Team, Open

Germany entered, therefore Germany won gold, as they had done at every Olympics since 1984. They were led by Isabell Werth who had been either the top, or second-best, dressage rider since the early 1990s. The Netherlands won the silver medal, as they had done in 1992-2000, led by Anky van Grunsven, the individual dressage champion from 2000-08. The United States had been bronze medalists at the last four Olympics, but they were beaten out of third this time by the Danish team. The United States was later disqualified when Mythilus, Courtney King-Dye’s horse, tested positive for felbinac, an anti-inflammatory medication. In March 2010, King-Dye’s career in international riding ended when she fell off her horse and sustained a traumatic brain injury. She spent four weeks in a coma and three months in inpatient rehab learning to walk and talk again. She eventually recovered, although not fully, and her injury inspired the campaign Riders4Helmets.