Equestrian: Course far too easy, says Tait

Defending champion Blyth Tait is worried the Olympic Games cross country course for the individual three-day event is just not tough enough.

He said the event might just turn into a dressage test, with too many horses getting around the endurance track clear and without any time faults.

Tait is seventh after the dressage, on a score of 40.8, with team-mate Mark Todd fourth on Eyespy II with 39.

Veteran American David O'Connor is leading on Custom Made. Their test was brilliant, and deserved the stunning score of 29.

Tait said he was worried a soft cross country course could make the dressage scores too influential on the final result.

"I don't think the course is strong enough ... there's some hot combinations. There'll be a lot of clear rounds."

The time should prove straightforward for many riders, he said. The team three-day event endurance phase included a 7.4km cross country course over 32 jumps, with a 13m 5s time limit.

The individual contest is based on the same cross country, with three jumps removed, but no change in the time allowed.

"It's certainly got less jumps and less combinations, so you think it would ride smoother."

Tait was bitterly disappointed with his dressage score of 40.8.

The world and Olympic champion sets high standards, and although much of Welton Envoy's test was superb, three times the horse broke when trotting, costing them an even better mark.

"I think that's probably the worst test he's ever done in his entire life, and unfortunately we chose to do it at the Olympic Games," he said of his Kentucky horse trials winner.

"But he's still competitive on a 40. I don't know what got into him but just before I started he wouldn't do that medium trot circle. He just kept popping into canter.

"That in some ways is a little bit being lazy, not being fresh, he just didn't want to engage."

Tait said his plan for the cross country was "to go fast and clear. That's plan A".

Todd, who won back to back individual gold medals on Charisma in 1984 and 1988, said the hot weather did not seem to affect the thoroughbreds in the teams contest, and he hoped that would be the same for the individual.

"The fit horses got around well in the team event, and some of the others struggled a bit that you might have expected would struggle."

- NZPA