Whether you’re schooling at home or galloping across country, one of the best air jackets can make all the difference when things don’t go to plan. Designed to inflate on impact, these high-tech vests offer an extra layer of protection without weighing you down or restricting movement.

If you’re competing cross-country, you’ll need to wear one of the best approved body protectors as standard – an air vest can then be worn over the top for added safety. In dressage and showjumping, air vests can be worn without a body protector, and they’re also gaining popularity in the hunting field for their discreet protection and comfort.

So, whether you’re buying your first air jacket, upgrading to a newer model, or looking for one that fits better over your competition gear, we’ve picked out some of the best options available, plus the key things to know before you buy.

Best air jackets: H&H’s quick guide

Best all-rounder: Helite Zip’In 2 Airbag Vest

Best for custom fit and tech features: Seaver Safefit Airbag Vest

Best value pick: Felix Bühler by Spark Air Vest

Best premium option: EquiAirbag EAB V4 Pro

It attaches to the saddle via a lanyard on the stirrup bar, and if triggered, it’s quick to reset – just swap the CO₂ cartridge, secure the neck flap, and you’re good to go. The adjustable waist belt helps dial in the fit, and while it only comes in black and the cartridge is sold separately, it’s a smart, safety-focused choice for riders who want serious protection without fuss.

The vest inflates rapidly in less than 0.097sec upon activation, providing immediate protection. While it requires the Motion3 body protector for use, the two together provide a truly comprehensive safety solution for all riders. Also available in children’s sizes.

For riders who want smart design and strong safety in one sleek vest, the Vita is a reliable option.

Air jacket safety standards

The most recognised certification for equestrian air vests is NF S72-800:2022, the only official standard created specifically for horse riding airbags. It covers inflation time, impact protection, coverage (neck, spine, chest, pelvis), and reliability. If a vest meets this, it’s been through rigorous, equestrian-focused testing.

You may also see this standard referred to as CE NF S72-800:2022 — the “CE” marking indicates that the product complies with European Union safety directives, while NF S72-800:2022 is the specific airbag testing protocol within that framework. In short: if you see either, it means the vest has passed the most up-to-date and relevant air vest safety testing for equestrian use.

Some vests are also tested to EN 1621-4 (for motorcycle airbags) or EN 1621-2 (for back protectors). These aren’t riding-specific but still confirm a high level of impact absorption, particularly for the spine and torso.

You may also see references to EN 13158:2009, the standard for traditional equestrian body protectors, not air vests. While air jackets don’t typically meet this standard, some brands use it for comparison to show their vest offers similar or better protection.

Lastly, SATRA M38 is a respected test protocol used to assess air vest performance. It’s not an official standard, but it’s run by SATRA – a leading independent testing lab – and is often used to evaluate how well an air jacket reduces impact in simulated riding falls.

Do equestrian airbag vests work?

Yes, when used correctly, the best air jackets are highly effective at reducing the risk and severity of injury during a fall.

They’re designed to inflate in milliseconds when triggered, cushioning vital areas such as the neck, spine, chest, and pelvis. Independent testing has shown that air vests can significantly reduce impact forces, especially to the chest and back – areas commonly injured in riding accidents.

While no vest can prevent all injuries, air jackets are a proven way to add an extra layer of protection for riders across all disciplines.

Are air jackets worth it?

For many riders, yes, the best air jackets are well worth the investment. They offer rapid, targeted protection in the event of a fall, inflating in milliseconds to help reduce the impact on key areas like the spine, chest and pelvis.

While they can be pricey, especially compared to traditional body protectors, many riders value the added peace of mind and freedom of movement they provide. Whether you’re schooling, hacking or competing, an air jacket adds an extra layer of safety that could make a big difference in a serious fall.

Do I need to get an air jacket fitted?

Yes, a proper fit is important to ensure your air jacket works as intended. Ideally get one fitted at your local saddlery and ask them for a demo on how it works too. Most brands offer size guides based on height and chest measurements, but it’s worth trying on different models if possible, especially if you plan to wear it over a body protector or under a show jacket.

A well-fitted air vest should feel snug but not restrictive, and sit close enough to your body for the airbag to deploy effectively. Some models are adjustable or available in long/tall options to help get the right fit.

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The best body protectors for horse riding are designed to absorb the shock impact caused by a fall, kick or being caught under your horse’s hooves. They can be used by all riders from the complete beginner to the elite.

More riders than ever before are opting to wear body protectors for horse riding and the latest designs are more lightweight and flexible than they have been in the past. Body protectors for children are also increasingly common in riding schools and at Pony Club, where they are recommended for all riding, although they are only compulsory at Pony Club for both training and competing in cross-country riding and pony racing.

Wherever you choose to buy, we strongly recommend that you have your body protector for horse riding fitted by a professional at a BETA-trained retailer as body protectors can’t be appropriately fitted by simply selecting your age or clothing size.

Best body protectors for horse riding

If you’re looking for something that stands out on the cross-country course, Racesafe sell custom covers that go over your body protector in a wide range of colours and patterns – and you can add logos and text, too.

When do you need to wear a body protector for horse riding?

Body protectors are optional if you’re learning to ride, but many beginner riders feel more confident with one. If you are a competitive rider, however, some governing bodies will require that you wear an up-to-standard body protector. They are compulsory to wear if you’re eventing at any level, competing in working hunter or working hunter pony classes under BSPS rules, and for some Pony Club disciplines.

What standard do body protectors need to be?

There are three levels of protection and, of these, the BETA Level 3 (2018) body protector standard offers the highest level. All of the body protectors we’ve featured in this guide meet this standard and are accepted by all major organisations.

There were two versions of this BETA standard – 2009 (purple label) and 2018 (blue label). They have the same level of protection, but the 2009 version ceased manufacturing in 2018. Although unlikely, you may still find these purple-labelled body protectors in stores and online, governing bodies and rider organisations, including The Pony Club and British Eventing, stopped accepting the purple label at the end of 2023, so make sure to check if your existing body protector needs an upgrade.

If you are looking to buy a new body protector, we recommend you check that it meets the 2018 version of the standard to ensure you’re able to wear it in the future, so look out for the blue label. Some products will look exactly the same and have the same name – it’s only the label that’s different.

If your sport’s governing body – such as The Pony Club, British Eventing, British Riding Clubs, or BSPS – requires a body protector, this is the version you’ll need.

How long do body protectors last?

You should replace your body protector at least every three to five years – after this time the impact absorption properties of the foam may have started to decline. If you have a heavy fall, check your body protector for dents immediately. The foam will return to its original shape within half an hour but a dent would suggest that this part of the body protector will have lot some absorption properties and you should, therefore, replace it.

Taking good care of your body protector means that it may last longer within the three to five year recommended lifespan, if it is not damaged in a fall.

How to care for a body protector

You can extend the lifespan of your body protector by:

• Cleaning it with a sponge and warm, soapy water
• Storing it in a dry, warm space, avoiding excessive heat
• Avoiding keeping it in the car as direct sunlight, excessive heat and damp will cause the fabric and foam to deteriorate more quickly
• Hanging it up to maintain shape
• Closing fastenings when not in use to prevent hair and dirt clogging them up

Body protectors vs back protectors for horse riding 

Body protectors and back protectors are easily confused. Although they appear alike, their functions differ significantly.

A body protector is the stronger option, offering comprehensive protection for your torso. It is designed to shield your back, chest, ribs, and internal organs from injury in case of a fall or kick. Some riders also choose to pair a body protector with one of the best air jackets for added protection.

In contrast, a back protector focuses solely on safeguarding your spine and lower back, offering no protection to other parts of the torso. To make the right purchase for your riding needs, learn more about the difference between body protectors vs back protectors.

Do I need to get a body protector fitted by a professional?

Wearing the correct safety gear every time you ride is one of the most effective ways to reduce your risk of injury, as there is no one-size-fits-all solution. A poorly fitted body protector cannot do its job properly, so we highly recommend taking advantage of professional fitting services, often offered at tack shops.

We recommend having your body protector or back protector fitted by a BETA-trained retailer.

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Body protectors are designed to absorb impact from a fall, a kick or being stepped on by a horse, and certain body protector standards are compulsory for competitions under the rules of governing bodies.

The body protector standards were originally developed by the British Equestrian Trade Association (BETA), with the help of riding organisations, doctors, riders, manufacturers and retailers. In 2000, the new BETA standard superseded all previous standards, but it has been revised twice since – in 2009 and 2018.

As of 1 January 2024, major governing bodies only accept body protectors that meet the latest BETA level 3 (2018) version of the standard, so if you plan to compete and your body protector is not up to standard, you’ll need to buy one of the best up-to-standard body protectors for horse riding or best body protectors for children.

What are the current body protector standards?

There are three levels of protection – and the vast majority of horse riders should look for BETA level 3, which is the highest standard of protection on offer.

BETA level 3 (2018)

This is the latest version of the BETA level 3 standard and it is marked with a blue label. It’s the standard you need to look for if your governing body or rider organisation – for example, The Pony Club, British Eventing, British Riding Clubs or BSPS – requires you to wear a body protector.

All of the body protectors we’ve featured in our buying guides are currently accepted by all major governing bodies.

What about BETA level 3 (2009)?

The 2009 version of the BETA level 3 standard (with a purple label) ceased manufacturing in 2018 and it’s unlikely that you’ll see any of these purple-labelled body protectors in stores or online.

Governing bodies and rider organisations that require a body protector no longer recognise the purple 2009 label, with most ceasing to accept this on 31 December 2023. They can still be worn if you’re competing at British Dressage or British Showjumping as a body protector is optional and no guidance for a standard is given – or, indeed, if you’re not competing at all. However, it’s recommended that you replace your body protector every three to five years and the BETA level 3 (2018) standard offers the highest level of protection.

CE marks

A CE mark which, although not a quality mark, shows that a product is fit for purpose as outlined in personal protective equipment guidelines.

Body protectors that are CE marked to EN 13158:2018 (the European standard for equestrian body protectors) are annually retested to the BETA 2018 standard, which means they consistently meet the very latest in safety standards.

What are the different levels of body protector?

There are three levels of the 2018 revision, each designed for different activities and denoted by a colour-coded label on the garment.

• Level 1 (green label) provides the lowest level of protection that is only considered appropriate for licensed jockeys while racing.
• Level 2 (orange label) is only considered suitable for low-risk situations, which does not include jumping, riding on the road, riding young or excitable horses or riding while inexperienced.
• Level 3 (blue label) is considered appropriate for general riding and competing. Level 3 body protectors should prevent minor injuries, including bruising that would have produced stiffness and pain, reduce soft tissue injuries and prevent some rib fractures.

Shoulder protection standards

There is also a BETA Standard for shoulder protectors. Shoulder pads that are sold to be worn with a particular body protector, such as the Racesafe Motion 3.0 shoulder pads, will have been tested to the same level as the body protector. Research into falls onto the shoulder during eventing competitions has shown that wearing adequate shoulder protection reduces the risk of breaking the collarbone by up to 80%.

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British safety brand Racesafe has launched its first lightweight, slimline inflating gilet – the VeloAir air jacket.

