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Source: Reuters
Seventy one-year-old Japanese dressage rider Hiroshi Hoketsu has effectively ruled out making Olympic history in Rio 2016 - he says his horse will be too old.
Hoketsu rode in the London Games on Thursday a remarkable 48 years after he made his Games debut as a showjumper in Tokyo.
Swedish shooter Oscar Swahn is the oldest competitor in Olympic history, having taken part in the 1920 Olympics, aged 72.
But Hoketsu, who is based in Germany, does not feel he will be in a position to break Swahn's record at the 2016 Olympics.
"I want to go to Brazil, but I don't think I can," he said, after scoring 68.73 penalties on Whisper in front of a capacity 23,000 crowd at Greenwich Park.
"It will be difficult to find a horse for Rio de Janeiro. My present horse is too old for that.
"The biggest motivation for me is to keep feeling that I am improving. If I feel I am getting worse than before, then I will stop."
Hoketsu's Olympic career also saw him quality for the 1988 Games in Seoul, but he was unable to compete because his horse was quarantined, but he performed in Hong Kong four years ago, finishing 35th as an individual.
"In the time of the 1960s, participation was of more importance for everybody, but now I think medals are much more important," he added, before being engulfed by a posse of Japanese journalists.
"My first Olympics were 48 years ago, and I really don't remember how I felt at that time."
Dressage's opening day in Greenwich was also notable for the appearance of American horse Rafalca, which is part-owned by Ann Romney, wife of US presidential candidate Mitt Romney.
She watched from the stands as rider Jan Ebeling produced a solid test that gained them 70.24 per cent
"I had a good ride and it was a good score," Ebeling said.
"My horse felt fit and strong and I think she is peaking at the right moment."