Swiss end 88-year wait for show jumping gold

STEVE Guerdat, riding Nino des Buissonnets, won the individual show jumping gold at Greenwich Park yesterday for Switzerland’s first title in the event in 88 years.

Ireland’s Cian O’Connor and Dutch rider Gerco Schroder faced a jump off to determine the silver and bronze medals after finishing tied with one time fault apiece.

Schroder took second place, posting a clear round with O’Connor finishing third after his mount, Blue Loyd 12, knocked a pole off the last fence.

The 30-year-old Guerdat, bronze team medallist in Beijing four years ago, took the title as the only rider to register two faultless rounds.

This was the first time individual jumping gold had been won by a Swiss rider since the 1924 Paris Olympics.

Great Britain’s hopes of winning gold for the first time were scuppered when Nick Skelton on Big Star picked up four faults to finish in a tie for fifth with fellow Briton Scott Brash and Mexican Alberto Michan.

Guerdat and Skelton were among a group of only six riders to go clear in the first round of the two-legged final.

And with the Swiss posting a second faultless display the pressure was on last man out Skelton to force the equestrian equivalent of a penalty shoot-out.

The evergreen 54-year-old and Big Star hadn’t put a foot wrong at London 2012, but with one pole down the pair failed in their bid to double up after claiming gold in Monday’s team competition.

“It’s just one of those things, Big Star hadn’t touched a jump all week,” said Skelton.

He added: “Everyone thought it was going well, I did too, but I just touched the pole at the wrong time and that was it.

“I feel sorry for the people that came today. We expected to win and it wasn’t to be. But we got one gold, we would have settled for that before we came.”

Saudi Arabia’s Kamal Bahamdan, with a time fault in each round on Noblesse des Tess, came in fourth.