A German coach has been kicked out of the Olympics after she was filmed appearing to punch a horse after it refused to jump.
Kim Raisner was filmed leaning over a fence to strike the horse Saint Boy during the women’s modern pentathlon competition.
German athlete Annika Schleu had been struggling to control the horse ahead of her show jumping round in the Tokyo Olympics on Friday.
TV footage showed the animal refusing to jump the fences, which cost the German athlete a chance at winning the gold medal.
Athletes are given 20 minutes to bond with an unfamiliar horse before their round.
Schleu, who had been leading the field, was in tears as she came into the ring.
The International Modern Pentathlon Union (UIPM) said it reviewed footage which showed the coach appearing to strike the horse with her fist.
In a statement, it said: “The UIPM Executive Board (EB) has given a black card to the Germany team coach Kim Raisner, disqualifying her from the remainder of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
“The EB reviewed video footage that showed Ms Raisner appearing to strike the horse Saint Boy, ridden by Annika Schleu, with her fist during the riding discipline of the women’s modern pentathlon competition.
“Her actions were deemed to be in violation of the UIPM competition rules, which are applied to all recognised modern pentathlon competitions including the Olympic Games.
“The EB decision was made today at the Tokyo Stadium before the resumption of the men’s modern pentathlon competition.”
Her suspension applies for the rest of the Olympics in Tokyo, which end on Sunday.
It was unclear if she was supposed to have had any role in the men’s competition in modern pentathlon on Saturday.
The coach is a former modern pentathlete who competed at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.