Usman set for Asiad, misses ceremony

KARACHI:

Pakistan’s leading equestrian Usman Khan will make his Asian Games debut in Japan this month after years of financial and sporting setbacks, but the landmark moment will come with a disappointment.

The eventer is not expected to take part in the opening ceremony scheduled for September 19 at Aichi-Nagoya.

The Asian Games begin in Japan on September 19, with Usman scheduled to arrive in Tokyo on September 16. His discipline, however, has not been included in the list of sports whose athletes are due to participate in the opening ceremony.

Pakistan’s athletes from badminton, women’s cricket, fencing, kabaddi, martial arts, rowing, squash, table tennis and wushu are currently listed for the ceremony.

For Usman, the omission would mean missing a rare opportunity to walk into an Asian Games opening ceremony as part of Pakistan’s contingent.

The France-based rider has qualified for the Asian Games four times but was unable to compete at the previous three editions because of financial constraints. His participation in Japan, therefore, represents both a personal milestone and a breakthrough for Pakistan’s equestrian sport.

Usman and his horse Eden du Veret have arrived safely in Aachen, Germany, from France, where both are undergoing ten-day pre-export quarantine before travelling to Japan.

Eden, whose stable name is Miraj, will become the first horse sent by Pakistan to the Asian Games, while Usman’s participation represents a landmark for the country in the Olympic discipline of eventing.

The equestrian competition will be held at Tokyo’s JRA Equestrian Park from September 20 to 23.

Eventing combines three disciplines including dressage, cross country and show jumping, demanding both technical precision and endurance from horse and rider.

Usman and Mirage enter the competition as the No 1 ranked combination in the FEI Middle East and Africa region. His international record includes two gold medals, four silver medals and one bronze at the FEI events, making him one of Pakistan’s most accomplished riders in an Olympic equestrian discipline.

Usman’s journey to the Asian Games has been marked by setbacks that could have ended his international career.

He initially qualified for the Tokyo Olympics, but his horse Azad Kashmir died, forcing him to begin the qualification process again.

Later, while competing with another horse, Kasheer, tragedy struck again. The pair was close to the finish line in Olympic qualifying event in Australia when an accident occurred, killing Kasheer and leaving Usman critically injured. Had they crossed the finish line they would have been in the Tokyo Olympics.

He was hospitalised and spent months recovering.

The incident did not end his ambitions. Usman returned to training and eventually qualified for the Paris Olympics.

But Olympic qualification in eventing requires athletes to maintain the necessary ranking until the qualification deadline. Financial difficulties forced Usman to miss several competitions, causing his ranking to slip and leaving him on the reserve list.

He could potentially have entered the Paris Games if a qualified rider withdrew, but chose not to pursue that opportunity because he believed his horse was still too young and inexperienced.

Instead, he focused on developing the horse and building towards the qualification process for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

The Asian Games now provide Usman with another major international stage and valuable competition experience as he prepares for his next Olympic challenge.