“Protection shouldn’t be something you constantly notice – it should simply be there when it’s needed,” said Racesafe managing director James How. “We’ve gone to great lengths to develop an air jacket that meets the Racesafe standard that delivers confidence without compromising comfort, movement or style.”

The VeloAir meets the safety standard for equestrian airbags (NF S72-800:2022) and promises rapid inflation (in 0.095 seconds).

The bespoke airbag pattern has been designed to help maintain a slim, unobtrusive silhouette and a lighter more streamlined fit, while maintaining maximal impact absorption.

Racesafe VeloAir

The VeloAir air jacket comes in black or midnight blue, in young rider or adult sizes, and has an RRP of £355 (young rider) and £425 (adult). It is designed with a water-repellent, wipe-clean fabric that can be worn in all weathers.

Event rider Piggy March said: “I’ve really enjoyed riding in the VeloAir, it’s so subtle and the colour choices match my show jacket really closely.”

Showjumper Chloe Winchester has found it comfortable, breathable and flattering. She said: “I find it fits really well, and I don’t find myself adjusting it throughout the day.”

For more information, visit racesafe.co or visit a Racesafe retailer for a professional fitting.

Are air jackets worth it?

Though more expensive than standard body protectors, many riders consider air jackets to be a worthwhile investment.

They offer rapid, targeted protection in a fall, whether you are schooling, hacking, or competing, inflating in milliseconds to help reduce the impact on key areas, such as the spine, chest and pelvis.

Air jackets can be worn on their own, or over body or back protectors. If you are competing in cross-country under British Eventing rules, it is compulsory to wear a body protector of the appropriate standard, but an air jacket can also be worn over the top.

Do I need to get an air jacket fitted?

Yes, a proper fit is important to ensure your air jacket works as intended. Ideally you should get one fitted at your local equestrian store where they can also demonstrate how it works.

Most brands offer size guides based on height and chest measurements, but it’s worth trying on different models if possible.

If you intend to wear your air jacket over a body or back protector then ensure you take that to your fitting appointment.

• For unlimited access to the latest product news, buying guides and reviews, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Are concussions being under-reported, should we be looking deeper into falls not at cross-country fences – and how can we make sure that frangible devices are activating correctly?

These were the major talking points at the FEI Eventing Seminar (31 January to 1 February), led by FEI eventing committee chairman David O’Connor and FEI risk management steering group chairman Stuart Buntine.

The pair summarised data from events globally, including starters and fall statistics, saying the general picture is “positive”.

“It’s really important we look at a lot of these statistics, not just for what happens this year, but we actually take a 10-year look at the direction,” said Mr O’Connor.

FEI figures show the percentage of rotational horse falls has decreased from roughly one in every 664 starters in 2016 to one in every 1,336 in 2025. Non-rotational horse falls have also decreased – from 1.24% of starters in 2016 to 0.85% 2025.

Mr O’Connor said the reductions show “a lot of the work we are doing is working”, giving examples of frangible technology, course-design, understanding of how horses see and minimum eligibility requirements.

“We want them to continue that road, to go down even farther. That is no question. But it does say these decisions that have been made over the last 10 or 15 years are working,” he said.

The FEI sets maximum horse fall targets for each level, which it aims to be below each year. The percentage of falls came within target at all levels, with the exception of CC3*-L (at 1.56% in 2025, compared to a target of 1.5%).

Mr O’Connor explained that the targets were set 15 years ago and questioned whether they are still appropriate “or can we push a little harder now to judge ourselves in a harder way?”

In recent years, the FEI has also improved the data it has collected on where falls happen at competitions, and on concussions.

Between 2018 and 2025, unsurprisingly most falls (75.21%) were at cross-country fences. But that means around a quarter of falls in this time occurred elsewhere – 6.69% on the flat across country, 11.08% in the showjumping, 6.92% in warm-up areas and 0.1% in the dressage. In 2025, 27.8% of falls were not at cross-country fences, including 10.22% in the warm-up.

“I think that is an important thing for us to realise, not that we’re letting ourselves off the hook for the cross-country falls,” said Mr O’Connor. “The one that surprises me is that 10% of the falls are actually in the warm-ups, getting ready for the competition.”

This sparked questions – in 2018, only 4.36% of falls were in warm-up areas and Mr Buntine asked if that increase can be accounted for by better reporting. Others asked whether there is a correlation between warm-up falls and falls on the cross-country, which has not yet been analysed.

“We are now at a place where the statistics can bring these questions up,” said Mr O’Connor, explaining how the data can lead to more analysis. “We just need to keep asking what the next questions are.”

British Eventing (BE) gave H&H a detailed breakdown of British figures, in national and international classes.

In 2025, there were 1,282 falls in total (FEI and BE); 923 on the cross-country, of which 838 were at a cross-country fence and 85 on the flat across country; and 359 elsewhere (not on the cross-country).

Following her presentation on BE’s engineering innovation competition (news, 18 December) on the second day of the seminar, BE chief executive Rosie Williams brought up the number of falls away from the cross-country course.

“We are looking into why is that happening, when’s it happening, what was the weather, was the horse shod… Because we need to reduce those falls as much as possible,” she said.

Eventing safety: are concussions being reported accurately?

Concerns were raised that concussions are potentially under-reported.

The FEI changed how it accounted for concussions in 2018, giving them a separate column in its injury reporting table.

In 2025, a total of 11 serious concussions were reported in international eventing worldwide. In the explanatory notes accompanying the FEI’s risk management data, the FEI states that “22 concussions were reported, 11 combined with a serious injury and 11 with a slight injury”.

Mr O’Connor said he believes the number of concussions is “under-reported” in international eventing.

“I don’t know if that’s an accurate number, though I do believe that number will become more accurate over the years – as we have found out through the data collection process [in other eventing safety statistics], it was probably eight or nine years before we started to get really reliable data,” he said.

“Now we’ve had what we think is fairly reliable data in most things since 2013, so it does take a while and I think this is one of the places we are looking to increase the reliability of that number.”

Frangibles: ‘We have to make sure they deploy correctly’

The risk to safety and sporting fairness when frangible devices are not fitted correctly was highlighted by Mr Buntine.

“If we’re going to use these [devices], we have to make sure they deploy correctly,” he said, referring to the situation in general rather than to any specific country, as was the case throughout the seminar.

Mr Buntine showed examples of where fences have moved when hit by a horse, dissipating the force and meaning that a device has not activated. And he cited cases where measurements involved in fitting a frangible device have been incorrect, which again means it has not worked as it should.

He said it is both a safety and an integrity issue if frangible devices do not deploy correctly.

“Athletes must have confidence that the technology is correct and it works in the correct manner,” he said.

“We need to make sure these fences do work – and work when you want them to work, so they do save falls. But also that they don’t activate too soon, because we don’t want to be issuing penalties when they shouldn’t be there.

“They’re there to prevent or reduce rotational or bad falls, and that’s their role, but not to activate early. So I think as officials, if we can just keep a focus on that, it would hopefully help some of these wrong activations from happening.”

Falls not at cross-country fences: the German picture

The German federation has dug into its own data and found that most falls in its national competitions are not at cross-country fences.

“We see in our national competition an unbelievable number of 75% of all rider falls happen without even jumping the fence,” said Philine Ganders-Meyer, of the German federation. “It’s enormous, and we are still working on it. It is, in the end, [about] rider fitness and rider education.”

The German data from 2025 shows these unseats are on the flat, and in situations associated with approaching a fence. It also showed that 16 of its 30 horse falls were either on the flat (15) or “without jumping the fence, but combined with the approach” (one).

“I think there’s a couple of things maybe to look into, because it’s a surprisingly high number,” said Mr O’Connor.

• To watch the full seminar, visit: https://inside.fei.org/fei/disc/eventing/risk-management/seminars-2025-2026

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Sharing how to make traditional cross-country fences frangible set to improve eventing safety worldwide

British Eventing launches £10,000 Innovation Prize to find new cross-country safety solutions

The team behind the new age of frangible fences as seen for the first time in Britain last season are travelling the world to share their knowledge and learn new ideas.

A range of traditional-looking fences, which incorporated a frangible “parallelogram” chassis, were seen for the first time at Thoresby 2025 (news, 27 March and 3 April).

Course-designer, organiser and new chairman of the FEI risk management steering group Stuart Buntine, Swedish inventor Mats Bjornetun, who is behind MIM clip frangible technology, and members of Mr Buntine’s course-building team worked together on the designs. One of their main aims was to design classic-looking cross-country fences that happen to be deformable, rather than jumps that stood out as being frangible because of their “space age” appearance.

The team, which includes course-builders Will Seely and Chris Eaton, worked with 16 builders and designers from Australia and New Zealand to create deformable fences during an FEI seminar in Victoria, Australia, this month. They will repeat the seminar in Germany in February.

“Our brief was stand back, let them do and then interject where possible,” said Mr Eaton. “But in actual fact, I found that we were watching what’s going on and quizzing them as much as they’re quizzing us as to actually, ‘Is there a better way of doing that? Have you done it better? Can we educate you or can you educate us?’

“We’ve already seen a couple of different methods, and we’ve talked through the pros and cons in different ways of doing it.

“The important thing is, we’re trying to build fences that people are used to seeing out on cross-country courses that are not frangible and we can add a safety element to that fence without changing the look of it too much.

“It’s the sort of fence that you know – the average roll top, log, house – all these things can be made frangible. We want to keep moving things forward, but I think a lot of people started to get an expectation that these new safety fences were going to change what cross-country was all about [which isn’t the case].”

Mr Seely added: “The whole thing we’ve done back at home is to try to push the frangibles forward and get away from the space age look and go [towards looking] more traditional.

“If we can spread across the world and make people happier using it, because they’re producing a more traditional looking cross-country course, we’re doing good and pushing safety forwards. We just keep pushing the parameters to make things safer and better.”

Mr Buntine said this was the “first of a number of courses” planned globally.

“The whole frangible debate is an interesting one. I think I was like most people, very sceptical when it first started. I was a traditionalist at heart,” he said.

“A number of incidents have occurred over the last six or eight years whereby I’ve really started to look at it and say, the future of the sport has a dependency on us to provide sport that is safe, that takes in human safety and horse welfare.”

“I think the great thing from our point of view is the FEI’s got behind supporting the expansion of the use of frangible fences.”

He added: “We’re off to Germany in February. Then, we’d love to take our knowledge and share it around the world, but also learn from others because everybody’s got so much to learn in this game.”

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Riders voice support after cross-country safety innovations used for first time

Money to support a new Innovation Prize to find the next generation of collapsible cross-country fences was included in £185,000 raised at the British Eventing Support Trust winter ball on Saturday (29 November) night at London’s Savoy Hotel.

The Innovation Prize is a British Eventing (BE) project financially supported by the BE Support Trust and will involve BE inviting submissions from university students studying courses such as mechanical engineering and sports design and materials, with a prize fund of £10,000.

BE chief executive Rosie Williams, who spoke about the launch at the ball and called out for attendees to pledge money to support both the prize and implementation costs such as testing, said: “I am excited about this innovation and grateful to the BE Support Trust for their financial backing.

