India’s chances ride on Fouaad
A little over a month ago, Fouaad Mirza was a relieved man. Fouaad had finally sealed India’s lone equestrian Olympic berth, after overcoming several hurdles along the way.
Fouaad was affected by multiple lockdowns in his base at Germany, and was also forced to keep his horse Dajara 4 in quarantine after an outbreak of Equine Herpes Virus.
As the Olympic qualification deadline fast approached, Fouaad was desperate to gain the Minimum Eligibility Requirement (MER) needed to book a Tokyo spot. That several qualifying events were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic only made his task harder.
The breakthrough came in May, when Fouaad achieved the necessary MER on both his horses, Seigneur Medicott and Dajara 4, in the CCI44*-Long eventing competition in Baborowko (Poland).
The Bengaluru rider, backed by Embassy Group, has chosen Dajara 4 as his equine partner for the Olympics.
“At the Olympics, we have two rounds of show jumping after cross-country, which is Medicott’s weak link. That was the main reason why we chose Dajara,” Fouaad explained during a recent media interaction.
