Equestrian: Johnson in hunt for Olympic spot

Clarke Johnstone says winning this year's World Cup would do wonders for his prospects of making the New Zealand squad for the 2012 Olympic Games. Photo / Christine Cornege

Come what may this weekend, Clarke Johnstone will head to England next Wednesday confident of having a strong case for inclusion in next year's Olympic Games.

The 24-year-old rider from Matangi, east of Hamilton, is a runaway leader in the World Cup three-day-event standings, having won the Australian and New Zealand legs of the seven-round global circuit.

His champion bay gelding Orient Express, with whom he won in Sydney 10 days ago and at Kihikihi, near Te Awamutu, last month, is having the weekend off.

But in Incognito and Secrets, Johnstone - a member of the bronze medal-winning New Zealand team at last year's World Equestrian Games - has two quality entries in the advanced class at the national three-day event starting tomorrow at Aratiatia near Taupo.

"It's been a pretty good run so far this season and I'm very happy with how the horses are going," Johnstone said.

He has a healthy lead in the World Cup, where riders' three best results count, as he also picked up a third in Kihikihi.

Four events remain, in Sweden, Poland, Belarus and France, and Johnstone will consider riding the French leg from August 18-21 if his lead is under threat.

Johnstone has 118 points, 10 clear of Australian Chris Burton. First prize on the circuit is €28,000 ($51,000). Only three other riders have won two World Cup events in the same year.

Johnstone is taking five horses to England and he will be based in Gloucestershire, close to former Olympic and world champion Blyth Tait, who is making a comeback with the London Games in mind.

Five New Zealand riders are the frontrunners for the five Olympic spots - the peerless Mark Todd, fellow six-time Olympian Andrew Nicholson, Caroline Powell, Jock Paget and Johnstone, with Tait hoping to force a six-into-five situation in the coming months.

Johnstone appreciates the importance of winning the World Cup title.

"It is a fairly prestigious series so that would be great for publicity for me going to Britain and hopefully making a good introduction there.

"And there's a pretty decent prize pool, which would help getting the horses there."

Johnstone will take it easy on Orient Express this year. However he is aiming to contest the teams event with the other leading New Zealanders at Aachen, Germany, in July, and the four-star Burghley event in September on Secrets.

Johnstone was on the long-list of contenders for the Beijing Games in 2008 but instead opted to stay in Dunedin and finish his Bachelor of Commerce and Finance.

With that in hand, he has turned his attention to a serious run at the equestrian game.

"It will be just fantastic to be on the [Olympic] team," he said. "The way things are going I think I've got a pretty good shot. Now I've really got to focus on keeping improving and producing good performances."

Cantabrian Brent Jury and SE Big, the national one-day event champions, and defending champion, former Olympian Heelan Tompkins of New Plymouth riding Major Difference, should be solid contenders this weekend. There are 260 entries altogether.