by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 12, 2025
Are you feeling more secure in the saddle because you’re wearing a safety vest?
Many top riders, including Olympic show jumping medalist Laura Kraut and Jimmy Torano, are visible symbols of air vests’ growing popularity beyond the cross-country phase of eventing. More casual riders also are wearing them in a quest to be protected.
Germany’s Sophie Hinners wore a black air vest while competing in Ocala at the Longines League of Nations. (Photo © 2025 by Nancy Jaffer)
But exactly how effective are these pieces of equipment?
The FEI (international equestrian federation) has initiated an Equestrian Safety Vest Working Group, aimed at improving safety through scientific research and innovation in protective equipment.
Use of safety vests, including both body protectors and air vests, is gaining traction in a variety of disciplines. But there is concern about the lack of independent data to support their effectiveness in reducing injury.
Led by the USA’s Dr Mark Hart, chair of the FEI Medical Committee, the Working Group will examine the current state of knowledge around thoracic and spinal injuries in equestrian sport, with a focus on understanding how and when these injuries occur, and whether safety vests play a significant role in reducing the severity of injuries.
“While there is growing support for the use of body protectors and air vests in both sport and recreational riding, there is still minimal data to fully understand their effectiveness,” according to Mark.
“We lack critical data on how and what specific injuries occur during falls and how protective equipment performs under real-world conditions. Athletes and others in the community are asking important, constructive questions relating to how air vests perform in real-world settings, how they affect the athlete’s movement, and whether their use might influence the horse’s behavior. These insights are essential and are helping to drive the discussion toward more effective and evidence-based safety solutions.
“This is why the FEI has tasked the Working Group with undertaking a comprehensive review of current safety standards and will include developing improved testing protocols that more accurately reflect the realities athletes face in both training and competition environments.”
The Working Group will operate through two international panels to ensure both scientific rigor and stakeholder engagement. The Scientific Panel brings together a carefully balanced group of international experts from a range of fields, including biomechanical engineering, injury modelling, medicine, safety vest manufacturing, and international standards bodies. There is also diverse expertise in areas of the body most at risk during a fall, such as the head, neck, spine, ribs, and chest. Attention has also been given to ensuring representation across regions and sexes.
The National Federation Advisory Panel is made up of members nominated by their National Federations and approved by the FEI. This group will play a key role in engaging with stakeholders by supporting open communication with the wider equestrian community in their regions. They will also help coordinate additional fundraising for potential research projects, working with National Federations, research foundations, government agencies, and private donors, in accordance with FEI guidelines on external funding.
Part of its mission will involve collaborating with athletes, manufacturers, international standards organizations and other sports with similar injury risks, such as horse racing and motocross.
Eventually, the group will propose modifications or new testing protocols to promote safer vest design and encourage broader adoption of best practices. The Working Group will also make recommendations to the FEI and its member National Federations on how to improve data collection and reporting around instances of injury to better correlate fall mechanisms with injury outcomes.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 16, 2025
Team Great Britain reminds us today about the amazing tale of how Harry Charles replicated his father’s Olympic show jumping team gold medal performance, a little over a decade after Peter Charles stood on the podium in London. Since Harry has been in the news recently for his engagement to Eve Jobs, daughter of Apple’s late co-founder Steve Jobs, it’s only fair to focus on the athlete’s professional claim to fame.
But the Charles men aren’t just resting on their laurels. At the Flanders Foal Auction last weekend, Peter Charles secured the first offspring ever sold out of the grand prix mare HH Azur, once the celebrated mount of the USA’s McLain Ward, who took the FEI World Cup final title with her in 2017. She also was McLain’s mount for the silver medal team at the 2016 Olympics. The Cornet Obolensky colt, Côte d’Azur HH Z who sold for 88,000 Euros, will move to the Charles family’s Heathcroft Farm.
Harry Charles was 13 years old when he watched his father Peter win team show jumping gold at London 2012.
It was in that moment that he realized exactly what he wanted to do – abandoning a fledgling golfing career to focus on equestrian.
Even in his wildest dreams, though, he could not have imagined that he would match his dad in taking Olympic gold, and what is more, alongside Scott Brash and Ben Maher, who were also part of the team in London.
