues on Saturday with the first rounds of the individual competition. The title will be awarded on Sunday.
