Equestrian: Injury to horse ends an Olympic dream

Daniel Jocelyn has been forced out of New Zealand's Olympic Games eventing squad after his horse, Silence, failed to recover quickly enough from an injury.

Team veterinarian Wally Niederer said yesterday that Jocelyn had simply run out of time to get the horse fit for the Sydney Games in September after a freak accident this month.

The horse injured a wither after a fall on a road near its stables.

The New Zealand horses are due to go into quarantine next week, and original planning required all the England-based horses to be fit before they left for Australia later in August.

It was not clear whether a replacement for Jocelyn would be named in the squad, who originally included six riders.

Mark Todd, Andrew Nicholson and Blyth Tait will each put three horses into quarantine, and could all ride both as individuals and in the four-rider team. Paul O'Brien is also in the squad.

Heading the list of reserves is New Zealand-based Heelan Tompkins with Glengarrick.

Niederer said the decision by Jocelyn to withdraw was a real blow for the Wainuiomata-born rider, who would have been making his New Zealand and Olympic debut.

"He knew in his own mind he would struggle to get [Silence] fit but we wanted to give him every chance.

"He's got a horse for the future though."

Niederer said an abscess had formed above the original shoulder cut and Jocelyn had taken the difficult decision to withdraw from the squad.

- NZPA