The defending champion Charlotte Dujardin produced an inspired performance as she cruised into Wednesday’s Olympic individual dressage final. Dujardin, gold medallist at London 2012 and in Rio, scored 80.963% aboard major championship debutant Gio to complete a clean sweep of British qualifiers.
Her double Games winner Valegro was retired after Rio but Dujardin continues to work her magic, finishing second in Group F behind Germany’s Isabell Werth and joining her teammates Carl Hester and Charlotte Fry to compete for individual medals. The trio also comfortably secured a place in Tuesday’s team final, going through as second-best qualifiers, and they appear on course for a third successive Olympic medal after gold in London and silver five years ago.
Germany, winners of every Olympic team title – apart from London – since 1984 are favourites, but they will have been jolted by a British trio that included one rider – Fry – and all three horses making Olympic debuts. Despite Gio’s inexperience at international level, he took to the sport’s biggest stage with aplomb.
“I couldn’t have asked for any more from Gio,” Dujardin said. “He is just unbelievable – he gives me everything he has got. I really felt emotional towards the end of the test. He adjusts to whatever I ask and gives me his best. It could have been a full house today and he would have performed the same.
“He is such a pocket rocket. That to me, tonight, was as good as winning. For me, where he is right now with his training, he couldn’t have done any more.”
Adam Peaty remains on course to become the first British swimmer to retain an Olympic title as he reached Monday’s men’s 100 metres breaststroke final with the fastest time of 57.63. There were no medals for the Brits in the pool on Sunday, with Max Litchfield fourth in the men’s 400m individual medley final. Team GB’s women finished fifth in the 4x100m freestyle relay final. Kathleen Dawson and Cassie Wild reached the semi-finals of the women’s 100m backstroke, as Sarah Vasey qualified for the women’s 100m breaststroke semi-finals. Tom Dean reached the semi-finals of the men’s 200m freestyle.
In boxing at the Kokugikan Arena, Charley Davison clinched a 5-0 points win over Rabab Cheddar in the women’s flyweight contest while Benjamin Whitaker was victorious in his first-round bout against Jorge Luis Vivas in the men’s light-heavyweight competition. Luke McCormack, meanwhile, progressed in the men’s lightweight division. Davison will next take on China’s Chang Yuan while Whittaker goes up against Egypt’s Abdelrahman Salah. McCormack, whose twin brother Pat is competing at welterweight, now faces a last-16 bout against the dangerous Cuban Andy Cruz.
In rowing, John Collins and Graeme Thomas have battled through to the final of the men’s double sculls while Victoria Thornley made it into the semi-finals of the women’s single sculls. The men’s quad sculls and women’s four also won their repechages, to reach their respective finals.
Team GB have clinched qualification for the artistic gymnastics team finals after finishing in sixth place, with Jessica and Jennifer Gadirova both qualifying for the all-around individual finals. In badminton, Marcus Ellis and Lauren Smith beat Joshua Hurlburt-Yu and Josephine Wu 2-0 in the mixed doubles.
In table tennis, Paul Drinkhall has advanced to the third round of the men’s singles following a 4-1 win over Austria’s Robert Gardos.