The 15 penalties awarded to Ros Canter and Lordships Graffalo during their Paris Olympics cross-country round as anchors for the British team in the Olympic eventing competition have been upheld following a review by officials, it has been confirmed.
Ros and the 12-year-old gelding, owned by Archie and Michele Saul, with whom she won Badminton in 2022, plus team and individual gold at last year’s European Eventing Championships, looked to have jumped a silky smooth cross-country clear, finishing seven seconds inside the time. However, they were deemed to have missed a flag at fence 21d, a triple brush at the final element of The Whimsical Woods, on Pierre Le Goupil’s track.
Ros and the British camp were “confident” that the Olympics cross-country penalties would be removed once the official video footage was studied, however this has proven to not be the case.
Following her round, Ros said: “I touched a flag coming out of the triple brushes in the woods, but I would never have imagined that I didn’t jump the jump. I didn’t come back and think I’d done anything but go clear inside the time, so hopefully the penalties will be removed.”
Fence 21d, the final element of The Whimsical Woods, where Ros Canter was given 15 penalties
Crucially, even with 15 penalties attached to Ros’ score, Britain remains at the top of the team leaderboard after the Olympics cross-country day on a score of 82.5. France are snapping at their heels in silver on 87.2, which will make tomorrow’s medal-deciding showjumping rounds incredibly tense.
Ros scored 23.4 in the dressage and, had she remained penalty-free across country, would now sit in fifth individually. As things now stand, she is on 38.4 in 24th.
It is worth noting that the proposed change of format for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics may see cross-country as the final phase in the team competition and this type of lengthy review will have to be ironed out if eventing is to finish on this phase. It was six-and-a-half hours between today’s cross-country concluding and this decision being ruled – a long wait for team medals to be decided will not wash in four years’ time.
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