“We need to look at the safety of our sport with fresh eyes, engaging with the best universities working in mechanical engineering, sports science, materials expertise, and design. This work will take time, and we hope to see meaningful developments over the next 12 to 18 months.”

Olympic eventing medallist Ian Stark, the chair of the BE Support Trust board of trustees said: “The partnership between BE and the BE Support Trust reflects our shared commitment to continually improving safety within our sport.

“The new Innovation Prize is an inspiring step forward. It encourages the next generation of engineers and sports scientists to explore bold, creative solutions that could significantly reduce the risk of falls and improve safety for both horses and riders.

“The remarkable generosity shown by supporters at the Winter Ball will allow us to drive this vital work forward and ensure that eventing continues to offer meaningful health, wellbeing and sporting benefits for many years to come.”

“I know what a difference this charity makes”

The Winter Ball is the BE Support Trust’s biggest fundraising event of the year and the £185,000 total includes proceeds from ticket sales and the silent auction, as well as the live auction, raffle, games and donations on the night.

The top lot in the live auction was an entry to the CSI2* classes at next year’s London Global Champions Tour and hospitality during the event, which went for £20,000.

The Trust is on track to help 52% more riders in 2025 than the previous year and a video played on the night showed some of those who have been supported. The event was co-hosted by Trust beneficiary Saffron Cresswell, who suffered a serious spinal injury and was paralysed from the chest down in a fall at Bramham Horse Trials last year.

Nicola Wilson, a championship event rider who suffered life-changing injuries in a fall in 2022 and who is now patron of the BE Support Trust, said: “Having experienced firsthand how important it is for riders to have access to the right support in difficult times, I know what a difference this charity makes. The kindness and generosity shown at the Winter Ball will help ensure that more riders than ever can access that support when they need it most.”

Lexi Hambro, a trustee of the BE Support Trust and chair of the Winter Ball added: “On behalf of all the trustees and staff I’d like to extend a sincere thank you to the committee and everyone who supported the event, donated prizes, or gave so generously on the night. You’ve helped make the Winter Ball a success and we couldn’t do any of this without you.”

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Researchers have developed a new way to estimate how much energy horses use during international cross-country, which could benefit riders, trainers, vets and course-designers.

In a study published in Animals, the German Olympic equestrian committee (DOKR) and researchers from the free university of Berlin looked at the demands on horses during the cross-country phase at two- to five-star events.

The researchers developed a model, based on 691 runs by more than 250 horses at international events, by combining horse heart rate and blood lactate data with course information such as speed, terrain and difficulty level. Key findings included that terrain, speed and speed variability influence the energy demands – and that short-format competitions generally require more anaerobic effort than long-format.

“However, in general, anaerobic contribution to energy consumption during cross-country is only about 10% at most, indicating that 90% or more of energy requirements are supplied by aerobic pathways. Increasing the aerobic capacity of the horses should therefore be a primary goal of effective training programmes,” co-author Katharina Kirsch told H&H.

“For horses that compete at higher levels, anaerobic exercise should also be taken into account – especially for short format – however. The energy requirements attributed to speed fluctuations increased with increasing average speed, and were higher in short format. Therefore, the higher the average speed, the greater the impact of speed variations.”

Aerobic exercise is fuelled by oxygen that breaks down glucose in the horses’ muscles to provide sustained energy. Anaerobic exercise begins when the levels of oxygen are no longer able to supply the muscles with sufficient energy. Anaerobic exercise uses the energy stored in the horses’ muscles in the form of glycogen, and cannot be sustained for long periods.

Ms Kirsch said a very “irregular course” that requires the horse to change speed frequently, for example due to a lot of turns, can therefore significantly increase the effort required – but if a horse and rider “are very well attuned to each other and the course is completed very smoothly without extreme changes in speed, this may considerably decrease the effort that is required from the horse”. She added that individual horse fitness plays a major role, indicating the importance of individual training programmes.

“We already suspected that differences between horses would be high, but how big these actually are was somewhat surprising,” she said.

“Although horses in the same competition have to complete the same course under similar conditions, and we already accounted for speed and speed changes, it might still be that they perceive the physical demand very differently.”

Ms Kirsch and co-author Anna Liedtke added that the sport has changed significantly over time since the removal of roads and tracks and steeplechase, and an increase in technical difficulty.

“The deceleration required when approaching technically difficult obstacles consequently necessitates that the horses are galloping at higher speeds between fences. This frequent acceleration and deceleration has the potential to considerably increase energetic demands,” the researchers said.

“We showed in previous work that short formats usually elicit higher heart rates and blood lactate concentrations, potentially due to the fact that they involve a higher number of jumps per distance. In this study we were able to confirm our hypothesis and could show that speed changes have a significant impact on how much energy is required.”

Ms Kirsch said this work could help riders, trainers and vets in developing tailored training programmes and with early identification of over-training or injury risk – and course-designers may use the findings to “assess the physiological challenge posed by terrain and layout, beyond just jump complexity or distance”.

“Acknowledging the considerable impact course design may have on energetic demands may promote horse welfare by ensuring that courses are not unintentionally too demanding,” she said.

Ms Kirsch and Ms Liedtke said this study builds on a large dataset collected by DOKR’s performance monitoring programme, which supports the German national team and whose work involves ensuring horses are fit to compete and capable of meeting championship demands, “thereby improving the welfare of sports horses”.

“In future we would like to evaluate how our proposed model could be further refined to assess individual fitness levels and predict injury risks,” they said.

“We would also like to focus more on the mental load that is imposed on horses competing at high-level competitions.”

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

An air jacket or body protector can make all the difference in a fall, but knowing how they work and when to wear them is key. They’re often grouped together as rider safety gear, but the protection they offer is very different.

So, which one do you actually need, and when should you wear both? Here’s everything you need to know about choosing between the best air jackets and the best body protectors – or using them together – depending on how and what you ride.

Air jacket vs body protector: What’s the difference?

A body protector is a foam-filled vest designed to absorb impact and reduce blunt trauma in the event of a fall, kick, or collision. It offers constant, passive protection to your back, chest, ribs and internal organs. Once it’s on, it’s ready – no activation needed.

By contrast, an air jacket is an inflatable vest that only deploys when triggered. It’s worn over your clothing (and usually over a body protector) and attaches to the saddle via a lanyard. If the rider is thrown from the saddle, the lanyard pulls a cord which activates a CO₂ canister, inflating the jacket in a fraction of a second. This creates an air cushion around key areas including the spine, neck, pelvis and sometimes the chest.

So while a body protector reduces impact force using dense materials, an air jacket reduces it by creating a pressurised air buffer – but only after a fall is in progress.

Which should you wear – and when?

Body protectors are essential for high-risk riding and mandatory in certain competitions, such as:

• Cross-country (and are mandatory in British Eventing for the cross-country phase, and over solid fences in arena eventing)
• Riding young, green or unpredictable horses
• Schooling in potentially hazardous situations

To meet current competition rules, your body protector must be BETA Level 3 (2018) standard – look for the blue label. Most governing bodies won’t accept older body protector standards (e.g. purple 2009) or lower protection levels. It’s also worth noting that body protectors should be replaced every three to five years, even if they haven’t been involved in a fall.

Air jackets, while offering excellent protection for certain injuries (such as spinal compression or internal bruising), are not a substitute for a BETA-approved body protector in any discipline where one is required, like eventing. They’re an optional, additional layer.

Air jackets are commonly worn by:

• Eventers, over the top of a body protector for cross-country
• Riders schooling or hacking who want extra peace of mind
• Experienced riders working with sensitive or high-level horses
• Riders with previous injury history seeking more upper-body protection

Some air jackets offer additional neck and pelvis protection that body protectors don’t. But remember: they only work if they inflate – and that requires separation from the saddle. In situations where you fall with your horse, or aren’t fully separated, some may not trigger in time.

Pros and cons

Body protectors:

✔ Constant protection – no need to “arm” or trigger

✔ Approved for use in affiliated competitions

✔ Protects torso, ribs and organs from impact and kicks

✔ Offers coverage even in close falls or entanglements

✖ Can feel bulky or warm, especially in hot weather

✖ Some riders find them restrictive, especially to start with

Air jackets:

✔ Lightweight and unobtrusive when not deployed

✔ Inflates to offer neck, spine, chest and pelvis protection

✔ Often more comfortable for long hours in the saddle

✔ Can reduce whiplash-type injuries

✖ Must be worn with a body protector in most competitions

✖ Requires rearming after deployment (usually by replacing the gas canister)

✖ Won’t inflate if the rider isn’t fully separated from the horse

Air jacket vs body protector: How to choose

Choosing the right safety gear depends on the type of riding you’re doing – and whether you’re competing or not.

If your discipline requires a BETA Level 3 body protector, that’s non-negotiable. Air jackets can be worn over the top for additional protection, but they don’t meet the criteria on their own and won’t be accepted in competition without a body protector underneath.

For everyday riding where safety gear is optional, the choice depends on what you’re doing and the level of protection you want. Some riders stick with a body protector for its consistent coverage, others go for the lighter feel of an air jacket, knowing it only activates during a fall, and many choose to wear both. There’s also the option of a back protector for riders who want minimal coverage without the bulk.

Fit is critical, especially if you’re combining an air jacket with a body protector. They need to work together without restricting movement or interfering with inflation. Most brands provide compatibility guidelines, and a professional fitting can make a big difference. If you can, try the gear on while mounted to check that everything moves with you in the saddle, and check that lanyards are properly adjusted.

Body protectors and air jackets offer different types of protection – one constant, one reactive – and together, they cover more scenarios than either can alone. If you’re unsure what’s right for you, a BETA-trained retailer can help you make a smart, safe choice.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major shows throughout 2025, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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If you’re shopping for rider safety gear, you might have come across two similar-sounding options: body protector and back protector. While they might seem quite similar at first glance, they’re designed for different purposes. So, what’s the difference, and which one do you actually need?

Here’s everything you need to know to make the right choice for your riding when it comes to choosing between the best body protectors and best back protectors.

Body protector vs back protector: What’s the difference?

A body protector is the more robust of the two. Designed to safeguard your entire torso, it covers your back, chest, ribs and internal organs in the event of a fall or kick. These padded vests are usually made from layers of shock-absorbing foam, and their design varies from flexible and lightweight to more rigid depending on the level of protection.

A back protector, by contrast, does exactly what it says – it protects your spine and lower back, and nothing more. These are generally thinner, lighter and more comfortable, but don’t offer the same level of overall coverage. They’re ideal for riders who want a bit of extra peace of mind during flatter work or hacking, but they’re not designed for high-risk disciplines.

Which should you wear – and when?

The simple answer is: it depends on what you’re doing.

Body protectors are best suited to riskier activities such as:

• Cross-country (and are mandatory in British Eventing for the cross-country phase, and over solid fences in arena eventing)
• Jumping young or unpredictable horses
• Backing horses
• Schooling in more unpredictable environments

From 1 January 2024, most major governing bodies will only accept body protectors that meet the latest BETA Level 3 (2018) standard.

You can spot BETA Level 3 (2018) approved body protectors by their blue label. If your sport’s governing body – such as The Pony Club, British Eventing, British Riding Clubs, or BSPS – requires a body protector, this is the version you’ll need.