Harry Charles in Paris. (Getty Images)
In doing so, the Charles men are the first father-son combination to win Olympic gold for Team GB since 1948 – rowers Dickie and Charles Burnell (1908 Games) were the last to do it.
But Harry Charles must surely be the first to have won alongside his dad’s teammates, the triumphant quartet in London being Ben, Scott, Peter Charles and Nick Skelton, in a slightly different format (four team members, rather than the current three).
Harry said: “I was at Greenwich Park (for the 2012 Games); I was 13 when I watched these two boys (Scott and Ben). It’s pretty cool.
“They are both my heroes, guys I’ve looked up to since I started riding. To be on the podium with them, my inner, younger self is freaking out a little bit.
“My dad wanted me to be a golfer, so I was playing a lot of golf and riding a few ponies at the same time. I realized I was a lot better at riding a horse than swinging a golf club. So that was definitely the most pivotal moment.
“Before the competition, my dad said, `Enjoy it, whatever you do. You’ve worked hard to get here.’ And after he said, ‘Enjoy it, enjoy every minute of that ceremony, this will probably be the best moment of your life’ .”
Just 25 at Paris, Harry was the baby of the showjumping world – all the more remarkable when you consider that he was not even an Olympic newcomer, having made his debut in Tokyo.
There, Great Britain could only manage seventh, but this time around, they led from start to finish, despite Harry still mending a broken wrist he fractured in a fall three weeks earlier.
Ben Maher kicked things off with a fantastic performance on Dallas Vegas Batilly, scoring just one time penalty, as he was one of only two people to go avoid a knockdown, and the quickest of the two.
Harry then followed suit on Romeo 88, going clear despite clipping the tenth jump, as GB maintained a two-penalty lead over host nation France, one penalty to three.
By the time Scott was up on Hello Jefferson, the equation was simple, leave all the rails in place, pick up at most two time penalties and Great Britain would be champions.
Like Harry, Scott clipped a fence, playing with the nerves of those watching, but most important, holding his own.
A second time penalty meant that Britain finished on two penalties, two clear of the USA in silver, with hosts France taking bronze on seven.
With this win, Ben (the 2021 individual gold medalist in Tokyo) joined dressage competitor Charlotte Dujardin and the late eventer Richard Meade (his son, Harry, is now world number one in that discipline) as the only equestrians to win three gold medals for Team GB.
With Peter in attendance supporting the team in Versailles last year, Scott admitted it was quite a surreal feeling to have now won Olympic gold alongside two generations of the Charles family.
The London 2012 team (top) Nick Skelton, Ben Maher, Scott Brash Peter Charles. The Paris 2024 team (bottom) Scott Brash, Harry Charles, Ben Maher.
He and Ben “feel a bit like the old veterans. Pete played a massive role, even here (Paris). It’s invaluable having him on our shoulder, giving advice. Having that mentor is really good for all of us.
“Harry is only 25 but he’s very experienced already. It’s amazing to have good riders coming up in our country and I think the future looks bright.”
Ben, meanwhile, had put Great Britain into the perfect position, and even after all he has achieved as a three-time Olympic champion, explained that days this flawless come few and far between.
He said: “I would probably say none of us could have done a better job today than we did. It’s not like we will go home and think we could do something better than we did and it’s very rare in our sport. Everything came together and it was just an amazing feeling.”
Just as had been the case 12 years before, Ben, Scott and a Charles stood on the podium celebrating Olympic gold.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 13, 2025
Former U.S. dressage team member Belinda Nairn (Baudin) Wertman died Thursday after a battle with cancer. She would have turned 70 on Friday, June 13.
A respected trainer, the Reddick, Fla., resident was reserve with Alegria on the U.S. squad at the 1984 Olympics and competed on the team with Christopher in the 1988 Games. The native of New Zealand and her husband, Bill Wertman, ran a training, breeding and sales business. She rode and trained for Iron Spring Farm from 2003-2009.
As her friend Monica Drohm wrote on social media, “I could write a book about everything we shared and experienced, our moments of crying and laughing, our similar views on horses and on correct riding, our deepest feelings and so on, the special relationship she had with her dogs and not to forget her donkeys, the dedication she had for her students and her tireless efforts to teach people to ride well.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 10, 2025
Natalie Voss, who served as editor-in-chief of thoroughbred racing’s Paulick Report, is now the U.S Equestrian Federation’s director of corporate communications.
