Shruti Vora rewrote the history books on Thursday after she became the first Indian rider to claim a three-star Grand Prix event by winning in Lipica, Slovenia with a scoreline of 67.761 points.
She triumphed after finishing ahead of Tatiana Antonenco (Aachen) of Moldova and Juliane Jerich (Quarter Girl) of Austria. While Tatiana aggregated a score of 66.522, Juliane accumulated 66.087 at the event.
Shruti found her "special achievement" immensely "satisfying" and vowed to work hard and bring more laurels to the country in the coming days.
"I am extremely delighted with the result. I have worked hard and the victory is indeed satisfying. The win has come in an Olympic year and that makes it significant.
"The fact that I am the first rider from the country to win a three-star event makes it a special achievement. I will keep working hard to bring laurels for my country," Shruti was quoted as saying in an EFI release.
The veteran rider has already represented the country in several global events including the Dressage World Championship (2022) and the Asian Games (2010, 2014).
The Secretary General of the Equestrian Federation of India, Col Jaiveer Singh lauded Shruti's efforts and mentioned that her achievement is likely to inspire more women to take up the sport professionally.
"This is great news for the Indian equestrian fraternity. This inspiring performance from Shruti has made the country proud. Many women are taking up the sport and such milestones will inspire many more riders to strive for excellence," said Col Jaiveer Singh in a press release issued by the Equestrian Federation of India (EFI).
Notably, India had also performed really well at the Hangzhou Asian Games in the equestrian dressage team event. The team of Sudipti Hajela, Divyakriit Singh, Hriday Chheda and Anush Agarwalla had bagged a gold at the prestigious event.
