Meanwhile in Olympics: Angry Coach Booted From Games After Punching a Horse (Video)

We’ve all been so angry we could punch a horse, but that doesn’t mean we’d actually do it. Especially on live television in the middle of an Olympic event.

Not so for the German coach of the modern pentathlon, who decided that punching a horse needed to happen. The incident occurred just before the show-jumping round when the pony Saint Boy got nervous and tried to gracefully bow out of the event.

The pentathlon is a pretty sexy event that combines fencing, freestyle swimming, equestrian show jumping, pistol shooting, and cross-country running. But the surprise twist in the proceedings is that horses are handed out at random, with riders given just 20 minutes to bond with them.

The rider, Annika Schleu was in first place going into the jump, but after her horse got cold feet and started bucking, things went to horseshit.

The German coach yelled at Schleu to whip the horse with her riding crop, but when Schleu began to cry in frustration, the coach took it upon herself to do it. Seeing as how she didn’t have a riding crop handy, she just balled up her fist and went for it.

The spur of the moment fistbump got her disqualified from the Olympic Games which, judging from the video, seems a little harsh. After all, it’s not like she punched the horse in the face.

In the end, none of it mattered. The spiteful horse performed pitifully, earning his rider an impressive zero points during the show jump and helping her finish in 31st place. Though we’d give him gold for his impromptu moonwalk and ability to make a German athlete weep.

Cover Photo: Dan Mullan (Getty Images)

Visit the Mandatory Shop for great deals on your very own Mandatory merch.

Follow Mandatory on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

TRENDING


X