Body protectors with green, orange, or the older purple (2009) labels aren’t accepted by most governing bodies. While you can still wear them for unaffiliated riding or in disciplines like British Dressage or British Showjumping – where body protectors are optional – it’s recommended to replace them every three to five years.

For full peace of mind, the BETA Level 3 (2018) body protector standard offers the highest level of protection currently available. All of the body protectors we’ve featured in our guides to the best body protectors and best body protectors for children meet this standard and are accepted by all major organisations.

Back protectors are a good choice for:

• Hacking
• Schooling on the flat
• Riders who don’t like the feel of a full-body protector but still want a bit of spinal protection

Pros and cons

Here’s a quick overview:

Body protectors:

✔ Greater protection for ribs, back and internal organs

✔ Required for some disciplines (e.g. British Eventing cross-country)

✔ Can be worn with an air jacket for maximum protection

✖ Can feel bulky or hot, especially in summer

✖ Some riders find them restrictive at first

Back protectors:

✔ Lightweight and comfortable, easier for everyday wear

✔ Tend to be cheaper because they involve less material

✔ Provide essential protection whilst keeping freedom of movement

✖ Limited protection – less suitable for jumping or higher-risk riding

✖ Doesn’t meet competition requirements for some disciplines

Body protector vs back protector: How to choose

Start by considering what kind of riding you usually do. If you’re mostly hacking or doing flatwork, a back protector may be sufficient. But if you’re jumping, eventing or working with unpredictable horses, a body protector is likely to be the safer choice.

Next, think about fit. A well-fitted protector – whether full body or back-only – should feel snug but not restrictive. It shouldn’t shift or ride up when you’re in the saddle. Many tack shops offer professional fitting services, and it’s worth taking advantage of this: a poorly fitted protector can’t do its job properly.

We recommend having your body protector or back protector fitted by a BETA-trained retailer.

Comfort matters, too. Try mounting and moving around while trying it on – can you lift your arms, sit comfortably, and would you be able to dismount easily? If not, try a different size or model. Some riders also choose to pair a body protector with one of the best air jackets for added protection.

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, but wearing the right safety gear – every time you ride – is one of the most effective ways to reduce your risk of injury.

If you’re unsure, speak to your local BETA-trained retailer or a competition organiser. They can help you ensure your kit is safe, compliant, and suitable for your discipline.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major shows throughout 2025, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

You may also be interested in:

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

A large number of horse deaths in eventing do not occur from falls at fences, research has shown.

A new study, published in Equine Veterinary Journal, aimed to gather data to understand the reasons for equine fatalities in eventing. In the absence of full data sets being publicly available, information was gathered from various media reports between 1998 and 2023.

The reports were verified against national federations’ records of recorded faults – as a bare minimum if a report said a fatality was owing to a horse fall, for this to be included in the study the federation record must have recorded an elimination for a horse fall. In some cases horse records had been deleted since the death or some federations’ databases were not accessible, so 60 reports were not included as they could not be verified.

Of the 110 equine fatalities included, 62.7% were not associated with a report of a horse fall across country. Musculoskeletal injuries were linked to 36.4% reports, and 27.3% did not include how the horse died. Sudden death was attributed to 36.4% of fatalities – 90% of these were during the cross-country phase.

The team found the study “demonstrates that equine fatalities in eventing occur in contexts other than horse falls, including as a result of musculoskeletal injuries and sudden death”.

Lead researcher Heather Cameron-Whytock of the University of Central Lancashire, who has worked on a number of eventing safety studies, told H&H the biggest surprise was the high percentage of fatalities not associated with a report of a horse fall.

“I include ourselves when I say this, when there’s any mention of safety and eventing, everyone is focused on horse falls,” she said. “So the fact a lot of the fatalities were not associated with [cross-country] fences shows we may be missing something, and that there are other important factors we should have been looking into, but we haven’t been up to now because we weren’t aware.”

‘Not a total picture’

Dr Cameron-Whytock added that as the data came from media reports it “very likely is not a total picture” – but provides “really useful” information to lead future work. The FEI’s eventing statistics report (2013–2023) published in January included some fatality information including level, number of starters, total falls and the number of fatalities related to a cross-country fence.

“I know just from my own contacts in eventing that there have been fatalities at lower levels that don’t always get reported in the media so this isn’t a complete picture, but what it does is provide information about different types of fatalities that happen, which could help us direct future research,” she said.

“It could be that data exists, but it’s not in the public domain and at the moment there’s been no research on it, which is potentially another area to highlight, that if governing bodies have the data, it would be useful to commission research on that. Obviously, that will be more reliable than using media sources. If every national federation put all their equine fatality data together, and the FEI, that would probably give you a nice, robust data set.”

A British Eventing (BE) spokesperson told H&H that although this is a worldwide report and not just UK-focused, the organisation “welcomes this important research and shares the authors’ commitment to evidence-based improvements in safety and welfare”.

“We are committed to analysing and improving horse safety in eventing, and progress is being made all the time in reducing horse falls through frangible technology and course design,” she said.

“At all BE-affiliated national events, we record detailed incident data, including all horse injuries and fatalities, which informs our safety strategy and policy development. Our newly formed equine welfare committee, comprising veterinary, scientific and rider experts, is tasked with reviewing such findings and guiding future improvements across all aspects of horse welfare. We will also be sharing data from our 2024 safety report in coming months.”

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Could different rules for different levels work when it comes to penalties for breaking a frangible device – and would “€1m for 1,000 fences” be a boost for the sport?

Those were two ideas debated by top riders, course-designers and other leading sports figures at the 2025 FEI Eventing Seminar (17–19 January).

FEI risk management steering group member Geoff Sinclair highlighted the success of fundraising for specific eventing safety projects in the US. He said the group would like to discuss something similar with the FEI, in the hope of attracting some significant backers, which would allow federations or individual events to apply for subsidies for specific fences.

“If we could reach €1m, we could probably get 1,000 frangible fences built, and that would have a very significant impact on the sport and help the events,” he said.

Course-designer and FEI risk management steering group member Stuart Buntine spoke of the ongoing work around frangibles.

“One of the challenges I’ve looked at, and kept on coming back to, is we don’t want to change what our sport looks like. We don’t want to change the fact that ultimately we want to go out there and jump cross-country fences that look like cross-country fences and are not abbreviated or abridged versions,” he said.

“I’ve been very fortunate over the last 12 months to spend a bit of time in Sweden with Mats Bjornetun [leader in frangible technology] and his team, and he’s done an amazing amount of work on enabling fences that you and I would walk past and say ‘these are just normal fences’ to be a frangible fence.”

He added: “One of the exciting things that I see is the ability now to start to roll out traditional fences that are built with a frangible mechanism. We’ve got to try to reduce, and continue to reduce, serious falls. There is no doubt that, looking at the stats and the information, frangible fences reduce that risk substantially.”

Mr Buntine said the question of 11 penalties for soft activations is “something that worries me a bit”, but discretionary awarding of those penalties would be a “can of worms”. A “soft” activation is when a frangible device breaks, but doesn’t appear to be the result of a competitor having a bad jump at fence.

“We’ve got to stop rotationals,” he said, adding that work is ongoing in this development tech, but now the price may be the occasional soft activation.

“I think that’s a price worth paying,” he said.

Olympic medal-winning eventer Tina Cook said she is “massively behind” frangible technology and reducing falls, but asked if there could be a “common sense” approach to whether a competitor is penalised or not, rather than a “flat 11 penalties”.

She added that in situations where the horse “clearly hasn’t lost his balance or left a leg” that it could be discussed with the ground jury, rather than a blanket penalty.

The forum heard how technology such as video cameras and fence sensors is progressing all the time. But although it may be possible to have that level of tech at some events, eventing is a global sport.

That led to questions about whether it would be feasible to have a rule whereby penalties for a broken frangible device could be reviewed at the top of the sport, for example four-stars, five-stars and championships.

Five-star rider David Doel said it would be “no different” to other sports such as football, where additional technology is used in reviewing penalties in the Premier League, compared to lower leagues.

Talking points

• Samantha Lissington raised the point that thoroughbreds being excluded from world breeding championships is a “downfall” (news, 15 May 2023). FEI eventing committee chairman David O’Connor agreed it is “a valid point” and would look into it again.
• The popularity of “tailgaiting” in the US – where people pay to park and picnic in designated areas closer to the action – was aired as a possible opportunity for events.
• Creating a series out of the current five-stars was mooted as a possible way to sell the sport.

Watch the full discussion and more videos from the 2025 FEI eventing seminar

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Are horses and riders fit enough at five-star? A panel of leading riders discussed equine and human fitness, at the 2025 FEI eventing forum (17 to 19 January).

Five-star winner Bettina Hoy, who moderated the session, introduced the topic by saying: “One thing that has come up in a lot of our committee meetings when we talk about previous five-stars and championships, is that we do notice a lot of the horses and also the riders are actually not fit enough. They have the MER [minimum eligibility requirement], but the level of fitness seems not good enough.”

Bettina explained that Ros Canter, Andrew Nicholson, Phillip Dutton and Andrew Hoy were selected for the panel, as they are “well known for having extremely fit horses”.

Each spoke in depth about their own programmes, and how their backgrounds and bases play into that. From the aspects Andrew Nicholson brings from his racing background, to how Ros uses the long, slow hills on the Lincolnshire Wolds to build strength and fitness in her string.

Three of the key takeaways were understanding how to best use facilities available, thinking about the psychological effects of fitness work on horses – and how to make that positive – and training riders to truly understand and think about fitness work in detail.

“I think nowadays they have to be even fitter than when we had the steeplechase,” said Andrew Nicholson, nodding to how intense courses are in today’s sport.

They also questioned whether some riders are understanding what it feels like when a horse starts to tire, and so are at risk of missing those cues when it happens in competition. Whether up-and-coming generations of riders are missing out on opportunities to learn about fitness also arose, as did how to tailor fitness exercise for young horses.

Ros expanded on thinking carefully about the mentality of each horse when developing a fitness plan.

“Lordships Graffalo finds that work very easy and enjoys it. But I have other horses that maybe would become a bit more demoralised at the thought of going up that hill six times,” she said.

“It’s about working out which horse should be galloping alongside. Should he come out best at the end of it, or be beaten [by his galloping companion horse] a few times?”

Ros added that she would also factor in whether to taper off intensity in the last few gallops before a big event, to give certain horses a mental boost – so they get to a competition looking forward to galloping.

“I think about how I would feel – I’m doing the London Marathon in April, so how would I feel if my last two weeks of training were gruelling? I’d absolutely dread the thought of going to do the marathon. So there’s a psychology behind it,” she said.

“It’s also about training the riders we have with us at home to get the same feeling and understanding. I’m always looking over, helping and explaining why we’re going to do something, to ask what feeling they have, and what impact they think that might have if they were going across country.”

Ros has spoken previously about how she has had to learn to ride faster across country, and she explained how developing that skill means it is now a strength.

“To this day I would be the type of person that would happily go around a course for 30 time-faults,” she said.

“That would be my comfort zone. But I also believe that’s now my strength, because [that feeling] is not something that’s ever going to go away, so I have to prioritise it.

