KEY POINTS:
HONG KONG - New Zealand's eventing team are contemplating a second consecutive Olympic Games campaign without a medal after their team and individual ambitions were dashed by Andrew Nicholson's elimination during the cross country phase today.
Nicholson, considered New Zealand's leading hope, was one of eight riders to come to grief on a treacherous 4.56km course at Beas River.
Under rules introduced on August 1, riders unseated during the endurance phase cannot contest the final showjumping component.
New Zealand ended a disappointing day as they started - in sixth position but well out of medal contention.
They have 210.90 penalties, in range of fifth-placed Sweden and fourth-placed Italy but an unrealistic 37 shy of provisional bronze medallist Great Britain.
Germany were the improvers after the dressage, overtaking Australia to head into tomorrow's showjumping round with a slender four-point buffer.
Nicholson's cruel demise continues the 47-year-old's wretched record at the Olympics.
Despite winning a team silver at Barcelona in 1992, his disastrous showjumping round on Spinning Rhombus gifted Australia the team gold medal after they dropped nine rails.
Both his mounts failed medical inspections shortly after they arrived in Sydney for the 2000 Olympics while four years ago in Athens - where New Zealand failed to make the podium for the first time since 1984 in Los Angeles - he finished 61st after falling off Fenicio.
Nicholson's miscalculation today proved as costly given he was expected to spearhead New Zealand's podium bid.
Ironically he was on track to record one of the fastest times but when his 17-year-old mount Lord Killinghurst cleared the first element of a tricky two-step combination slightly out of synch Nicholson could not prevent him mistiming the approach.
Lord Killinghurst never had enough impetus to scale the 2.13m brush and when struggling to gain traction Nicholson toppled forwards.
Nicholson's elimination means Mark Todd's cautious completion comes into play for New Zealand's final team score.
Todd and Gandalf produced a conservative though crucially clear round, incurring no jumping penalties though the time was a relatively pedestrian 9min 08sec compared to the optimum completion time of 8min.
Joe Meyer and Snip were again New Zealand's best combination after setting the tone with a polished dressage test yesterday.
Meyer maintained his 19th place on the individual standings, though only after successfully appealing the imposition of a 20-point jumping penalty imposed at the water jump.
He has 65.80 penalties while Powell paid for her teammates promotion to slip a place out of the top 25. Todd improved a place to 29th with 76.60 penalties.
Powell and Lenamore also produced a clean round other than the concession of 21.20 time penalties. Todd was 29th overall while Heelan Tompkins' struggles on Sugoi continued after she received 40 jumping penalties for running out and a refusal - at the same fence that caused Nicholson's downfall.
Seventh at Athens four years ago on Glengarrick, she was languishing in 56th place among a depleted field of 60.
Germany's Hinrich Romeike (Marius) took over the individual lead from Australian Lucinda Fredericks, the dressage leader who faded to 11th.
Romeike has 50.20 penalties, just half a point ahead of compatriot Ingrid Klimke on Abraxxas. Australian Megan Jones (Irish Jester) is third on 51, ensuring the final showjumping phase will be a tense occasion at Sha Tin.
- NZPA
