German rider Naepel Britta wins individual Championship Grade II gold

Source: Xinhua | 09-08-2008 11:17

HONG KONG, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- German rider Naepel Britta won the first Para-equestrian individual championship Grade II gold medal of the Beijing Paralympic Games at the Shatin Equestrian Venue on Monday.

Gold medalist German dressage rider Britta Naepel waves to the crowds during the victory ceremony of Individual Championship Test  (Grade II) of Equestrian Events of the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games at Hong Kong Olympic  Equestrian Venue (Sha Tin) in Hong Kong,  south China, Sept. 8, 2008.(Xinhua Photo)

Britta ranked first out of the 18 riders with 71.900 percentage points. The silver went to Barwick Lauren of Canada who scored 68.454 points and Nielsen c.c. of Denmark took the bronze with 68.182 points.

Meanwhile, Peng Yulian of China and Yip Sui Hong of China's Hong Kong made Paralympic Games history Monday when they stepped out to compete in the Grade II individual championship test in dressage at Shatin arena.

It was the first time that China and China's Hong Kong sent riders in the Para-dressage events.

Peng placed 9th with 64.545 percentage points while Yip scored 50.545 points to rank the 18th.

In an interview with reporters after competition, Peng said "I was quite satisfied. It was an honor to represent China in the Paralympic Games. I just want to do my best in the Games, regardless of the ranking. I have chosen some lively music for the freestyle on Wednesday."

For his part, Yip said "both the horse and I did our best in the arena. I am satisfied with the performance, no matter how much the score is."

"We have been working very well. But the spectators in the arena made me a bit excited and also nervous", he added.

At an early age, Peng, now 22, suffered from poliomyelitis which left his legs paralyzed. In overcoming his disability, he trained in archery and played wheelchair basketball in his secondary school years, and also took up riding.

Yip, 39, has difficulty in using his legs because of cerebral palsy. His attraction to riding began at the age of eight with a visit to the local Riding for the Disabled Association. That gave him an opportunity to begin to learn about horses. But it was not until 2001 that he decided to take up riding seriously as a hobby.

Peng and Yip will also compete in freestyle tests on Sept. 10.

Editor:Xiong Qu