Irish show jumpers Daniel Coyle and Shane Sweetnam experienced significant disappointment at the Olympic show jumping individual final in Paris. Both riders failed to secure clear runs, with their performances faltering on the challenging course at the Château de Versailles.
Daniel Coyle and Shane Sweetnam’s strong starts were undone by the difficult one-and-a-half meter jumps. The intense competition saw Germany’s Christian Kukuk, the Netherlands’ Maikel van der Vleuten, and Switzerland’s Steve Guerdat advancing to a jump-off for gold after their clear runs.
Competing towards the end of the event increased the pressure on Coyle and Sweetnam. Coyle’s first-ever Olympic run nearly ended perfectly, but his horse, Legacy, hit the rails four times on the final line, forcing them to retire at the last fence. Sweetnam’s horse, James Kann Cruz, also struggled, hitting the rails on two out of three jumps on the fourth line.
Coyle finished with 16 penalties, and Sweetnam with 12. Despite these setbacks, both riders delivered clear runs in the preliminary rounds to secure their spots in the individual show jumping final, highlighting their skill and determination.
