Karlsson takes the field as Sri Lanka’s first ever Olympic Equestrian

By Shehan Daniel reporting from Tokyo, Japan 

Sri Lankan-born Swede Mathilda Karlsson will take part in the Equestrian Jumping Individual Qualifier today, the first athlete representing the country in the sport at an Olympic Games. 

Karlsson’s event will begin at 3:30 p.m. Sri Lanka time, and she will compete in a field on 73 riders, both male and female, vying for one of 30 spots in the finals. 

Karlsson will be the last of the nine athletes in Sri Lanka’s contingent to take part at Tokyo 2020 and will hope to buck the trend by qualifying for the finals of her event. 

She was the first athlete from Sri Lanka to qualify for the games, having accumulated enough qualification points by the December 31, 2020 deadline given for Equestrians hoping to participate in the Olympics. 

However, some of the points were invalidated by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI)after the governing body questioned the legality of some of the events that she participated in, effectively pushing Karlsson out of Olympic qualification. 

She however didn’t back down, presenting her case to the Court of Sports Arbitration (CAS) who ruled in her favour and reinstated her place at the Tokyo Games. 

Karlsson qualified for the games with her horse, Chopin VA, an 11-year-old Stallion, which she co-own with two other parties.