Germany win dressage gold

Isabelle Werth of the dominant team

Germany won the team dressage gold medal, their fifth successive Olympic title, holding off a strong challenge from the Netherlands.

Germany's best three riders finished on 5,638 points ahead of the Netherlands on 5,579. The United States secured third place on 5,165 points when Christine Traurig scored 1,746 points in the last ride of the day to overtake the Danish team.

The three medal winning countries have now finished the team event in the same order at the last three Olympics.

Germany have won each team dressage gold medal since the 1984 Los Angeles Games, and at eight of the 10 Olympics where the event has been contested.

Gold

"It's the best thing you can do, retiring with a gold medal," said Anton Fischer, head of the German Dressage Committee.

"I was lucky to be in six Olympics and it's been the most successful squad since I took over in 1973," he said of the team of Isabell Werth, Nadine Capellmann, Alexandra Simons de Ridder and Ulla Salzgeber.

Great Britain, who were sixth out of the nine countries at the halfway stage, finished out of the medals.