by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 17, 2022
When you are spending time with your horses, it’s quite possible you are being watched, whether you’re showing, grooming, riding, training or engaged in some other activity. That’s the way it is when everyone has access to a digital video camera, and it can cause an issue with animal welfare.
For all the wonderful photos and videos of riders demonstrating their love and appreciation of their horse with a pat or a hug, it only takes one negative picture to set off critics of horse sport.
A rider showing appreciation for her horse helps the image of the sport. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Although you may be doing nothing wrong, a lot depends on how your actions are interpreted. There is great concern these days about “social license,” which means the way those who are exposed to equestrian sport–even if they know nothing about it–perceive and accept how animals are being treated.
It’s something that can go viral fast. Remember the outcry over what happened in the pentathlon at the Tokyo Olympics, when a coach punched a horse who had refused a jump? Pentathlon moved quickly to eliminate the equestrian portion of the five-part event (which also includes swimming, shooting, running and fencing) after it is held at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
But the incident also sparked comments from those with no knowledge of horse sport about how horses were treated in other disciplines at the Games. In today’s world, fewer people than ever are connected with horses, or in the larger picture, agriculture, as we grow increasingly urbanized and suburbanized.
At last weekend’s FEI General Assembly in South Africa, social license was a hot topic.
Roly Owers, CEO of the World Horse Welfare organization, explained “The idea behind social license is that we must be transparent, ethical and accountable for what we do. We must do right by our horses–and be seen to be doing so.
“If we are not,” he warned, “we risk losing our social license and face dwindling support, and potential intervention by outside regulation.”
The European Equestrian Federation, which participated in the meeting, cited “the importance for all stakeholders to understand the pressing needs for our sport to adapt and monitor the opinions of those around us.”
When remembering the need to do right by our horses, it is also important to keep in mind the omnipresence of digital cameras.
FEI President Ingmar de Vos stated, “There can be no complacency or reticence to change, to keep things as they are. Because the world is changing, the sporting, media and sponsorship landscapes are changing. And as a result, the way we present and manage our sports also have to change.”
That obviously will mean some new rules, sooner rather than later.
Dr. Natalie Waran, chair of the new FEI Equine Ethics and Welfare Commission, said, “there is change that needs to happen and we are here to develop a strategy, provide objective advice, make recommendations and then see how these recommendations can be put into operation.”
The commission’s first task was to obtain research about the current views of stakeholders and the wider public.
A survey involving research by the independent Equine Ethics and Wellbeing Commission had 27,710 people involved with horses responding. The most were from France, followed by the USA and Germany, but residents of 116 countries were queried.
Seventy eight percent of those answering the survey believed believed that welfare standards need improving, while 6 percent felt it is impossible to provide adequate welfare protection. Only 16 percent believed welfare standards are high.The majority of the respondents contend that horses frequently (46 percent) or sometimes (45 percent) enjoy being used in sports. The most respondents concerned about the welfare of horses in sport were veterinarians (87 percent) and leisure riders or drivers (84 percent.) Those least concerned were FEI board members (53 percent).
Key concerns were what happens in “the other 23 hours” that horses don’t spend competing, as well as tack/equipment, and training and riding practices.
Respondents indicated that in order for the future of the horse sport to be protected, it will be
important that above all, there is improved enforcement of existing welfare rules, as well as new welfare rules developed with an eye toward science and a required level of knowledge about equine welfare by those involved with horses.
A companion survey of the general public’s opinions about horses being used in sport had 14,273 respondents from 14 countries, but the numbers were scaled, so they could be weighted as 1,000 respondents per country. Nearly half of the respondents had had some experience with horses in the past (47 percent), while 27 percent had no experience with horses.
Asked whether they though horses enjoyed being used in sport, 47 percent believed they did sometimes, while 20 percent thought they never enjoy sports. The more experienced the respondents were with horses, the more they believed that they enjoyed being used in sport.
Those who have no experience with horses would have no way of knowing what equines do or do not enjoy, but again, this is simply a matter of how they perceive things–rather than being based on actual knowledge.
While 65 percent of the respondents were concerned about the use of horses in sport, only
35 percent had no concerns. Respondents were most concerned about endurance,
followed by eventing and carriage driving. They were the least concerned about
dressage.
Their biggest areas of concern were horse welfare (34 percent), followed by horse safety (32 percent) and then, at 9 percent, human safety and sustainability (8 percent). In terms of use of horses for leisure, 62 percent of the public had concerns.
