An experienced New Zealand showjumping team has been named for the Tokyo Olympic Games.
Four-time Olympian Bruce Goodin heads the riders, alongside double Olympian Daniel Meech and Sharn Wordley.
Goodin, who is based in Sweden, has previously competed at Barcelona 1992, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008. He has been named aboard Backatorps Danny V.
Germany-based Meech wore the silver fern at Athens 2004 and Atlanta 1996, and will compete aboard the grey mare Cinca 3, while US-based Wordley, who has been named on Verdini d'Houtveld Z, competed at Beijing 2008. Meech placed 12th in the individual showjumping in Athens, New Zealand's best ever result in the discipline.
The travelling alternate rider is California-based Uma O'Neill aboard her grey stallion Clockwise of Greenhill Z. The non-travelling reserve is Tom Tarver and his grey gelding Fiber Fresh Popeye.
Goodin says it's an honour to be named for another Olympic Games. "It's always a thrill to be selected for the Olympic Games and represent New Zealand again," he said.
"It feels good to have Danny coming into good form at the right time. It is very exciting times. It will be a different Olympic Games I am sure but it is always very exciting to be there."
Equestrian Sports New Zealand high performance general manager Jock Paget, an eventing team bronze medallist from the 2012 London Olympic Games, says it had been a very long and challenging preparation for riders, horses, owners and support crew.
"The riders have had to take every opportunity to show form and deal with the endless disruption to their campaigns," he said. "They all showed an impressive amount of resilience and adaptability. Our hat goes off to not just our selected riders, but to everyone who lined up throughout this campaign and made the selectors' jobs difficult."
NZOC chief executive Kereyn Smith passed her congratulations onto the athletes. "It's fantastic to be naming such an experienced showjumping team for Tokyo. We wish the athletes all the best for the rest of their preparation and look forward to seeing them wear the fern and compete in Tokyo in just over a month," said Smith.
New Zealand has been represented by five showjumping teams at Olympic Games but the nation's first-ever showjumping Olympian was individual competitor Adrian White in Rome 1960.
The last time New Zealand had showjumpers at an Olympic Games was in 2008 in Beijing. Tokyo holds a special place in the hearts of Kiwi equestrians as the 1964 Olympic Games were the first time New Zealand had fielded a showjumping team at a Games.
The team:
• Bruce Goodin and Backatorps Danny V owed by Backatorp Ryder AB and Bruce and Ulrika Goodin
• Daniel Meech and Cinca 3 owned by Johnson Horses GmbH and Daniel Meech
• Sharn Wordley and Verdini D’Houtveld Z owned by Lauren Balcomb
Travelling Alternate:
• Uma O’Neill and Clockwise of Greenhill Z owned by Uma O’Neill Showjumping
Non-Travelling Reserve:
• Tom Tarver and Fiber Fresh Popeye owned by Lucinda Voss and Tom Tarver
Athlete bios
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Daniel Meech (DOB 19.11.1973) with Cinca 3 (owned by Johnson Horses GmbH and Daniel Meech) Tokyo will be Daniel's third Olympic Games, having previous ridden at Athens (2004) and Atlanta (1996), as well as the FEI World Equestrian Games (2018). Daniel has twice been on New Zealand's winning Nations Cup team. Daniel rides Cinca 3 owned by himself and Johnson Horses GmbH. Cinca is a 12-year-old German-bred grey mare who has been with Daniel since 2018.
Bruce Goodin (DOB 10.11.1969) with Backatorps Danny V (owned by owed by Backatorp Ryder AB and Bruce and Ulrika Goodin) Bruce has three times ridden in a New Zealand Olympic showjumping team and once as an individual – Barcelona 1992, Sydney 2000 (individual), Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008.
Bruce rides Backatorps Danny V and has twice been to FEI World Equestrian Games (2014 and 2018). He was a member of the New Zealand team to pull off a shock victory for their first-ever FEI Nations Cup showjumping win in Abu Dhabi in 2018 – the first show for Bruce and Backatorps Danny.
The Sweden-based combination have since been part of a second winning Nations Cup team. Backatorps Danny is a 13-year-old Dutch-bred gelding who joined his stable in 2018.
Sharn Wordley (DOB 08.06.1974) with Verdini d’Houtveld Z (owned by Lauren Balcomb)
Sharn represented New Zealand at the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008 and went on to compete at the FEI World Equestrian Games 2018.
Riding Verdini d'Houtveld Z, the US-based combination won a CSI3* Grand Prix in May 2021 in Kentucky and have been consistently in the top 10 in most of their outings. Verdini d'Houtveld Z is a 10-year-old Belgium-bred horse.
Travelling alternate, Uma O’Neill (DOB 23.03.1995) with Clockwise of Greenhill Z (owned by Uma O’Neill) California-based Uma has dual nationality and switched to ride with the silver fern in 2019. Earlier this year the combination were eighth in the CSI4* 1.55-1.6m Grand Prix in Mexico. Clockwise of Greenhill Z is a 14-year-old Belgium-born grey stallion who has been with Uma since 2015.
Non-travelling reserve, Tom Tarver (DOB 31.07.1985) with Fiber Fresh Popeye (owned by Tom Tarver and Lucia Voss) Tom, who is based in Germany but still has business interests in New Zealand, is on debut at Olympic level.
In 2020 the combination were second individual in the CSIO5* Nations Cup class in Abu Dhabi and part of the winning Kiwi team. Popeye is an 11-year-old New Zealand-bred grey gelding.
