Great Britain fail in dressage but Hindle qualifies for grand prix

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Laura Bechtolsheimer made her Olympic debut, but was unable to help Great Britain secure a first team dressage medal as they finished sixth in Hong Kong.

Germany won gold for the second successive Olympics as they scored 72.916 per cent overall, while the Netherlands claimed silver with 71.750 and Denmark took bronze with 68.875.

Britain started the second day of team dressage in second place after Jane Gregory and Emma Hindle rode yesterday, but Bechtolsheimer's score of 65.917 on Mistral Hojris meant they finished with a team score of 66.805.

Gregory, on Lucky Star, had been tasked as pathfinder for Britain, but scored just 63.375, meaning they were always facing a difficult task to snatch a medal position. The top 25 riders go through to the individual dressage grand prix special and both Hindle and Bechtolsheimer qualified after they finished fourth and 24th respectively.