KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand Olympic selectors have confirmed that a showjumping team will compete at the Olympic Games in August.
New Zealand won the Asia Pacific qualifier last June in Germany, beating nations such as Japan and South Korea.
The team also finished seventh at the Nations Cup in the United States recently.
The New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC) today said these performances demonstrated a steady improvement since they the showjumpers finished 11th at the 2004 Athens Olympics.
NZOC secretary general Barry Maister said the selectors were confident the showjumpers could post a significant result in Hong Kong, where the Olympic equestrian events were being held.
"Traditionally, New Zealand's strength has been in eventing but efforts by Equestrian Sports New Zealand have seen New Zealand showjumpers move steadily up the world rankings," he said.
"We expect the team will improve on the performance of the team four years ago in Athens."
Equestrian Sports New Zealand chief executive Jim Ellis was delighted with the team's selection.
"It gives the riders and the equestrian community some certainty.
"The team will now head to Europe for pre-Olympic competition and to have a fixed goal in sight will make high performance training more focused."
A squad of four riders and one reserve will be named in June, along with the eventing team.
- NZPA