To improve their confidence in sport horse welfare, 19 percent of the respondents would like to see or hear more about the daily care the horses receive. Another 18 percent wants
to know what happens to horses when they leave sport.
by Nancy Jaffer | Oct 28, 2022
Wellington International, which took over the former Palm Beach International Equestrian Center, has reached an agreement with Wellington Equestrian Partners to run the 2023 Adequan® Global Dressage Festival at the Equestrian Village facility down the road from the Winter Equestrian Festival of jumpers and hunters.
Despite having less than three months before the first dressage show Jan. 11-15, the Wellington International team intends to “work diligently to provide an enhanced experience for all participants, guests, and fans.”
Michael Stone, the president of Wellington International who previously was president of Equestrian Sport Productions, announced, “We know that dressage competitors and spectators have been eagerly awaiting news of the 2023 AGDF season, and we are happy to report that our team will once again be working hard to put forth an exciting, memorable, and safe event.
“Our staff is very familiar with the competition, hospitality, and other logistics of AGDF at the Equestrian Village venue, so we expect to be able to continue the tradition of excellence this upcoming winter.”
Wellington Equestrian Partners is applying for residential rezoning of the Equestrian Village, which would involve an arrangement to move dressage adjacent to the former PBIEC property, but that project is still in the process of seeking approval from the Village of Wellington.
In the meantime, said Mark Bellissimo, managing partner of WEP, that organization “has every confidence in the team at Wellington International to effectively operate the 2023 AGDF, and we are happy to be working with such a well-established partner in the equestrian and events industry.
“Our organizations will work together to ensure the success of the 2023 show, as well as continue to discuss and plan for long-term enhancements in order to elevate AGDF to an even greater level in the future.”
The 2023 AGDF will operate through March 31. If will offer eight weeks of international dressage competition and two weeks of international para-dressage competition. There will be eight Friday Night Stars freestyles under the lights held during AGDF, including two qualifiers for the FEI World Cup Finals to be held in Omaha during April. Another will be held Dec. 8-12 2022.
Anders Bjørnstrup, commercial director of Global Equestrian Group, the parent company of Wellington International, noted, “The founder and CEO of the Global Equestrian Group, Andreas Helgstrand, is a household name in the dressage world and has a passion for the discipline, so we are thrilled to finally have an opportunity to explore and promote a world-renowned dressage event.
“The AGDF is a respected brand with a storied history, and we are pleased to be able to play a role in the development of the event.”
For the second year, CDI5* dressage competition will be held for one week, March 15-19, at the Wellington International showgrounds, a short canter down the road from the Equestrian Village. A change of venue offers the opportunity for horses and riders to experience a different atmosphere during the winter season.
Here is the schedule for the 2023 winter dressage season:
January 11-15,
CDI4* & CDI-W
Lloyd Landkamer Memorial
January 25-29
CDI4*/CDI3*/CPEDI3*
February 8-12
CDI4* & CDI-W
February 15-19
NATIONAL
February 22-26
CDIO3* & CDI3*
March 1-5
CDI-W & CDI3*
Palm Beach Derby
March 8-12
CPEDI3*
March 15-19
CDI5* & CDI3*
March 22-26
CDI4* & CDI3*
March 29-31
NATIONAL
by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 13, 2022
Irish rider Daniel Coyle got some good advice from his countryman, Conor Swail, before heading into the jump-off of the $250,000 Longines FEI World Cup at the Royal Winter Fair last night.
After Daniel asked whether his main intent should involve going for a clear round or “do I need to be quick as well?” Conor told him “you need to be fast,” and it paid off in a victory at the Toronto competition, where it was an all-mares game in the tiebreaker.
Two weeks ago, Daniel had taken the slower approach in a class and it didn’t work, “so tonight I was hungry for more,” he noted.
Daniel Coyle pulled out all the stops with Legacy to secure his win at the Royal. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
“There wasn’t a whole lot you could do in the jump-off,” observed Daniel, referring to the difficulty in getting a fast time because of the way it was laid out, with an extreme rollback to the next-to-last fence, a vertical, and then a long run to the final obstacle, the Longines oxer.
He saw the distance early to that last fence, and while that sort of gallop is something that he hadn’t done much with his mount, Legacy, “she went all the way.” The Zangersheide he rode certainly was up to the challenge of covering ground for Daniel, who was clocked in 37.02 seconds.
Another Daniel, Bluman, followed him in the tiebreaker on the durable Gemma, but an early rail put the Israeli rider one placing down, in a slower time of 39.21.