“I prioritise that training all the time and the psychology behind it, and because I do – and because I train hard for it – I don’t take it for granted, and then I can turn it into a strength.

“You can turn anything into a strength, if you understand yourself and how to do it.”

Bettina called on Pippa Funnell in the audience, who spoke generally about coaching and how much she learnt from the years spent with Ruth McMullen.

“I feel absolutely passionate, in coaching, that I only train how she trained me – and it was all about the horse,” said Pippa.

“It was so much about working on ourselves as riders. Her greatest phrase was that 95% of the horse’s problem is the rider on the back. Another great saying, which I use the whole time, is ‘work on your horse – your horse will get better. Work on yourself, and all your horses will get better’.”

Event director and course-designer Andrew Fell gave the example of how the old-style long-format competition at Bicton, which has roads and tracks and a steeplechase, is an opportunity for grassroots riders to think about their own and their horses’ fitness.

“The majority of the riders, when they come away from it, say they’ve learned a lot,” he said. “I know we have gone away from that format and we’ve moved forward [as a sport], but I think there’s a great learning tool there in actually asking these riders to do the speed and endurance.”

The panellists’ approach to their own fitness varied, but time developing “feel” in the saddle is something they all spoke about.

Andrew Hoy said that there is “no replacement” for being on a horse – and handling horses – when it comes to developing feel.

“We can all teach technique, but we can’t teach feeling,” he said. “Feeling is something that the athlete needs to learn themselves.”

Watch the full panel discussion from the 2025 FEI eventing forum (video name: Saturday – 1. Athletes & Coaches)

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High-level eventing fixtures are being encouraged to use “spotters’’ on cross-country, to quickly feed back live information to the ground jury.

The idea is that having experienced officials in place, who can give fast, eye-witness accounts, can help the ground jury make quick decisions if there are concerns about a competitor. For example, the ground jury can step in to pull up a tiring horse.

How to speed up communications and decision-making, and ultimately intervene to pull up a competitor, is an ongoing topic in eventing and showjumping. When horses are galloping across country at speed, time is crucial – so too is clear and fair decision-making. It is a fine balance.

The topic came up at the end of a panel discussion on horse and rider fitness, at the 2025 FEI eventing forum (17 to 19 January).

FEI eventing committee chairman and Olympic gold medallist David O’Connor told the forum that the ground jury’s ability to have helpers, or “spotters”, “has actually been in the rules for a long time […] but is not a system that probably gets used often enough”.

Badminton final scores

“I think at the high levels we’re really trying to push everybody always to have that system, because it has been very effective,” he said.

“The [spotter] out there, they can’t make the decision – all they can do is radio it back to say, ‘this is our opinion’.

“So it’s still the ground jury’s decision, but it’s a way of transferring information about something that’s happening in real time.”

The forum heard that Mars Badminton Horse Trials 2024 and the 2023 FEI European Eventing Championships at Haras du Pin both used the system.

The Badminton ground jury enlisted the help of experienced vet John Killingbeck and five-star course-designer and former top rider Mark Phillips as their spotters.

Ground jury president at last year’s Gloucestershire five-star Sandy Phillips told the forum it “worked very well”.

“We didn’t have to stop anyone. But I think it made the riders think,” she said, adding that she would “definitely use the system again”.

“We all need checks and balances, and we have very good officials. I think it’s a positive thing for the future and sends a message out – like where we started this conversation, which is that we have to get our horses properly fit. Horses and the riders must be fit for the level that they’re competing at. It sends a positive message out.”

Mathias Otto-Erley, technical delegate at the Europeans, added that one learning from the 2023 championships was to inform competitors beforehand that the system was in place – such as at the riders’ briefing.

Badminton did opt to tell competitors at the riders’ briefing.

Mathias said: “We have a good system, and riders all should know that it could happen, but if you let them know beforehand – at the riders’ meeting – I think that’s a good point to add.”

Top course-designer Pierre le Goupil said that Badminton and the Europeans show it is possible, but as such experts are not always available, there is a need for training in this area.

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New frangible trakehner fences will be in use for the first time at a British international event this week.

Aspen Cooling Osberton International Horse Trials cross-country course-designer Stuart Buntine is among a team of people in the sport that has been working with Swedish inventor Mats Bjornetun, who is behind the MIM safety clip system used on many cross-country fences in eventing.

The log sits on a deformable structure, designed by Mr Bjornetun, which is the same kind as the device used in frangible tables. The supporting structure for the log is created to give way and collapse forwards and down if hit with force, with the overall aim to prevent a horse from falling.

“Mats has been pushing all this forward,” Mr Buntine told H&H, crediting Mr Bjornetun for the “amazing job” he is doing in eventing safety.

Two deformable trakehners will feature on Osberton’s (3–6 October) international cross-country courses: one in the two-star classes and one in the three-star.

One of the challenges in developing frangible technology for heavier fences, such as logs, is the weight limits of the deformable devices. The big logs in these trakehners have been hollowed out to reduce their weight. This also means the fence can be “reset” easily – part of its design is that it is hinged at each end and it can be lifted back into place by two people.

“It looks absolutely like a normal trakehner, but it’s hollow,” said Mr Buntine, who is also director of BEDE Events, which organises Osberton. “What I’m really keen to do is to push the technology as far as we can, so that we can go further and further into reducing risks in the sport.”

In January, David Vos, a rider, aviation engineer and frangible device expert, spoke at the FEI eventing seminar about the latest data on serious horse falls per fence type (news, 1 February). Dr Vos, who is a member of the FEI risk management steering group – as is Mr Buntine – said that 90% of serious horse falls are at non-frangible fences.

“We need to continue developing, moving forward at a pretty healthy clip to get more frangible solutions available and a bigger pool of available sets for course-designers to use,” he said at the time.

An FEI spokesperson told H&H: “At the FEI, safety in eventing remains a top priority, and innovations such as frangible technology have played a key role in enhancing athlete and horse safety.

“The introduction and continued use of frangible devices have proven effective in significantly reducing horse falls, which helps lower the risk of injury for both horses and athletes. This technology, coupled with the application of penalties when a device is triggered, has also fostered greater awareness and encouraged more thoughtful, precise riding.”

The spokesperson said it is important to note that frangible technology is just one part of a broader risk management strategy and that although frangible technology is a “significant advancement” in eventing safety, it is not a complete solution on its own.

He added that techniques such as improved course design, the strategic use of ground lines and visual aids all contribute to reducing the number of falls and ensuring the highest level of safety possible.

“FEI course-designers undergo rigorous training to ensure they create courses that are not only challenging but also meet safety standards. They are trained to use frangible technology where it is most effective, alongside other safety innovations,” said the spokesperson, adding that the emphasis always remains on designing safe, appropriate fences from the outset.

“The FEI remains committed to constantly evaluating and updating safety technologies and protocols to ensure that we continue to minimise risks as much as possible. While some level of risk is inherent in eventing, we strive to make the sport as safe as possible through ongoing improvements.”

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Frangible fences are having a “significant positive” effect on eventing safety – but more development is needed to take the sport even further forwards.

Leading figures discussed the latest data and where progress could be made to increase influence and retain the essence of cross-country, while breaking new ground in eventing safety.

Dr David Vos, a rider, aviation engineer, frangible device expert and risk management steering group member, told the FEI eventing seminar on 20 January that 90% of serious horse falls are happening at non-frangible fences.

“Around 8% are happening at frangible fences that were built to the old standard, and somewhere around 1% or 2% are happening at fences built to the new standard we released in 2021,” he said.

“It’s not that there is a gigantic, main driver, but if we look at the distribution, you have square spreads, rolltops, brush fences, ascending spreads and corners capturing somewhere in the order of 70% to 80% of the serious horse falls by fence type.”

Expanding the use of frangible fences

Dr Vos stressed that the sport needs to focus on upgrading old frangible fences and expanding the use of frangibles “across the field”.

“It just has to happen,” he said. ”It’s probably the only way we can make a serious difference in cutting down the horse fall rate.

“We need to continue developing, moving forward at a pretty healthy clip to get more frangible solutions available and a bigger pool of available sets for course-designers to use.

“The push needs to remain very strong because we need to get that 90% non-frangible fence number way down, so that we can talk more about how frangibles are actually performing, and we’re not overwhelmingly driven by the fact that serious horse falls are happening at non-frangible fences.”

Course-designer Mike Etherington-Smith cautioned against measuring like for like when it comes to falls at frangible and non-frangible fences, adding that falls are multifactorial and other factors need to be taken into consideration.

Dr Vos added: “The most important point here is that all these other factors are critically important. But we’re dealing with a situation where we have a mistake that has occurred and is there a way to reduce the risk of a serious horse injury or fall?”

Course-designer Stuart Buntine said that there is “much work in progress” around frangible options and solutions for fences such as heavy logs and tables, rolltops and brush fences.

“Frangible fences are having a really significant positive effect and we must continue to drive that forwards,” he said.

Competition scoring considerations

Badminton course-designer Eric Winter touched on whether frangibles and flags could have a more enhanced and refined place in competition scoring, while keen to stress this should not be a “knee-jerk” decision.

For example, focusing on flags, shifting thinking towards riders getting the best line and approach to fences being rewarded with a clean sheet. While those who didn’t set up as well as they could have and take a flag aren’t necessarily out of contention for a top spot, but do carry two or three penalties.

“We can’t just have ever-decreasing cross-country courses where everybody jumps clear and nothing happens, because that’s not a sport that we can sell in any way,” he said.

“We’re looking at horses winning competitions through small margins – and that’s a positive thing, that’s elite sport.”

He added that it is “not acceptable in any way” to see horses fall, horses are now so educated to lock onto a line and not think about stopping, so where does eventing go to keep the sport interesting?

“We can’t have cross-country courses where everybody jumps clear, but I personally think that if we start to develop a thought process around the flags, that could be a very exciting sport,” he said.

“Another question we have to ask is, what we value about the sport nowadays – what are the things we want to keep? Is it that we must jump fixed fences? We must go to battle and win? Because to me that’s not what I hold dear about the sport.

“I want the horses to be galloping in the open, meeting different types of fences. It’s very important we keep a good variety of fences, that we keep using the terrain, so that every course has its own nature to it, and it uses the nature of that site.

“But how do we do that within acceptable parameters that can allow our sport to travel forward in the next 10,15 years in a very healthy way?”

Olympic gold medallist and eventing committee chairman David O’Connor concluded: “These are the big conversations we all need to have.”

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Having a member of the ground jury based in the riders’ tent at major horse trials was suggested by top British coach Chris Bartle as a possible way to improve the sport.

Nick Burton, who has been on multiple Olympic and five-star ground juries, and Chris discussed ideas to improve both safety and competition, at the FEI eventing online seminar (20 January).

The riders’ tent has TV screens where coaches, competitors and their connections are able to watch the action at top international fixtures. It is usually a busy environment, filled with a collectively vast amount of knowledge, in the sport’s top riders.

Chris, Britain’s eventing high performance coach, put forward the idea that a ground jury member should watch from the tent to make better use of this expertise.

