Finnish dressage rider Stella Hagelstam said on his Instagram that he was close to making it to the Paris Olympics, but lost the spot due to a peculiar circumstance.
In terms of athletic performance, the 40-year-old Finn would have been eligible for Paris. However, he had not done the owner registration of his horse in time enough.
Hagelstam was not aware of the registration rule. He also didn’t get to know about it in enough time. The registration should have been done in early January, while the Finn did it in March.
Hagelstam is frustrated about it.
– It’s still hard for me to believe that something that has nothing to do with sports will destroy my lifelong dream. We have tried absolutely everything, but the rules are the rules, and apparently nothing can be done, says Hagelstam in his update.
He has won the Finnish dressage championship six times and has competed at EC and WC level.