The tiebreaker was led off by a favorite of the sold-out house, Tiffany Foster, who got support as the only Canadian with a chance to win after the initial round. The tenth of 21 riders to compete, she was the first to leave all the fences standing with Northern Light.
Tiffany Foster and Northern Light. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
That plucky Swedish warmblood was a fill-in for Tiffany’s top mount, Figor, who is recovering from an injury. But even though Tiffany took it slow, Northern Light already had given all she had in the first World Cup of her career, and wound up with two rails down and a time penalty in 44.23 seconds to finish third.
Speaking about his first-round route, course designer Michel Vaillancourt said, “We had some silly little rails, we could have had a few more clear.”
Only two U.S. riders, Laura Kraut on Calgary Tame and Kent Farrington with Landon, made the top 10, finishing eighth and ninth respectively with four faults, as McLain Ward lost his bid with Callas for a tenth win in the class.
Michel conceded he would have liked to have five or six in the jump-off for the audience who filled every seat in the coliseum. Even so, they got their money’s worth of excitement.
The course designer, who was the 1976 Olympic individual silver medalist, made his Royal debut as a rider at the age of 15 in the open jumpers, 53 years ago, so few know the show as well as he does.
He noted there’s a big difference “between performing in front of a sold-out packed house that encourages you to go, versus hardly anybody in the stands. It’s a special, special event for sure.”
Canadians were a bit frustrated because they could have had one more to cheer for if Ali Ramsay, who rode after Tiffany, had not logged a time fault with Bonita VH Kezershof Z after keeping all the rails in place in the first round. Ramsay earned the Canadian national championship the first week of the show, an honor that also gave her an entry to the FEI weekend.
For Daniel Coyle, it’s been a hard week, with “one down, one down, one down.”
Legacy is owned by Ariel Grange, who is based locally “and that’s maybe why I was trying so hard to get something to happen, and nothing was. From the first fence forward tonight it was real difficult. It seemed like you were always turning. It wasn’t simple at any point.”
The mare came from 2000 Olympic individual gold medalist Jeroen Dubbeldam of the Netherlands, who is training Daniel. They made it to the world championships last summer, where the Irish qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics “but no medals,” so Daniel said, “I want to keep going.”
Like many riders, he is shooting for next April’s Longines FEI World Cup Finals in Omaha.
Daniel Bluman is now leading the North American League for the finals, despite “too many seconds.” He has never been to the finals, and plans to go only if he has two horses who are up to the task.
Daniel Bluman and Gemma. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Tiffany, who wound up as leading Canadian rider, said every rider she talks to considers the Royal “their favorite show in North America,” citing the energy the crowd imparts.
Daniel Bluman, Daniel Coyle and Tiffany Foster. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The bubbly equestrian’s fond memories of the show include winning the Canadian medal finals and Jump Canada class in her youth. For financial reasons, she couldn’t compete very often, so the opportunity came about because her trainers paid for her to ride at the Royal and a client groomed for her.
Despite not winning the Longines class, she did realize one ambition at the show, sitting next to the whip on one of the coaches in the Pemberton Green Meadows division, renamed in tribute to a Canadian who was a pillar of the driving sport.
Tiffany Foster realizes her dream. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Tiffany had mentioned to Cawthra Burns, whose family had ridden at the Royal for generations, that her dream was to ride on a coach at the Royal.
“We can make that happen,” said Cawthra.
The rider looked incredibly glamorous, and when I asked what she had done to herself, she laughed and responded, “I brushed my hair,” then admitted she had gotten it done at a salon. She wore Cawthra’s jewels and fluffy wrap as she accompanied John White on his coach, which won Friday night’s class.
Coaches are only one part of what makes the Royal what it is. The variety in the type of competition ranges all the way from hackneys to the six-horse hitches in the draft division. Seeing an arena filled to the brim with brilliantly turned out Percherons, Clydesdales and Belgians is a something to be remembered for a lifetime.
What a magnificent sight, the six-horse draft hitches. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
The exhibitions are always special, and this year it was the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, in their scarlet tunics, who thrilled the crowd with their precision on the black Hanoverians specially bred for that purpose.
The Royal is unlike any show in this hemisphere; the closest comparison would be the London International (formerly Olympia). If you ever have the chance to see the Canadian competition, take it. You’ll be thrilled.
by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 12, 2022
El Conde told his rider, Nayel Nassar, he was up to the challenge of the $75,000 Centennial Cup speed class at the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto last night, even before the partnership entered the arena surrounded by a crowd that packed the stands and appreciated every effort by the competitors.
“Standing at the ingate, he was pawing and kind of ready to go,” Nayel said of his 11-year-old Belgian sporthorse gelding.