She started with the Paulick Report as an intern in 2009 while completing her equine science degree at the University of Kentucky. A member of the publication’s weekend editorial team in late 2012, she moved to full-time news writing in January 2013. Since then, she has served as features editor and became editor-in-chief five years ago.
The winner of three Eclipse Awards and two Eclipse honorable mentions has a resume that also includes the Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association’s Charles W. Engelhard Award. She is known as an investigative journalist who focuses on horse and human welfare.
Natalie, who enjoys riding her off-the-track thoroughbred named Underscore when she’s away from her computer, said about racing in her farewell piece for the Paulick Report, “I want to be clear: it’s the industry I’ve lost faith in, not the sport.”
But as one who has catalogued racing’s many troubles, she felt moving to USEF seemed an obvious choice.
“The sport horse world has been watching racing’s struggles with its social license to operate these last few years and has been quietly taking notes,” she said in her farewell article.
“I believe they’re committed to building a better future for horses and participants, and I’m looking forward to helping them communicate that to their members and to the public.”
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by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 11, 2025
In the five years since the first MARS Maryland 5-Star appeared on the scene at Fair Hill, it has improved what it offers with each edition.
While the Oct. 16-19 eventing fixture continues to attract top horses from the U.S. and overseas, there is even more for families to enjoy this autumn, from pony racing and the Corgi Cup to the hands-on activities in the Kids Corner.. There’s also a local food festival and the beer, wine and spirits festival. The Real Rider Cup founded by Anita Motion, benefiting Thoroughbred aftercare, will be making its debut at the competition.
New Zealand’s Tim Price is a regular at the MARS 5-star.( Photo © 2024 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Tickets are on sale at https://www.maryland5star.us/ for the event presented by Brown Advisory. It’s possible to attend on a budget with prices starting at $18, and general admission free for children 10 and under.
Options include reserved seats, hospitality packages at the main arena and a Saturday-only VIP hospitality offering at the Sawmill Waterfront Club, located along the cross-country course at the MARS Sustainability Bay. Tailgating for the cross-country phase on Saturday of the event will go on sale in July.
Oliver Townend of Britain, Maryland winner in 2024 with Ballaghmor Class. (Photo © 2024 by Nancy Jaffer)
The event continues to increase in popularity. Last year, 32,000 people attended the 5-star, an 11 percent increase from 2023 for the production of the Sport & Entertainment Corporation of Maryland.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 11, 2025
Ronnie Beard, Otis Brown Jr. and Fran and Joe Dotoli were recognized for their contributions to the sport by the National Show Hunter Hall of Fame. The two horses inducted with them for 2025 are Lyle and Tindle.
The Hall’s Owner of the Year was plural; John and Stephanie Ingram, while Tom Wright earned the Trainer of the Year title.
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 6, 2025
An icon. An original A pillar of the hunter breeding community. Diana Dodge, owner of the legendary stallion Sir Thomson, has died.
She earned fame with the flashy chestnut named in honor of her grandmother, whose maiden name had been Thomson before she married one of the Dodge brothers who founded the car company.
Diana Dodge
Born in London of American parents, Dodge learned to ride in Windsor Great Park as a child. She graduated from Smith College before embarking on her breeding career. Her Nokomis Farm in Montpelier Station, Va., became famous for producing winning show hunters.
Sir Thomson, who was Best Young Horse at Devon, had been as well-known for earning championships in the ring as he was for his stud duties.
Dodge was totally devoted to her farm and the animals who lived there.
“Horses teach you the important things in life,” she liked to say.
As Nancy Peterson noted on social media, “She was part of the Dodge family tradition of horses: The Dodge name appears in so many different disciplines, including the American Saddlebreds, hunters, as well as horses in the dressage and eventing world. Last year, she attended the Olympics and was in the front row of spectators watching and critiquing every horse and rider, always quoting her mentors from years past.
“Her knowledge of the different disciplines was amazing and her “back to basics” philosophy was ironclad. She was an amazing horsewoman. This is a loss for all of us.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 10, 2025
“When a correction takes too long, you miss a training opportunity.”
“Find a better frame and neck position before asking for a canter depart.”
“Your horse needs to learn to be less dependent on you — self carriage!”
