:"For the Roman class, see Equestrian (Roman)"


Overview of equestrian activities




History of horse use

Though there is controversy over the exact date horses were domesticated and when they were first ridden, the best estimate is that horses first were ridden approximately 4,500 BC. Indirect evidence suggests that horses were ridden long before they were driven. There is some evidence that about 6,000 years ago, near the Dneiper River and the Don River, people were using bits on horses, as a stallion that was buried there shows teeth wear consistent with using a bit.Chamberlin, J. Edward "Horse: How the Horse has Shaped Civilization" New York:BlueBridge 2006 ISBN 0-9742405-9-1] However, the most unequivocal early archaeological evidence of equines put to working use was of horses being driven. Chariot burials about 2,500 BC present the most direct hard evidence of horses used as working animals. In ancient times chariot warfare was followed by the use of war horses as light and heavy cavalry. The horse played an important role throughout human history all over the world, both in warfare and in peaceful pursuits such as transportation, trade and agriculture.

Horse racing

Humans appear to have long expressed a desire to know which horse (or horses) were the fastest, thus horse racing has ancient roots. Gambling on horse races appears to go hand-in hand with racing and has a long history as well. Thoroughbreds have the pre-eminent reputation as a racing breed, but other breeds also race.

Types of horse racing

Under saddle:
* Thoroughbred horse racing is the most popular form worldwide. In the UK, it is known as flat racing and is governed by the Jockey Club in the United Kingdom. In the USA, horse racing is governed by the Jockey Club of North America.
* Steeplechasing involves racing on a track where the horses also jump over obstacles. It is most common in the UK, where it is also called National Hunt racing.
* American Quarter Horse racing--races over distances of approximately a quarter-mile. Seen mostly in the United States, sanctioned by the American Quarter Horse Association.
* Arabian horses, Akhal-Teke, Appaloosas, American Paint Horses and other light breeds are also raced worldwide.

* Endurance riding, a sport in which the Arabian horse dominates at the top levels, has become very popular in the United States and in Europe. The Federation Equestre International (FEI) governs international races, and the American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC) organizes the sport in North America. Endurance races take place over a given, measured distance and the horses have an even start. Races begin at convert|20|mi|km and peak at convert|100|mi|km. especially the Tevis Cup.

In harness:
* Standardbred horses race in harness with a sulky or racing bike.
* The United States Trotting Association organizes harness racing in the United States (the horses may trot or pace).
* Harness racing is also found throughout Europe, New Zealand and Australia.

Olympic disciplines

Equestrian events were first included in the Olympic Games in 1900. By 1912, all three Olympic disciplines still seen today were part of the games. The following forms of competition are recognized worldwide and are a part of the equestrian events at the Olympics:
* Eventing, also called "combined training," "horse trials," the "three-day event," "the Military," or "the complete test," puts together the obedience of dressage with the athletic ability of show jumping, the fitness demands the cross-country jumping phase. In the last-named, the horses jump over fixed obstacles, such as logs, stone walls, banks, ditches, and water, trying to finish the course under the "optimum time." There was also the 'Steeple Chase' Phase, which is now excluded from most major competitions to bring them in line with the Olympic standard. Additional events sanctioned by the FEI as international disciplines include combined driving, reining, equestrian vaulting, endurance riding and paralympic competition. While these events are recognized internationally and are all part of the FEI World Equestrian Games, none are yet part of the Summer Olympics, though some, such as vaulting and reining, are potentially on track to be added. Fact|date=May 2007

Haute École


Leading haute ecole demonstration teams include:
* The Cadre Noir in Saumur, France.
* The Spanish Riding School in Vienna, Austria.
* The Escola Portuguesa de Arte Equestre in Queluz, Portugal.
*Royal Andalusian School of Equestrian Art in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain.

Horse shows

* Equitation, sometimes called "seat and hands" or "horsemanship", refers to events where the rider is judged on form, style and ability.
* "Pleasure, flat," or "under saddle" classes feature horses who are ridden on the flat (not jumped) and judged on manners, performance, movement, style and quality.
* "Halter, in-hand breeding," or "conformation" classes, where the horse is led by a handler on the ground and judged on conformation and suitability as a breeding animal.
* "Harness" classes, where the horse is driven rather than ridden, but still judged on manners, performance and quality.
* "Jumping" or "Over Fences" refers broadly to both show jumping and show hunter, where horses and riders must jump obstacles.

