Phillip Dutton, a 57-year-old equestrian going to his seventh Olympics, is set to become the oldest U.S. Olympian since 2008.
Dutton, who took individual eventing bronze in Rio to become the oldest U.S. Olympic medalist since 1952, was named as part of the three-rider eventing team for Tokyo on Thursday, along with reserves.
Dutton won team gold for Australia in 1996 and 2000 before switching to represent the U.S. starting with the 2008 Beijing Games. He was born in Australia and moved to the U.S. in 1991.
Dutton, riding Z, a 13-year-old Zangersheide, is joined on the U.S. Olympic eventing team by 2012 and 2016 Olympian Body Martin (riding Luke 140) and former professional racecar driver Liz Halliday-Sharp (riding Deniro Z), a 42-year-old, first-time Olympian.
Dutton is the oldest U.S. Olympian since sailor John Dane III in 2008 and the second-oldest since the 1952 Helsinki Games, according to Olympedia.org.
Dutton formerly trained Water Cube, a racehorse that belonged to Michael Phelps and was named after the 2008 Olympic swimming venue. Water Cube died in 2019.
Eventing, known as the supreme test of total horsemanship, combines dressage, cross-country and jumping.
The U.S. finished 12th in team eventing at the 2016 Olympics and last earned a medal in 2004 (bronze).
The U.S. Olympic equestrian teams for jumping and dressage are to be named.
LIST: U.S. athletes qualified for Tokyo Olympics across all sports
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