“I never saw the benefit of keeping a horse too long at First Level.”
Those words of dressage wisdom were among many helpful comments delivered by Steffen Peters, the World Cup champion; Olympic, world championships and Pan American Games multi-medalist, in a clinic at the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation in Gladstone, N.J.
Eight riders at various stages of training took the opportunity over the weekend for a critique from one of the sport’s greats, and a few dozen auditors showed up to listen as well.
Steffen’s observations in the clinic were always to the point, but delivered with tact and kindness.
Morgen Myrdal admitted that if she hadn’t audited a 2024 clinic given by Steffen in Warwick, N.Y., “I probably would have been too intimidated” to sign up for the one in Gladstone with her sturdy 14-hand Connemara, Irish Gate’s Oberon McDuff (known as Doc).
But after watching how Steffen handled the New York clinic Morgen realized, “He is very understanding. I knew that he could help me; there were a couple of horses that had similar issues” to what she has encountered with Doc.
Steffen offers tips to Morgen Myrdal and Doc. ( Photo © 2025 by Nancy Jaffer)
She thought as she watched Steffen’s New York clinic, “I’m taking a lot of notes. If I could ride with this guy, that would be even better.” And that’s just how it turned out.
Born in Germany, Steffen rode with trainer Jo Hinneman, then came to the U.S. to work in 1985, establishing himself on the West Coast. The horse that arrived with him was Udon, a talented KWPN gelding his father had bought as a three-year-old. Udon was his mount when he rode in his first Olympics in Atlanta in 1996 as a naturalized citizen on the U.S. team. He would go on to ride in five more Olympics.
These days, Steffen is doing one clinic a month, in Europe and Australia as well as the U.S.
“I enjoy this,” said the Californian about being a clinician, “and it doesn’t always have to be finished Grand Prix horses. We saw here three or four horses that still need to be taught to be properly connected. If I can bring across a little inspiration, I’ve done my job.”
He emphasizes with the riders “the standard of energy and suppleness, that the horse truly moves easily forward from the leg, maintaining this inside the horse, instead of letting the energy go out the front door.”
Rebecca Bowden, a 17-year-old high school student, is a former hunter rider now focusing on dressage with her skewbald (spotted, or as the British say, coloured) 15-year-old RPSI (German) gelding, Sky’s the Limit GSF.
She acknowledged riding in front of Steffen was “a little bit intimidating at first, but I didn’t ride the first day, I just audited. Listening to how he was teaching other people was very reassuring. This is what I could expect and he’s calming to listen to, so I imagined riding would be similar.”
Rebecca Bowden and Sky’s the Limit GSF raised their sights after getting suggestions from Steffen. (Photo © 2025 by Nancy Jaffer)
What was the most important thing she learned?
“To have higher expectations for both of us, to think of him (her horse) more as a partner and have more confidence in what we can both do,” Rebecca reported.
Emily Amon drove 90 minutes from South Jersey to audit the clinic. She is riding Second Level on her New Zealand sport horse and explained that she came because, “I want to take every opportunity I can to learn as much as I can, so when I saw this, I jumped on the opportunity to sit and learn. You can learn a lot by watching and listening. It’s super educational.”
The clinic was very well-organized by Lidiya Frumova of Tewksbury, N.J. A rider who is working toward her U.S. Dressage Federation silver medal on horses she has trained, she missed riding in front of Steffen because she is pregnant, though her energy level was high as she made sure everything ran smoothly.
Clinic organizer Lidiya Frumova with Steffen Peters. (Photo © 2025 by Nancy Jaffer)
“All of the riders gave me wonderful feedback,” she said.
“They’re extremely happy with the progress they made with just one lesson and a lot of the auditors are asking if we’re going to be having another one of these.
“I’m hoping to get a date from Steffen for next year. We’re hoping also to do others,” she added, mentioning Kim Herslow (Steffen’s teammate at the 2015 Pan American Games) and respected judge Linda Zang.
Steffen, 60, who hasn’t been in a show since the Paris Olympics, told me when we chatted at the lunch break that “I’m 99 percent sure that I want to retire from competing.”
His last Grand Prix horse, Suppenkasper, retired after the 2024 Games.
However, he added quickly, “I’m not quite ready to say I’m 100 percent retired. Not quite yet. There’s that 1 percent of me that still says I’d love to give it one more shot for LA (the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics), since it’s at home.”
