First-time OlympianJessica Springsteenwill leave Japan with a silver medal.
They ever-so-narrowly trailed Sweden after tying in the final but then came up a little more than 1 second short in the jump-off. (Belgium won bronze.)
The second-place finish is a repeat of the event five years ago in Rio de Janeiro.
Jessica, 29, told reporters earlier this week that the Olympics had been a dream for a long time.
“I’ve got my horse [Don Juan van de Donkhoeve] jumping beautifully. I’m thrilled with the way he’s jumping,” she said Friday.
That echoes what she told PEOPLE earlier this year: “The partnership you have with your horse is everything, and with Don I have a really, really strong partnership. Sometimes you get a horse and it can take you a long time get to know each other, but with him, we came together quickly and we’ve been able to build on that ever since.”
There were challenges in Tokyo, though.
“I definitely had a lot more nerves today, as opposed to the first day,” she admitted after the team qualified for the final but she failed to advance in the individual competition.
“I want to make everyone at home proud and have a good performance for my teammates,” she said. “And I think we’re sitting in a good spot.”
But her horse’s performance in the fall was the light bulb moment about her chances in Tokyo, she said: “I think in our sport, it’s so much to do with timing, you have to really have the right horse at the right time.”
Given her family, Jessica has fielded questions about her last name as well.
“I just try to stay focused on what I’m doing and what I’m here for basically. I’ve been so grateful that my parents have supported me throughout my career,” she told reporters this week. “They’ve been on this journey for me. It’s been like a huge dream for them as well. So I’m just really happy that I can make them proud. And I just try to focus on what I’m here to do.”
She was competing with two Olympic veterans: Kraut and Ward, both of whom are past champions in the team jumping event.
Ward raved of Jessica ahead of the final, telling the press on Friday: “Jess is brilliant, the horse is brilliant.”
She has returned the praise in kind
“Just to be selected to this team with riders that I’ve looked up to throughout my career is a huge honor for me,” she said this week. “It’s great to be here.”
The Springsteen men also ride, Jessica said Friday.
“We have western horses on my farm in New Jersey,” she said. “So we’ll all go out with my brothers, like out in the woods and everything.”
To learn more about Team USA, visitTeamUSA.org. Watch the Tokyo Olympics now on NBC.
source: people.com
