Three Swedes.
Of sex.
No other nation was even nearby.
Malin Baryard Johnsson and Indiana, Henrik von Eckermann and King Edward and so the man all talked about in advance: Peder Fredricson together with the silver horse from Rio, All In.
And of course, this chronicle will be a little more about him, but first only, once again: Sweden had THREE crews with a chance of a medal.
Three.
It is breathtaking and in itself worthy of a tribute song to the jumping nation Sweden, the one that these three riders have been with and not only entertained but also built bigger and stronger.
Henrik von Eckermann and Malin Baryard Johnsson were both flawless in the jump, it is an incomparable achievement by incomparable riders sitting on incomparable horses.
"It was all or nothing"
And so, the brightest star of them all: Peder Fredricson. Who dared to believe that the now 15-year-old silver horse All In was ready for Tokyo. Despite delayed preparations. Despite his 15 years. Fredricson has no other horse with him for the championship, it was all or nothing and that was all. It was another Olympic medal.
Of course he went for gold and maybe he's a little disappointed.
He has the right to be, but I hope no one else hooks on that emotional train.
Defending an Olympic silver medal after five years, together with the same horse, but in a new competition format, is great.
Huge fact and you should know that NO OTHER rider, in modern times, has succeeded in the same thing.
In fact, no rider has managed the feat of being on the podium individually in two straight Olympics since Raimondo d'Inzeo who took silver in 1956 and gold in 1969. Now, if not before, Peder Fredricson is among the greatest.
And he is not alone.
Sweden is at the top now and no one has missed it.