But he’s philosophical about what fate might have in store for him.
“Let’s face it: For 20 years, we had a really good run, so many wonderful horses that consistently did really well. We were blessed with a lot of sound horses. We never missed a major competition because of injury or lameness. I take a lot of pride in that.”
Steffen on Suppenkasper at the 2023 FEI World Cup Finals in Omaha. (Photo © 2025 by Nancy Jaffer)
He thought a moment and added, “It’s been six Olympics, with a gigantic highlight (team silver) in Tokyo. It’s probably good enough.”
He had two horses with possibilities, but his wife, Shannon, took them over, as Steffen is dealing with neuropathy in his hands and feet.
“We’re optimistic I can make this more manageable, and I don’t think competing would help that,” he explained.
His treatment involves “daily contrast therapy, with hot sauna, and then a three-minute cold plunge in 40-degree water. The pain goes to zero, but unfortunately, it comes back. At least I can interrupt the pain cycle.”
We talked about how U.S. riders are faring on the international scene.
“Looking at America at the moment, let’s be honest, we are in a rebuilding time,” he pointed out. “There are clearly three/four team horses that we can see. On many occasions, the year before the Olympics, we get something together and produced a heck of a team.”
In order to do that, he said, “What we need to look for is again those training camps together, not just two weeks or three weeks, but those two months in Europe, competing together, being there for each other, building that real family feeling we had in Rio (the 2016 Olympics); we had it in Tokyo (2021), we had it on so many occasions.”
Before Paris, he noted, “we didn’t have the option to have too many people together. We were a little bit on different farms before Paris. Everyone knew that needs to change for the future.”
At the Paris Games, he finished fifty-first after his horse “got very nervous, very spooky. He’s seen more electric arenas, like the World Cup in Omaha.”
So Steffen was surprised.Then he pointed out, “They’re animals, it happened and I don’t think that defines his career or my career, it just can happen.
“When people ask me about Paris, what happened in Paris, let’s not sugarcoat that either, that wasn’t good.”
But he doesn’t dwell on it.
“I’ve learned to switch so quickly to all the good times we had. Someone asks me about Paris, I give a very detailed explanation, (then) my mind switches immediately to Tokyo.
“We have choices. We can either question what happened in Paris or we can say those other 20 years before, they were pretty darn good.”
With controversy these days about dressage training methods getting publicity, “it’s a challenging time in the sport,” he observed.
“Maybe it’s not the wrong time for me to take a break.”
Then he smiled and emphasized, “But again, the door is open.”
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 9, 2025
We told you last month that this was going to happen, when McLain mentioned to me at Devon that Contagious was retiring, adding that it hadn’t been formally announced yet.
Now it has. Here’s what McLain said about his reliable partner:
“With a tremendous amount of pride and gratitude, we would like to announce the retirement of Contagious. Contagious came to us from Reed Kessler who produced him beautifully through his early career. Through the incredible support of Beechwood Stables, Lise and Annabel Revers and Max Amaya, we acquired Contagious in 2018.
“Contagious is horse who has always given his best, and at times more than that. We hoped for him to be a successful Grand Prix horse. In the end he became a championship star, competing successfully at a World Games, two World Cup finals, a Pan Am Games, winning team gold and individual bronze.
McLain and Contagious at Devon.
“His crowning achievement was being a member of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic team that brought home a silver medal. Contagious will enjoy his retirement at the beautiful Beechwood Stables in Weston, Mass. Special thanks to all of our team who worked with and cared for him so diligently over the years, especially our home team led by Lee and Erica McKeever, Owen Rogers and Virginie Casterman. Thank you for all the great moments Poussin!
by Nancy Jaffer | Jun 7, 2025
Eve Jobs, daughter of the late Apple wizard Steve Jobs, in August will marry British Olympic team gold medal show jumper Harry Charles, according to the NY Post and other outlets.
The bride-to-be is a 26-year-old rider and fashion model whose credits include a cover of Vogue. Her mother, Laurene Powell-Jobs, is one of the world’s wealthiest women. Harry’s father is Peter Charles, a member of Britain’s 2012 gold medal show jumping team. At age 25, Harry is ranked number 32 in the world on the Longines list.