"English" riding

In addition to the classical Olympic events, the following forms of competition are seen. In the United States and Canada they are referred to as "English riding", to contrast them with western-style riding :
* Eventing, show jumping, and dressage, described under "Olympic disciplines," "above" are all "English" riding disciplines that in North America sometimes are loosely classified within the "hunt seat" category.
* Saddle seat, is a primarily American discipline, though has recently become somewhat popular in South Africa, was created to show to best advantage the animated movement of high-stepping and gaited breeds such as the American Saddlebred and the Tennessee Walker. Some Arabians and Morgans are also shown saddle seat in the United States. There are usually three basic divisions. "Park" divisions are for the horses with the highest action. "Pleasure" divisions still emphasis animated action, but to a lesser degree, with manners ranking over animation. "Plantation" or "Country" divisions have the least amount of animation (in some breeds, the horses are flat-shod) and the greatest emphasis on manners.

"Western" riding






Show events such as Western pleasure use much flashier equipment, unlike the English traditions where clothing and tack is quiet and unobtrusive. Saddles, bits and bridles are ornamented with substantial amounts of silver. The rider may add a jacket or vest, and women's clothing in particular features vivid colors and even, depending on current fads, rhinestones or sequins. [ [http://www.hobbyhorseinc.com Hobby Horse clothing company, educational articles on current trends in western show clothing] ]



Rodeo events include the following forms of competition:

Timed events




"Rough Stock" competition

* Bronc riding - there are two divisions in rodeo, bareback bronc riding, where the rider is only allowed to hang onto a bucking horse with a surcingle, and saddle bronc riding, where the rider is allowed a specialized western saddle without a horn (for safety) and may hand onto a heavy lead rope attached to a halter on the horse.
* Bull Riding - though technically not an equestrian event, as the cowboys ride full-grown bulls instead of horses, skills similar to bareback bronc riding are required.





*Draft horse showing: Most draft horse performance competition is done in harness.

Other equestrian activities


Arena sports

* Arena polo and Cowboy polo
* Pato (Argentina's national sport)
* Charreada, the highest form of Mexican horsemanship based on a mixture of Spanish and Native traditions.
* Equestrian vaulting: In vaulting, a surcingle with two hoops at the top is attached around a horse's barrel. The horse also wears a bridle with side reins. The vaulter is longed on the horse, and performs gymnastic movements while the horse walks, trots, and canters.
* Gymkhana, also known as "O-Mok-See" in the western United States.
* Reining

Horse sports that use cattle

* Bullfighting ("rejoneo")
* Campdrafting, a type of cattle-working competition popular in Australia
* Chilean rodeo
* Cutting
* Team penning

Defined area sports

* Buzkashi, a sport originating on the steppes of central Asia, now the national sport of Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan.
* Horseball
* Jousting and Skill at Arms, events involving use of lances, swords and completion of obstacles. There are stand-alone competitions and also are often seen at historical reenactments, Renaissance Fairs and Society for Creative Anachronism events.
* Mounted Games, a sport where games are played in a relay-style with two to five members per team at very high speed
* Polo, a team game played on horses, involves riders using a long-handled mallet to drive a ball on the ground into the opposing team's goal while the opposing team defends their goal
* Polocrosse
* Tent pegging

Cross-country sports

* Competitive Mounted Orienteering‎, a form of orienteering on horses (but unrelated to orienteering) - consists of three stages: following a precise route marked on a map, negotiation of obstacles, and control of paces.
* Endurance riding, a competition usually of 50 to convert|100|mi|km or more, over mountainous or other natural terrain, with scheduled stops to take the horses' vital signs, check soundness, and verify that the horse is fit to continue. The first horse to finish and be confirmed by the veterinarian as fit to continue is the winner. Additional awards are usually given to the best-conditioned horses who finish in the top 10.
* Fox hunting
* Hacking or pleasure riding
* Steeplechase
* Trail Riding, pleasure riding any breed horse, any style across the land.

Criticism of horses in sport

Most horse owners are interested in the well-being and welfare of horses. Some are allied with various animal welfare organizations that try to end genuine abuse of horses. Almost all competitive events have well-established rules and regulations to prevent abuse of animals and to encourage ethical behavior. Most high-intensity sports like show jumping, endurance riding, eventing, rodeo, and horse racing are closely monitored by veterinarians to prevent and treat injuries. On the other hand, there are genuine abuses of horses that do occur. Some people, often motivated by profit or a desire to win at all costs, may inflict pain, overwork, injure, neglect, starve, or drug horses in ways that harm the animal's physical health and mental well-being.