He told the forum he has been at major events where coaches and riders are watching a tired or distressed horse and will be shouting at the screen, “stop this horse!”.

“Now I understand that it’s not all events and in fact, it’s a minority of events where there is such an opportunity for riders and coaches to be together watching the screens, but you certainly get very good feedback,” said Chris.

“I do think it’s something that could be considered. I totally understand that in the modern sport, image is very important.”

He added: “In the same way as the ground jury have a role to play in the dressage about making a subjective opinion on the performance, I think that the ground jury also have to make a subjective opinion on performance [across country]. On whether this performance is acceptable to the audience, and obviously, primarily, is it fair to the horse?

“I do think in the past, maybe there’s been a hesitation on the part of ground juries to make a decision, they allow a horse to continue for maybe a bit too long in the fear of making a mistake – and in so doing, they actually do make a mistake.”

Nick said he thought the idea could “work very well”, as long as the communication between ground jury members works – adding that the logistics would need to be rehearsed.

“There’s a lot of knowledge in there, and if those people are making those sorts of expressions of concern, that could be communicated to, say, the president of the ground jury in the control centre,” he said.

“The biggest challenge we find [currently] is that communication can take too long. And by that time the horse has gone on too long, or has finished the course.

“I think we do have to be open now to getting our processes changed, and also perhaps, our positions as to where we are on the day.”

Similar discussions have been ongoing in showjumping. In a H&H column following the Tokyo Olympics, Nick Skelton suggested having a professional rider in the judges’ box to help inform the ground jury on eliminations. The idea has been the subject of much debate in showjumping, and has been championed by the International Jumping Riders Club.

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Riders to be interviewed after horse falls as part of eventing safety move

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Olympic gold medallist David O’Connor has urged other disciplines to start tracking falls as recent figures show around a quarter of eventing falls do not happen at cross-country fences.

Mr O’Connor, the FEI eventing committee chairman, made the call during his address to the FEI general assembly (21 November).

He highlighted the reduction in cross-country jumping falls in recent years, which H&H covered as part of discussions at the eventing risk management seminar in January (news, 16 February).

“There’s been a 16% reduction in horse falls just in the last six years, which is a pretty significant number, and a 70% reduction in any type of rotational fall in the last 10 years,” said Mr O’Connor, adding that this nods to the positive impact measures, including frangible devices, education, course-design, and minimum eligibility requirements, are having.

But he noted one “standout” figure is that 25% of total falls, which includes horse and/or rider falls, do not happen at cross-country fences. These include falls on the flat, in the other phases and warm-ups.

“That’s a fairly stunning number,” said Mr O’Connor, suggesting other disciplines start tracking their fall data to start to understand more about this.

“I know the United States has actually started the process of looking across all disciplines at what is happening, and not just leaving it up to one.”

The FEI has been collecting eventing fall data for many years, but until 2018 any fall not at a cross-country fence was recorded as “non-fence related” – regardless of how and where it happened. Since 2018, these have been separated into more detailed categories, to help the sport better understand any trends.

For example, of the 1,165 falls in 2022, 842 were at cross-country fences, 87 non-fence related on the cross-country, 146 took place in the showjumping, and 90 during warm-ups.

Mr O’Connor added that he encourages other disciplines to record data is because numbers can be quite surprising, and only from knowing these can the sport then start to ask questions about reasons for falls.

FEI medical committee chairman Mark Hart told the assembly of several major ongoing initiatives around rider safety. These are headlined by a project to evaluate the performance of equestrian helmets, with the recommendation for additional testing standards.

An equestrian helmet working group was put together this year, comprising stakeholders and experts such as engineers, academics, manufacturers, medical personnel, an Olympic rider, racing experts and the eventing risk management group.

Dr Hart gave a short summary of some of the group’s main findings; the conclusions are set to be released at the end of the year.

“Our goal is to decrease not only falls, but in parallel, we need to make efforts to further reduce serious head injuries in the inevitable event of falls in our sport,” said Dr Hart.

“[The working group] evaluated the performance needs for protective headgear and assessed the existing standards against those needs, to better determine if current standards could be improved to provide better protection for our riders to reduce serious head injuries.

“After extensive review of the available data, the working group is recommending additional testing standards and reduced head injury transmission limits for improved safety.

“It is expected that these recommendations will evolve as scientific criteria are refined and continuing research is taken out.

“We also hope that this will nudge the certification organisations to quicker update their standards, and hopefully eventually have harmonisation of the certification projects around the world and have a universal common standard.”

In a separate project, the FEI medical committee is coordinating the creation of an expert task force on air vest safety and effectiveness. The aim of the air vests working group will be to conduct a complete literature review of available data on equestrian injury patterns for chest, spine and thoracic injuries to determine what role the devices could have in reducing injuries.

They will also evaluate recommendations of other sports, such as motocross, and develop specific research projects, with the eventual aim of translating these findings into new testing standard recommendations for manufacturers and certification organisations.

Other key projects in the pipeline for 2024 include exploring a new system for reporting rider injuries, to create an “overall equestrian database for injuries”, plus guidance for organising committees on how to set up a mental health emergency plan for their events.

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Riders involved in horse falls will be asked to speak with the ground jury to help improve cross-country safety in future.

The FEI already collects a certain amount of data on falls; after any fall, the fence judge, technical delegate (TD) or other official will fill in a report form, which includes detailed questions about the circumstances.

These forms are submitted to the FEI, which collates and analyses data as part of its drive to make eventing safer.

But one part of the puzzle that has been missing, until now, is the requirement for the first-person account by the rider involved of what happened.

The FEI’s eventing committee and risk management steering group have now agreed that this should happen from 2024.

The news came as part of an FEI update on 10 November, which stated: “Following any horse fall on cross-country, a systematic interview/discussion will be held between the athlete and the ground jury (president or member) and/or the technical delegate.

“The aim is educational in order to better understand the circumstances and to learn for the future – horse falls are a serious risk factor in our sport and need to be minimised.

“The discussion is to be recorded in the judge and/or TD report (a section will be added in the reports).”

It follows debate at the FEI eventing risk management forum in Jardy in January (news, 9 February), where this was among the ideas on the table.

The Eventing Riders Association (ERA) has welcomed the decision as a “good initial step”.

“Horse falls are an unacceptable part of our sport in the public eye, and the total sport needs to take responsibility as to how those have happened,” ERA president Bruce Haskell told H&H.

“If the ground jury interviews the rider afterwards, it isn’t disciplinary action, it is simply the first step in understanding what has taken place and why that’s occurred.

“What’s not established yet is the process of how this happens. For example, the length of time after the fall, and whether third-party advice or independent people are involved.

“What we don’t want to happen is for this to be a finger-pointing exercise. We cannot have that. It’s a good step, it’s the initial step, but the process behind it needs to be fleshed out so that it is fair to the rider, and not part of a disciplinary procedure.”

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

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Factors associated with successful cross-country completion have been identified in a new study, and could have implications for minimum eligibility requirements (MERs).

Researchers behind three of the largest eventing safety studies have published a paper looking at the factors associated with the safe completion of FEI cross-country courses. The study, published last week in the Equine Veterinary Journal, aimed to understand which factors contribute to increased or reduced odds of a horse and rider combination jumping clear in the cross-country phase, by analysing 107,348 horse starts at FEI competitions between 2008 and 2018.

The work involved two research models; the first looked at horse starts from their first FEI competition to the end of the study period, the second used horse starts from those who were stepping up a level.

Of the 107,348 cross-country starts, 76,883 (71.6%) were clear rounds. From the data the researchers identified 16 factors – 14 in the stepping-up model – “significantly associated with the odds of running clear”. These included that each increase in event level compared to a one-star level was associated with a reduction in the likelihood of a combination jumping clear, men were at increased odds of going clear than women, and younger riders were more likely to go clear than those aged 51 or over. Riders whose previous FEI competition was within the previous seven days, horses who went clear in their previous three starts and combinations who had a better performance in the dressage phase were also associated with being more likely to go clear. Dressage scores in eventing have been highlighted previously by the research team, who identified that combinations that scored a higher number of penalties in dressage were more likely to have a horse fall than those who scored lower (news, 30 March).

Lead author Euan Bennet of the University of Glasgow told H&H there is a link between safety and jumping clear, and a potential benefit of identifying factors associated with successful cross-country completion is that these may be embraced “more readily by riders”, compared to factors associated with falls.

“We have done a lot of work on things like falls, and we thought it might be nice to look at something a bit more positive. Every competitor wants to ‘succeed’ but most will not necessarily think about ‘how not to fall’, although the two outcomes are closely linked,” he said, adding that similar research has been carried out in endurance and racing.

“We are very confident with the research we’ve done that there is a link between horse welfare, safety, and performance; those three are completely, inextricably linked. So we were trying to maintain that view, and not just focus on ‘here’s what you need to compete’.”

Dr Bennet added that the team believe the findings could feed into MER criteria.

“There’s definitely an influence of current form of horses in this, and we found the same for athletes, and this really has implications for potentially adding some evidence-based decisions into the minimum eligibility requirements,” he said.

“Some of the MERs can be quite restrictive if an event is cancelled due to the weather for example, so there might be an appetite within the industry to change the MER system, and these results here could feed into that. With the various studies we’ve done we’re identifying the areas for risk (such as risk factors for cross-country falls and fence and course-design related risk factors for cross-country falls), but now we’re also identifying areas for success, and that all can feed into a picture that can help secure the sports future in terms of strengthening the social licence.”

An FEI spokesman told H&H that a meeting with the researchers has been agreed for October to discuss the study.

Read the full study

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More calls have been made to use available data to improve eventing safety – as it is important for the sport “now more than ever”.

Researchers behind three of the largest eventing safety studies have produced a follow-up paper summarising their findings and asking, “What will happen next?” The studies looked at risk factors for cross-country falls (news, 21 October 2021), fence and course design-related risk factors for cross-country falls in FEI competitions (news, 11 August 2022), and falls in one-day British Eventing competitions (news, 30 March).

Based on the findings, some of the recommendations included creating risk profiles for riders and cross-country courses, continuing to regularly review minimum eligibility requirements and introducing a dressage penalties cap.

Euan Bennet of the University of Glasgow worked on all three studies and told H&H that “now more than ever” it is important to continue looking at ways to make eventing safer.

“Social licence is such a big topic, and we think there are ways to bolster the sport’s social licence. Governing bodies need to be seen to be acting, and we think there are great opportunities to progress in making the sport safer, but also in a way that’s visible – and that helps people to see everything is being done to protect the horses,” he said.

“Adopting evidence-based risk management has been done in other sports such as endurance and racing, so we don’t think we’re asking for anything too radical.”

Dr Bennet added that he is hoping for further engagement with the FEI and British Eventing (BE), and it would be “great to see” more of the recommendations put into practice.

“We don’t want it to seem like we’re saying the sport should stop existing; we don’t want that to happen,” he said. “What we want is to make the sport as safe as possible and make sure it remains acceptable to the public.”

Geoff Sinclair, chair of the FEI risk management steering group, told H&H the steering group and the eventing committee are “continuously working to minimise risk and optimise the safety of athletes and horses”.

