Tom McEwen ‘shocked’ at teammate Dujardin’s horse abuse video scandal

Tom McEwen is the early leader on JL Dublin after the first day of the three-day eventing. Photograph: Zohra Bensemra/Reuters

In the heart of the palace of Versailles, the residence built by Louis XIV, Team GB’s Tom McEwen reached for a royal analogy when the horse abuse ­scandal that has rocked his sport flared up again on the opening day of these Games.

“I would invite any single one of you to have a look at my yard for an hour, a week, or whatever it took,” he said, after a decent first day’s work at the three-day eventing. “These horses are looked after as kings and queens.”