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The German modern pentathlon coach has been disqualified and will not be part of the men’s individual final at the Tokyo Olympics after hitting a horse with her fist earlier in the Games.
Coach Kim Raisner, according to Reuters, hit a horse with his fist during Friday’s show jumping in Tokyo and urged a German rider to “really hit” the horse when he didn’t want to jump.
“We all agreed that the coach will not be in the competition on Saturday,” German Olympic team chief Alfons Hoermann told Reuters. “We also consider that an urgent review of the incident is necessary, especially in terms of animal protection, and that the national and international federations draw their conclusions.”
German trainer hits horse that didn’t want to jump
Modern pentathlon horses are randomly assigned and riders only have 20 minutes to warm up with their horse before competitions. Germany’s Annika Schleu held a 24-second lead before the show jumping stage of the pentathlon, although Schleu’s horse Saint Boy struggled during the warm-up, according to the report.
Schleu became frustrated on several occasions when Saint Boy started refusing to jump and she screamed at the end of the race time because her lead had completely disappeared.
Raisner, however, urged Schleu to “really hit him, hit” the horse and even punched the horse in the back of the leg. Schleu was also seen hitting the horse on several occasions. The entire exchange was seen and heard on live television in Germany.
Schleu was one of the six riders who did not complete the stage and was eliminated.
“The rules have to change so that the rider and the horse are protected,” Hoermann said via Reuters. “The emphasis must be on animal welfare and fair competition for athletes.”
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