Organized groups dedicated to protecting all animals, such as the Humane Society of the United States, and animal rights groups such as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, target some horse sports with claims of animal cruelty. Horse racing and rodeo are most commonly targeted both because of their visibility to the non-horse-oriented public and because these are sports where it is sometimes difficult for people who do not know much about horses to differentiate between pushing equines to perform to their peak and actual abuse.

One problem is a disagreement about terms like abuse. While some individuals consider even fairly drastic discipline of horses as non-abusive, others consider abuse to be anything done against the will of the animal in question. Some people consider poor living conditions abusive, others think riding itself is abusive. There is no consensus on the issue. Further, the perspective of the individuals holding various viewpoints is sometimes quite different. For example, horse professionals claim they know better what is best for horses than people who live horseless lives, easily influenced by propaganda. On the other hand, other individuals claim that many horse professionals are biased because of motivation for personal gain.

However, many people take a middle ground, primarily concerned that certain sports or training techniques may unnecessarily cause pain or injuries to horse athletes, just as they do for human athletes. Some people who advocate use of horses in equestrian activities point out that horses in the wild have a shorter average life expectancy and are injured more often and more severely than those used in sport. Most public laws and statutes carefully describe criminally abusive practices that incur legal penalties in very specific terms.

Some behaviors and activities are widely condemned as abusive by people within the horse industry, even if not illegal as a matter of public law. Use of many performance-enhancing drugs is prohibited in most competitions, and organizations that sanction various events spend a great deal of money testing horses for illegal drugs. Some specific training or showing practices are so widely condemned that they have been made illegal at the national level and violations can incur criminal penalties. The most well-known is "soring," a practice of applying a caustic ointment just above the hooves of a Tennessee Walking Horse to make it pick up its feet higher. However, in spite of a federal law in the United States prohibiting this practice and routine inspections of horse shows by inspectors from the United States Department of Agriculture, the practice is still widespread and difficult to eliminate. [ [http://equisearch.com/horses_care/health/lameness/soring_030706/ EQUUS Special Report: Why Soring Persists] ]



ee also

* Western riding
* English riding
* Dressage
* Classical dressage
* Driving (horse)
* Domestication of the horse
* Horses in warfare
* Horse show
* Equestrian at the Summer Olympics
* United States Equestrian Federation
* International Federation for Equestrian Sports
* Horse training
* Horse behavior
* Equestrian helmet
* Mounting block

External links

* [http://www.horsesport.org/ International Federation for Equestrian Sports] FEI official homepage
* United States Equestrian Federation [http://www.usef.org USEF Official web site]
* Equestrian Federation of Australia [http://www.efanational.com/ Equestrian Federation of Australia web site]
* Equestrian Federation of Ireland [http://www.horsesport.ie/homel.html - EFI web site]
* [http://www.usdf.org United States Dressage Federation]
* [http://www.aerc.org/ American Endurance Ride Conference]
* [http://www.natrc.org/ The North American Trail Ride Conference] - Competitive Trail Riding
* [http://www.sportendurance.co.uk/ UK Endurance Horse Riding]
* [http://www.rideandtie.org/ Ride and Tie Association]
* [http://www.americanvaulting.org/ The American Vaulting Association] - Equestrian Vaulting
* [http://www.nchacutting.com/ National Cutting Horse Association]

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Equestrianism — E*ques tri*an*ism, n. The art of riding on horseback; performance on horseback; horsemanship; as, feats equestrianism. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • equestrianism — ► NOUN ▪ the skill or sport of horse riding …   English terms dictionary

  • equestrianism — [[t]ɪkwe̱striənɪzəm[/t]] N UNCOUNT Equestrianism refers to sports in which people demonstrate their skill at riding and controlling a horse …   English dictionary

  • equestrianism — See equestrian. * * * …   Universalium

  • equestrianism — noun The art of riding horses; horsemanship …   Wiktionary

  • equestrianism — n. horsemanship, study of horseback riding …   English contemporary dictionary

  • equestrianism — noun the skill or sport of horse riding …   English new terms dictionary

  • equestrianism — n. Horsemanship …   New dictionary of synonyms

  • equestrianism — eques·tri·an·ism …   English syllables

  • equestrianism — rēəˌnizəm noun ( s) : the art or practice of riding a horse : horsemanship …   Useful english dictionary

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