“He was definitely pumped-up tonight.”
That was reflected in a very forward round, one of only four in a field of 19 that also was fault-free over Michel Vaillancourt’s course that dealt in adamant contrasts. It blended rollbacks requiring a bold approach with the need for discretion over strategically placed delicate, tall verticals.
Course designer Michel Vaillancourt discusses the route with McLain Ward. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
Nayel was clocked in 53.54 seconds; impressive but not secure. Such stars as Ireland’s Conor Swail (Theo) and Olympic individual gold medalist Ben Maher of Great Britain (TicTac) weren’t able to leave the rails in place.
But with perennial Royal winner McLain Ward in the advantageous position of being last to go with Lezaro, it seemed the odds were not on Nayel’s side; he just had to wait and watch.
McLain demonstrated his usual determination to beat the clock, but came up just a bit short, finishing in 54.05 seconds. Beat Mändli of Switzerland was much further back in third place on Chartraine Pre Noir (56.70), while 2004 Olympic individual gold medalist Rodrigo Pessoa on Quality FZ finished fourth (57.38).
McLain Ward and Lezaro. (Photo © 2022 by Nancy Jaffer)
El Conde was bred by 2010 world champion Philippe LeJeune of Belgium. His sire goes by the regal-sounding name, Lorde Piana Filou de Muze, but they called the mare just plain Birdy. She descended from Connemara pony stock, and perhaps it was the bloodlines of those famous jumping ponies that gave El Conde the nimble aptitude that won him the class.
Nayel, who has ridden for Egypt in the Olympics, cited the challenge of competing in the confines of a relatively narrow space at the Royal.
“We’re all coming from outdoors; this is the first indoor show I’ve done with Conde.”
But as he pointed out, “The experienced horses and the smart ones, they kind of know their job regardless of the ring. He comes out trying every single time.”
Nayel has developed a special partnership in less than a year with El Conde, perhaps because the horse reminds him of a previous favorite mount, Lucifer, now 17 and retired.
“He’s really my type of horse,” said Nayel of El Conde.
“He is just such a fighter in every sense of the word. He’s a great guy.”
He calls El Conde, “kind of a jack of all trades.” In a speed class, he can “have a good shot at it and also jump a big grand prix. He’ll usually always try his best.”
Centennial Cup winner Nayel Nassar and El Conde. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
It is Nayel’s first visit to the Royal, which is celebrating its hundredth anniversary (hence the Centennial Cup.)
He called the show “unbelievable,” citing “this kind of atmosphere, these kinds of crowds. These are the events that really motivate you.”
He is seeking a berth in next year’s FEI World Cup Finals in Omaha, and hopes to add to his qualifications tonight in the Longines Grand Prix.
by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 11, 2022
The $138,000 Big Ben Challenge had an improbable winner last night, as international show jumping got under way in earnest at Toronto’s Royal Winter Fair.
The field of 24 was star-studded, including 2021 Olympic individual gold medalist Ben Maher of Great Britain; Ireland’s Conor Swail, who is leading World Cup standings for the 2023 finals and McLain Ward, the man makes a habit of winning at the Royal.
The course designed by Canadian Michel Vaillancourt was extremely tough. It was not until the tenth rider in the field, Kent Farrington on Landon, showed how it could be done that the clear rounds started coming.
Kent Farrington and Landon. (Photo © 2022 by Lawrence J. Nagy)
Six qualified for the jump-off, including, appropriately, Amy Millar. She is the daughter of Ian Millar, who was the rider of the class’s namesake, the iconic Big Ben—considered a Canadian equine national treasure.
Amy was getting vocal encouragement from her father in the stands, as she tried to best the fault-free trip in 34.15 seconds set by Kent, the former world number one-ranked rider who was first to go in the jump-off on his very accurate chestnut Zangersheide. Amy had a rail down with Truman however, and ditto the others in the tie-breaker with one exception—Nick Dello Joio.
He was last to go and some people already were leaving their seats, when he turned in a searing trip on Cornet’s Cambridge, a 10-year-old by Balou du Reventon. Could he beat Kent’s time? It seemed unlikely. Kent is an Olympic medalist who has won everywhere, while Nick got into the Royal only because another jumper competitor dropped out.
But a look at the clock revealed not only that Nick had taken the red ribbon (in Canada, first place is red, not blue) he did it by slicing well over a second off Kent’s clocking, finishing in 32.53.
Calling Cornet’s Cambridge “the most intelligent horse that I’ve ever been around,” Nick noted, “He knows just when to kick it into gear.”