“Emphasis is put on reducing horse falls, especially rotational falls and serious or fatal injuries for horse and rider,” he said, adding that since 2000 “a lot of progress has been made” in regards to safety and that the number of falls has “significantly” reduced from 1.73% of starters in 2011 to 1.18% in 2022.

Mr Sinclair said in relation to the recommendations, the eventing committee has reviewed – or is reviewing – qualifications, athlete categorisations, jumping penalties in short-format competitions, the Horse Form Index which tracks cross-country performance, a guide for officials, particularly course-designers and course-builders, and statistics on horse falls.

He said changes to qualifications brought in for 2023 have “eliminated some of the combinations that are more at risk” especially at four- and five-star level where the horse fall percentage on starters is higher. Four- and five-star minimum eligibility requirement (MERs) are under review for potential changes in 2024 in regards to cross-country penalties.

“The FEI also has plans to commence a retrospective study on eventing horse fatalities and career-ending injuries,” he said.

“New initiatives are always welcome to be part of the process to evolve and improve [safety]. The FEI has provided its extensive data to studies such as these and we thank this group for putting their own investigation forward, so we can all weigh the initiatives that will support the progress of reducing risk in future.”

BE national safety officer Jonathan Clissold has worked with the researchers and told H&H that in-depth analysis of FEI and BE data often comes up with some “interesting points, some of which we expect and some we do not”. He added that some of the recommendations have been covered by rule changes around MERs and continual performance requirements, “although not necessarily as a direct result of the research”.

“I am sure that BE would be supportive of any of the research that the group is recommending. However, the FEI – as the world-governing body of the sport – is in the best position to support and look at this work on an international basis,” he said.

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A CAP on dressage penalties could make eventing safer – as findings from one of the sport’s biggest ever studies identifies 16 risk factors for cross-country horse falls.

The study, “Towards a safer sport: risk factors for cross-country horse falls at British Eventing competition”, was carried out by researchers from the University of Central Lancashire and the University of Nottingham Trent, with funding from Myerscough College.

The aim was to determine risk factors associated with horse falls by analysing data from 749,534 British Eventing (BE) cross-country starts from 1 January 2005 to 31 December 2015. Of these starts, 2,633 horse falls were recorded, 3.5 falls per 1,000 starts and 16 risk factors were identified.

The findings included that male riders were associated with a greater odds of a fall than females, and older riders were less likely to have a fall than younger ones. Horses who started in the previous 15 to 21 days were less likely to fall than horses whose last start had been in the previous one to 14 days, and the risk of horse falls increased through higher levels of competition. Mares were more likely to have a fall than geldings, and ponies more likely to fall than horses between 15.3hh and 16.2hh.

Lead researcher Heather Cameron-Whytock, who has evented, told H&H the more “statistically significant” risk factor identified was the level of competition.

“This means it had the most profound effect on risk of falling. We know the jumps get bigger and more technical, they have to be going faster and the courses are longer, so it’s a matter of fact the higher levels are more challenging, so we would expect to see a higher risk of falls there,” she said.

“Our general recommendation on this is that minimum eligibility requirements (MERs) need to be carefully monitored and reviewed, which we know they are as they change regularly.”

It was also identified that combinations that scored a higher number of penalties in dressage were more likely to have a horse fall than those who scored a lower number. Based on this, the researchers suggested introducing a penalty cap to eliminate combinations who score 70 or more in the dressage.

“We found for every 10 additional dressage penalties, the risk of falls increased,” said Dr Cameron-Whytock. “When we explored this further, we saw that combinations that get 70 or more penalties are almost four times more likely to have a fall than combinations that score less than 70.

“Introducing a cap could be beneficial. Although it’s very rare to score 70 or more, it does happen and it’s in the data. These individuals are so much more at risk, so it’s worth trying to do something about that.”

Dr Cameron-Whytock added that it is unlikely to ever find “one thing” that will eliminate falls, but it is about making the sport safer where possible.

“If we can keep finding 1% reductions, that could be one rider not paralysed, or not sustaining a serious injury, and surely that makes it worth it,” she said.

BE national safety officer and technical adviser Jonathan Clissold has worked with Dr Cameron-Whytock on other eventing safety projects, and told H&H that this study comes up with “a lot of very interesting points” that support and justify the MERs in place.

“After comparing with the most recent data, BE will consider compulsory retirement for dressage penalties of 70 or more. The dressage requirement to gain an MER has been reduced this year from 50 penalty marks to 45,” he said.

Mr Clissold added that further analysis of the number of runs and the period between these “could be interesting”.

“The introduction of ‘continuing performance requirements’ since this data set has gone a long way to help address the points raised in this paper about poor performance increasing the risk of a fall,” he said.

BE chief executive Helen West told H&H she found the study “fascinating and extremely informative”.

“It is so good to be able to validate ‘gut instinct’ with solid, scientific findings,” she said. “The findings around gender and age affecting self-efficacy were striking and this highlights one of the extraordinary aspects of our sport, whereby we see riders continuing to participate at top-level into advanced age, even at professional level.

“There is no doubt that older event riders harness extensive experience that equips them with well-developed coping mechanisms and makes them less susceptible to external pressures and expectations placed upon them, enabling them to focus their performance and skill to completing the cross-country accurately and safely.”

Ms West added that the finding – that riders who had a fall during their previous start were more likely to fall again – supports findings from the “extensive work” equestrian data analysts EquiRatings has done with BE.

“This likely indicates that these individuals were competing at a level above their skill and therefore were at a heightened risk. This further highlights the importance of continually reviewing MERs,” she said.

“It is my belief that additional research is needed to enable further recommendations to be made in relation to MERs and their effectiveness for maximising safety, especially at the elite end of the sport. This is something that BE is continually monitoring as part of our risk-management strategy.”

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Rule changes must be considered carefully or the sport risks facing unintended consequences, warns Mark Phillips

With social licence in the news, horse welfare is top of the agenda for horse sports. There are many who think use of the horse is abuse of the horse and that horses should be fat and happy in a field. There isn’t much media coverage of the fact all sport horses have truly five-star love, care and attention, nor of the plight of those poor animals left neglected in paddocks.

The pinnacle of all sports attracts the greatest attention. The higher the level of performance, the smaller the margin of error, therefore the higher the skill needed by the rider. But let’s be clear that horses competing at these levels love it. There is no way that 100lb of rider can make 1,000lb of horse do something against its will.

In eventing, five-star competition was much discussed at the FEI risk management forum at Jardy (news, 9 and 16 February), with a focus on reducing horse falls. We course-designers go to massive lengths to try to make fences as forgiving as possible for horses, using decoration to help them understand the question. But we cannot prevent a horse falling every now and again.

There is a strong move to have a fence automatically taken off the course if there are two horse falls at it. I can see the logic, but believe the wording should be “rotational” falls as they are the most dangerous. This should not have to be a rule – if a fence is jumping badly, the officials should remove it anyway if the pictures are not good – but this judgement is not always easy.

Some want a fence automatically taken out after one horse fall, which I cannot condone. Imagine if horse number one tips up in The Lake at Badminton Horse Trials and the rest of the field just gallop by. The competition would quickly become a farce. A fall caused by bad riding does not necessarily mean that a fence is a bad one.

The forum also discussed keeping up the standard of courses so combinations are appropriately qualified for the next level – if fences are removed after one fall, we create too many situations when too many competitors don’t tackle the key questions.

Some want riders to be automatically sanctioned if a horse falls. This isn’t right. Falling off and walking home is punishment enough and the officials can always impose sanctions if dangerous riding is involved.

The solution here is better officiating, not more rules with unintended consequences.

Flags were also on the forum agenda and I support introducing a penalty for knocking down a flag. Riders are not ski racers. This rule would mean designers have to provide more jumpable width and riders have to get straighter at skinny fences, creating safer jumping.

Whip restrictions

British Eventing had hoped to lead the way on whip rules, and only padded whips are allowed for jumping this year. They plan to introduce a rule next year that says a rider can only use the whip on a horse’s shoulder. Both the US federation and FEI are looking at the same thing, albeit worded differently. Any other use of the whip would be considered abuse of the horse, resulting in sanctions.

They’ve all been beaten to the line by British Riding Clubs, who have this year introduced a rule that prohibits a rider hitting a horse after a refusal or elimination. This is a good rule for preventing riders from taking temper out on their horse.

These days, we must see the whip only as an instrument of safety – to create impulsion, back up the leg and keep the horse straight – and not one of admonishment or to encourage more speed. Restricted use of the whip is coming and the sooner the Olympic disciplines embrace it, the better.

Horse welfare and safety have never been under more debate. Please can we have more considered discussion before rushing to a place that could unintentionally change the very nature of a sport loved by so many.

● What do you think whip rules should say? Write to hhletters@futurenet.com including your name, nearest town and county for the chance tpo have your views published in a future issue of Horse & Hound magazine.

• This exclusive column will also be available to read in Horse & Hound magazie, on sale Thursday 9 March

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Rotational fall rates reached an all-time low in international eventing in 2022.

Last year had a record number of events and starters, with 788 competitions and 21,560 starters – an increase of 19.4% on the number of competitions in 2021 and a 12.1% increase in starters.

FEI eventing committee chairman David O’Connor and FEI risk management steering group chairman Geoff Sinclair presented the data at the federation’s eventing risk management forum in Jardy last month.

The headline figure was the drop in rotational fall rates. The percentage of starters having a rotational fall, which have the highest risk of injury for horse and rider, has decreased from 0.2% in 2011 to 0.07% last year. This equates to a drop from one rotational fall every 510 starters to one in every 1,437 starters.

Rates of non-rotational horse falls at a cross-country fence are not as low as they were in the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021, but are lower than they were pre-pandemic and significantly below 2011, which was the first year of “realistic reliable data”.

With the exception of the two pandemic years, 2022 also marked the lowest number of horse falls and rotational falls in real terms since 2011.

Mr O’Connor said the reductions are “to be congratulated” but “there is still work to do”.

“Rotational falls have really reduced by a tremendous amount – we’re at our lowest rate,” he said.

“Everything that we’re doing from course-design to shapes of fences and frangible technology coming in, is what is driving that number down.”

Mr O’Connor also voiced concerns that he feels concussions may be under-reported. The FEI has collected concussion data since 2018. In 2022, 17 were reported – 10 linked to serious injury and seven to slight injury.

He added that his impression from dealing with other horse sports is that the figure is “underrated”, and questioned whether that is down to the reporting process or recognition of concussions.

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Calls for safety stirrups to be made compulsory in eventing

‘Hell no’ becomes ‘yes please’ on eventing flag rule debate

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The FEI is considering whether to make safety stirrups compulsory for eventing – as the British Equestrian Trade Association (BETA) confirmed it is “working towards” a safety standard.

The discussion arose during the FEI eventing risk management forum in Jardy last month.

Five-time Olympian William Fox-Pitt said he feels “very strongly that safety stirrups in our sport are a no-brainer”.

“I would not let anyone go without a stirrup that either has a curvy edge, where the foot comes away quickly, or one with a deformable side,” he said.

He added that there are many varieties and “some maybe aren’t good enough”, so as a sport, eventing has to find ones that fit the bill.

