It’s her Glory Days — at the Olympics.
Jessica Springsteen, the daughter of rock icons Bruce Springsteen and Patti Scialfa, earned a silver medal Saturday at the Tokyo Games — instantly becoming perhaps the most famous figure in US equestrian jumping history.
“It’s her first freakin Olympics! Absolutely incredible!” beamed longtime E Street Band-mate “Little” Steven Van Zandt. His tweet was one of thousands shouting out the celebrity Olympian.
Springsteen, 29, was joined on the podium by teammates Laura Kraut and McLain Ward.
“I’ve got my horse [Don Juan van de Donkhoeve] jumping beautifully. I’m thrilled with the way he’s jumping,” Springsteen told reporters before the meet.
She struggled during the event despite her pregame confidence. Springsteen incurred four of Team USA’s eight faults in the final to take them to a jump-off with eventual gold-winners Sweden. The Americans lost the final by just 1.3 seconds.
Springsteen’s participation in a sport typically reserved for only the wealthy also touched off plenty of blowback on social media, for conflicting with the working-class hero image her dad has cultivated over the decades with gritty dirges such as “The River,” “Badlands” and “Working on the Highway.”
“Must be nice most Americans put in years of work to feed their families … It’s just the disconnect with how much my neighbors are struggling now,” lamented @tux_nyc, responding to a congratulatory Van Zandt post about Jessica’s hard work to make the Olympics.
“Elitist ‘sport” predicated on animal abuse,” snapped @sweenb.
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“Finally something good happens for the Springsteen family, we can all sleep easier now that their medal drought has been lifted,” quipped @sawdistcaesa r48.
“I was disappointed to have the four faults,” Springsteen told reporters after the performance. “But I thought my horse jumped the rest of the course absolutely beautifully . . . he was amazing this entire week so I’m so happy for him.”
Earlier this week, Springsteen failed to qualify for the finals in the individual jumping event, after her horse clipped a rail.
In clinching her first medal, the LA-based rider, who grew up in Colts Neck, NJ, adds to Team USA’s record 10-medal haul in the event. It was the team’s second straight silver.