“This is probably my favorite show that I’ve done so far and I’ve only been here for two days,” said Nick, moments after the trophy presentation.
“It’s just next level, it’s a real show. I love the size of the classes and it’s great because it’s not that it’s easier, because all 24 people that are here can win on any given night. It’s not that you feel that maybe there’s 40 and only 20 can win–everybody here earned their right to get here.”
Nick is the son of Norman Dello Joio, who was leading rider at the Royal during his spectacular career. Prior to this week, Nick had just come to the Royal once, with his father, and the only thing he remembers were the cinnamon rolls, the highlight of that trip. Now he has something else to remember from the Royal, which is marking its hundredth anniversary with the appropriate pomp and circumstance.
by Nancy Jaffer | Nov 6, 2022
Augusta Iwasaki came from behind in spectacular fashion today to cap her junior career with a hard-won victory in the ASPCA Maclay at the National Horse Show.
“I couldn’t have asked for anything else,” said the Californian, who rose from seventeenth place among the top 24, to fourth when the top five were asked to test, going on to ace it and finish on top aboard Izar in the Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park.
Augusta Iwasaki took the Maclay title at the National Horse Show.
Gussie, who won both the Platinum Performance/USEF Show Jumping Talent Search Finals and the Washington International equitation championship last month, made her mark at the National earlier in the week by taking the $50,000 Hunter Classic on Small Love. She is trained by Ken and Emily Smith and her parents, Liz Reilly and Chris Iwasaki.
Luke Jensen, the winner of the Dover/USEF Medal after taking second in the Talent Search, was second on Jamaica. A student of Missy Clark and John Brennan at North Run, he also earned the trophy donated by the late Wilson Dennehy as the rider who scored the most points in the Medal, Maclay and Talent Search. (Wilson is the only rider to date to have won all three in the same year; that was 1955).
A field of 220 started out in the Maclay at 7 a.m.; the ribbon presentation did not begin until 7:30 p.m. Too much. Are that many entries and such a long day for everyone really necessary?
The course included lots of unusual fences, with designer Bobby Murphy presiding over the layout. Among the more interesting obstacles was a fence from the 1993 American Invitational, a “triple bar” designed to look like steps of a historic house, wingless fences topped by pastel blocks and a panel with the word Maclay as a cut-out. It won the design prize for Madison Aguilar, a student at the Savannah School of Art & Design.
After the initial group of competitors completed their rounds, judges Michael Tokaruk and Robin Rost Brown whittled the start list down to 24 for the flat phase and the second jumping round.
The judges had quite a task.
“I thought we saw a lot of beautiful riding and incredible horses,” said Michael.
“The first round had a lot of questions. You needed to ride different canters, tracks…it came at you with plenty of things to separate the riders. I thought everybody had a little bit of something throughout the day.”
Robin noted, “I think we both wanted to see the riders be able to adjust their horses, opening and closing strides, and a nice flow and clear, concise forward riding, but the ability to shorten their horses as well.”
When the list was narrowed down, “They were very close,” Michael observed.
“Things were tight going into the test and that’s why we did test, and there was motion throughout the day. Nothing was clear-cut. Those who were ahead had things happen. Those that were behind kept fighting.”
Tessa Downey led the roster when the top five were called back for the test that involved a hand gallop to the first fence, a canter to the second, slowing to a walk and doing a turn on the haunches, then counter-cantering into the next set of four fences. Carlee McCutcheon, who had been first when the group of 24 was called back, stood second at that point, Luke third; Gussie, fourth, and Isabella David, fifth.
When it was all over, Tessa finished third, Carlee fourth and Isabella fifth.
“I can’t really believe this happened,” Gussie said.
She now heads back to school at Southern Methodist University with some fancy trophies to decorate her dorm room. Although she’s not from Texas (but does going to school there count?) Carlee’s mother, Mandy McCutcheon, pointed out that even if you don’t count Gussie, three of the top four–her daughter Luke, and Tessa–are from Texas. Got to be the first time that ever happened!
And how about a shout-out for New Jersey? Isabella is from Holmdel and trains with Stacia Madden and the team from Beacon Hill; Kate Egan of Glen Gardner finished tenth. She rides with Emil Spadone and Luke Olsen from Redfields.
Noting that she went fairly early in the morning during the first round, Gussie said, “I thought I put in a pretty solid round, but definitely not the best round we ever had.”
Yet she realized it wasn’t over; she just had to do more.
“I kept fighting all day long,” she said.
“This has been so special.”
Click here for the results of the Maclay.
