Equestrian: Meech makes history in showjumping final

8.45am

ATHENS - Daniel Meech slipped from a medal winning position at the Olympic Games today to finish an outstanding 13th in the showjumping final in Athens.

Meech, 30, went into the final round lying third, one point behind co-leaders Jessica Kuerten of Ireland and the vastly experienced Briton Nick Skelton. His world ranking before the Olympics was 89th.

He had soared into medal contention with a near flawless first round on Diagonal, sullied only by a time penalty for finishing less than half a second outside the 86sec limit.

After a cautious opening to the final round, Diagonal put down three fences as Meech dropped out of medal contention.

A medal was still in prospect until Meech took the middle fence of the treble, the fifth combination of 10.

That dropped him to nine points, one behind Chris Kappler of the United States and Brazilian Rodrigo Pessoa, who had a jump off for the silver medal which was won by Pessoa.

A fallen rail at the last and one time penalty completed the damage, relegating Meech to 14 points.

Meech was downcast after the final, saying Diagonal had lacked the zip he had earlier in the day.

He rued the dropped rail at the last, which pushed him outside the top 10.

"The real bummer for me was that last fence," he said.

"I can't be disappointed, it's a great result for New Zealand showjumping but when you're so close ... but in the end that's horses and showjumping, you can be up and down.

"If he'd come out this round and was fresh I could have a medal now, that's life."

Legendary horseman Mark Todd turned in the previous best Olympic showjumping effort by a New Zealander when 26th equal on Bago at Seoul in 1988.

Failure to grasp a medal with both hands could not wipe out the fact he had completed the greatest effort of any New Zealand showjumper in Olympic Games history.

Pessoa and gold medallist Cian O'Connor of Ireland, who finished on four points, had the only clear rounds of the evening session.

Had Meech jumped clear, the gold medal would have been his. One rail down, he had the silver.

Kuerten and Skelton were, with Meech, the only riders of 46 finalists who did not drop a rail in the first round, 570m punctuated with 15 towering jumps.

Four hours later Meech, based in Germany, and Diagonal were back in the ring, taking on a new course.

Watching were those who had finished before them, sweating on the mistake that would hand them a coveted Olympic medal.

It came, as Diagonal looked nowhere near as assured as he had earlier.

Meech was odd man out in the final, a Hawke's Bay raised colonial in a field packed with jet-setting Europeans and Americans on their multi-million dollar horses.

Diagonal, a 10-year-old stallion with a passion for bananas and the blue Powerade energy drink, was never close to flicking off a rail in the opening round.

Safely over the last fence, Meech punched the air in unmitigated delight.

"You're not allowed to talk about medals," he told NZPA after he dismounted.

When the enormity of what he had done sunk in, he was lost for words.

"I just can't believe I jumped a clear round in the final of the Olympics," he said, shaking his head.

"It was a big difficult course and he jumped it easy.

"It has to be the best round he's ever jumped, and what a day to do it!

"I knew he could do it, I knew it all along."

Meech led the Olympic Games field for 36 minutes, until Kuerten -- the 30th of 46 riders away -- went penalty free.

Grant Cashmore, the other New Zealand rider to make the 45-strong final, finished 40th equal, after Franklin's Flyte copped 20 penalties.

Cashmore was set to make the evening round, until Franklin's Flyte took a rail at the last three fences.

Among the other riders to miss out on the ultimate round was American Beezie Madden, who had three clear rounds in qualifying.

Crack European riders Jos Lansink of Belgium, the 1992 Olympic champion, Leopold van Asten of the Netherlands and Swede Malin Baryard also missed the cut.

Cashmore, 35, told NZPA his horse had jumped the fences easily. He was proud to have made the final.

He rated his Olympic experience as phenomenal.

"I've just learned so much."

- NZPA