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Still in the lead Australian riders have strong showing in cross-country
SYDNEY, Australia (AP) -- Australian riders galloped ahead of the competition during the cross-country phase of the team three-day equestrian event Monday to stretch its lead. Australia finished the cross-country portion with 114.2 total penalty points, padding the lead they established in dressage, followed by Britain with 127. New Zealand has 151.2, while the United States is in fourth place with 160.8 points. The blimp seen at the opening ceremonies downtown circled over the 50,000 spectators who were chanting the "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie" usually heard at soccer games here. The three-day event was devised a century ago as the test of a calvary officer's horse and is often likened to a war between the riders and the demanding cross-country course. In the cross-country phase here, each horse was required to cover 15 miles in 1 1/2 hours, with 32 hairy obstacles i the final 41/2-mile section, ridden at a hard gallop. There were 10 falls on course, and 12 of the 47 riders withdrew or were eliminated. One Belgian rider, Constantin van Rijckervorsel, had a broken ankle, and a Japanese horse was taken to a veterinary clinic with an injured ligament. The three best scores of a team's four riders count for the final score. One rail knocked down in show jumping on the last day costs 5 points. This sets up a dramatic showdown on Tuesday for all the medals. The three-day event is the equestrian equivalent of the decathlon, consisting of dressage on the first day, cross-country on the second and show jumping on the third. International three-day rules used to allow three falls before elimination. However, a dozen riders have been killed in the sport worldwide in the last three years so that rule has been tightened to two falls.
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