Horse riding will be removed from modern pentathlon's programme at the Olympics from Los Angeles 2028, the sport's governing body UIPM has announced, with a consultation process soon set to get underway to find a suitable replacement.
The decision comes after Germany's modern pentathlon coach Kim Raisner hit a horse at the Tokyo Games when it refused to jump a fence.
Ireland's Natalya Coyle also saw her prospects of a medal ended when her steed, Constantin, performed poorly, refusing a number of fences and incurring time faults.
Superb displays in the two fencing rounds and swimming had lifted Coyle to fourth place overall, but she plummeted to 19th place and could not recover in the final laser run, finishing 24th in the final standings.
"First, we know that this information will be surprising and even shocking to you," the International Modern Pentathlon Union said in a statement.
"It is not very long since we made a commitment to review and protect the Riding discipline in the wake of the rescheduled Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. But life within the Olympic movement changes fast.
"The decision to replace Riding comes after our UIPM Executive Board endorsed a series of recommendations made by the UIPM Innovation Commission after a two-day meeting in Monaco last week."