“There are incidents where I’ve been dragged, Harry [Meade] has been dragged. In those incidents, how lucky are we to even be alive?

“We do everything with hats, body protectors, frangible fences – surely stirrups, if we can do something, should become part of that.”

Olympic and world medallist Clayton Fredericks agreed.

“I think we should insist that each rider is coming with a safety stirrup of some sort anyway,” he said.

“I realise we want to have high standards of that, but the reality is some form of safety stirrup is better than none and being dragged. So I think it’s a no-brainer. We should make it compulsory.”

FEI risk management steering group chairman Geoff Sinclair told the forum that not having a safety standard makes it difficult to require riders to use safety stirrups, but asked those present to consider whether they should make them “highly recommended”.

Badminton and Olympic gold medal-winner Jane Holderness-Roddam said: “As a child, we always had safety stirrups and I’m horrified to think that nowadays, it’s not compulsory in all equestrian sports, really.

“There are an awful lot of stirrups out there and some I’ve seen just snap that are supposed to be safety stirrups. There definitely needs to be a standard, I think, and BETA would I’m sure be very happy to help to do that.”

BETA chief executive Claire Williams told H&H that the association is working towards setting a standard for safety stirrups.

“The first thing we need to do is to reach a consensus statement on what exactly a safety stirrup is,” she said. “We cannot write a safety standard until that is decided.”

She explained that there are many different variations in how safety functions work on stirrups. This makes it a different challenge to writing a standard for more uniform products, such as a hat or body protector, but work is under way.

• What do you think? Send your thoughts to hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and country, for potential inclusion in the Horse & Hound letters pages

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Safety stirrups – what are your options?

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

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The appetite among eventing’s leaders to reopen the flag rule debate has gone from “hell no” to “yes please” after a potential breakthrough in Sweden.

Eventing’s flag rules are a spiky subject, concerning the grey area where a combination knocks a flag on a cross-country fence. This results in sometimes lengthy decisions as to whether they were clear (no penalties), ran out (20 penalties), or the horse’s point of shoulder was outside the extremities of the obstacle, but its hindquarters jumped the height of the solid part (15 penalties).

By its nature, the flag rule usually comes into play at narrow or corner fences and has had many variations in definition and penalties over the years.

Vet and FEI risk management steering group member Staffan Lidbeck presented the rule, which has been in place in national competition in Sweden since 2020, at the FEI eventing risk management forum.

Flags are attached to fences using rubber bands and metal cramps, and the upper attachment can be dislodged. Mr Lidbeck stressed that it is not crucial for flags to be attached in exactly the same way from fixture to fixture, but the way fences are flagged must be consistent for everyone competing at that event.

Combinations automatically receive seven penalties when a flag loses its upper attachment, and 20 penalties for a run-out or when a horse jumps the fence with no part of his hindquarters going through the flag.

“We have to make the cross-country more influential. There are too many clear rounds and this is a safe way to make the cross-country test more influential,” he said, adding that this is perhaps not the final answer, but it is working in Sweden. “It will also enhance more precise and balanced riding and thus improve safety. It will make life easier for officials and also for riders.”

He said the Swedish federation decided on seven penalties as it means combinations can have two flags and still finish with a qualifying score, but not three.

But it has not been tested at higher levels, as all fixtures at three-star (intermediate) and above in Sweden are FEI events.

Swedish eventing technical delegate and course-designer Lars Christensson said: “I think it has made riders respect fences more, and they ride more correctly. We will be going the right way if we introduce this in the sport.”

Rider Clayton Fredericks said: “I think yes, there is a place for this. I would agree that the penalties should be low. It’s clear and concise. There’s probably still going to be some discussion if it’s a marginal slide-off. We want everyone to be aiming for that perfect ride, we know no one ever gets that, but that’s the goal.”

Cleonice Attolico Guglielmi said that as a ground jury member, she “really likes this rule”.

“I think it’s going to make riders ride more accurately. It’s going to make them ride combinations safely,” she said.

Eventing Riders Association president Bruce Haskell said: “The question we really have to ask before we make any changes is what is wrong with the current rule and what is the perceived need to change?”

He added that everyone wants a sport that makes quick decisions – having a debate hours after a rider’s round at an Olympics as to whether they had penalties or not is “unacceptable” – and any changes have to be balanced decisions.

Course-designer and technical delegate Alec Lochore questioned whether there would be a risk it may push riders further towards the wider part of corners.

Course-designer Mike Etherington-Smith said he personally does not like the idea, but understands the logic and that anything that can get results out more quickly at the end of the day is important.

He read out notes from a discussion before Christmas with top riders, coaches and course-designers about this and said: “It’s not going to necessarily reduce some of the discussions that ground juries have to have at the end of the day, about whether something was a run-out or not.

“It’s not going to be one cure to fix all these things. But hopefully some of the discussions will be taken off the table.”

FEI eventing committee chairman David O’Connor asked the forum if a group should be put together to propose this rule in near future, and was met with a strong show of hands from the room.

“That is a shift, because four years ago that was ‘no and hell no’,” he said. “There’s a shift in thinking of the direction the sport is going, and that’s why we are here.”

• What do you think about the eventing flag rule debate? Send your thoughts to hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and country, for consideration for the Horse & Hound letters pages

You might also be interested in:

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Calls for change to ensure all riders at five-star are ready for the challenge

Holding riders responsible for horse falls and removing fences – ideas to make eventing safer

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

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British Eventing’s rule changes for 2023 include extensions of its equine welfare regulations to cover anyone present at an affiliated horse trials.

Horse welfare rules are not new to the governing body. But British Eventing (BE) has updated the scope of its wording beyond competitors. It now says “anyone involved in the handling of a horse”, including non-members such as grooms, involved in abuse of a horse “will result in sanctions being imposed on the competitor”.

BE chief executive Helen West told H&H equine welfare is “paramount and at the forefront of our minds at all times, hence the update on our rule”.

“We will operate zero tolerance on equine abuse, and any such behaviour will result in an automatic sanction,” she said.

British Eventing’s rule changes for 2023 also include only padded whips allowed for the jumping phases (news, 15 December), with details now confirmed on the length and design specifics, and the formation of a welfare panel this spring.

“The panel will look at further changes to the use of the whip ahead of 2024, as well as wider issues to ensure we are doing the best by our equine team-mates and maintain society’s acceptance of partnering them in our sport,” added Ms West.

World Horse Welfare chief executive Roly Owers told H&H: “We welcome BE’s updated rules on the use of the whip which we believe are a real step forward. Ensuring the correct use of the whip is an equestrian-wide issue and for sure more scientific research into the effects of whip use on safety, and on horses’ motivation and emotional state, is needed. Putting it bluntly, so much of the whip is used today is inappropriate and a wider understanding of how horses learn will lead to more considered use of the whip by riders in every sphere.

“We also know that using a whip can be off-putting to the public, so riders and commentators have an important role to explain why a whip is being used and to justify it in terms of the horse’s safety and welfare.”

British Eventing’s other rule changes for 2023

The 2023 season also brings further changes to entries, minimum eligibility requirements (MERs) and refunds, new dressage tests and horse boot rules, to name a few.

New for this year is the requirement for competitors to be given refunds on entries, if they provide a veterinary or doctor’s certificate by 7pm the Monday before the competition, or a minimum of three working days prior if the event runs mid-week. This will be less the £12 admin fee, plus VAT where applicable.

“The rationale behind this is to give members greater confidence to make their entries earlier, safe in the knowledge that if they or their horse suffer a genuine injury, they will not lose all the entry fee,” said Ms West.

“We will monitor the financial impact this has on organisers as we are very conscious of the challenges they face in terms of balancing their books to make an event viable for themselves as well as our members. We trust that the benefit of getting entries in sooner will be of a greater benefit to organisers in this instance.”

Changes to minimum eligibility requirements

In terms of MERs, the dressage score for a qualifying result is being tightened from 50 to 45, in line with the FEI. BE is also scrapping its MERs for anyone wishing to compete at BE100, with the exception of riders in the year of their 12th or 13th birthday. Previously, competitors needed two MER results at BE90 in order to step up.

Ms West said BE had “considerable feedback” that riders competing successfully at Pony Club and riding club 100 level found the MERs an “unnecessary barrier” to competing affiliated at that level.

“We took this on board and looked closely at the statistics gathered over the past six years which clearly showed that the introduction of this MER requirement in 2017 had made no significant difference to the safety statistics at our own grassroots levels,” she said.

How entries will work in 2023

Entries are changing this season. The removal of the ballot system has been delayed; organisers now have the choice to use it, or to go with a more first come, first served approach. New sliding scales also replace BE-set entry fees, giving organisers more flexibility in how much they charge.

Ms West said BE is moving away from the organisation being “a giant administration centre” to focus on its “core role as a national governing body”.

“There is not a quick way to get from where we are to where we need to be,” she said.

“The work that Miranda Collett at Eventing Scores has done over the winter months in building a British Eventing validation engine now means that we will be able to accredit two or three third-party entries systems.”

This means those systems will be able to build APIs (software that talks to BE’s IT) to check combinations’ MERs and membership status when making entries.

Oasby (1) (9-12 March) is the first event to ditch the ballot system. As H&H went to press, entries were set to open to full members at midday on Wednesday (8 February). It will accept entries in the order they arrive, with classes closing when they reach 90% capacity and the remaining 10% taken from the waitlist. If space remains, entries for pay-as-you-go members will open on 15 February. Horse substitution fees are also being waived.

Organiser Stuart Buntine said he hopes this new system will mean “everybody will have an equal chance of competing at our events”.

“As with any new system there will be some lessons to learn, however we hope that this will enable riders to confidently enter early to ensure they get a run,” he said.

“For organisers, receiving the entries as early as possible will greatly assist with our financial planning and should reduce the risks of events cancelling, due to lack of financial viability, at the last minute.”

• Read the full summary of changes [PDF]

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10 competition legal whips in a variety of styles for every discipline

Calls for change to ensure all riders at five-star are ready for the challenge

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

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Weeding out “soft qualifications” is vital for the future of elite-level eventing and ensuring that only the right competitors get to five-star.

That was the overarching message from the FEI eventing risk management forum in Jardy (20-23 January) as the sport’s leaders scrutinised the standards at CCI5*. They looked at who is getting there and how, and debated whether qualification needs to be harder to achieve.

The key point to emerge was that courses and standards at levels below five-star have to be consistent and up to scratch, with consequences for events whose courses are found lacking.

Badminton Horse Trials director Jane Tuckwell said she is worried about how riders can “manipulate” minimum eligibility requirements (MERs).

“I don’t necessarily think there should be more MERs or it should be harder. But it’s the length of time perhaps over which you can do that,” she said.

Bruce Haskell this “isn’t a five-star problem” and “if the level below that is inadequate, we need to make that better”.

“It seems like a global challenge for us to make sure our officials and our course-designers are pushing the standard so four-star means four-star,” he said, stressing that eventing “cannot be a Eurocentric sport”.

There is already a rule stating that national federations take responsibility for riders’ “fitness and competence to compete” at international events, and the forum was asked whether that should be taken further.

British Eventing (BE) chief executive Helen West said BE is looking at whether it should be stopping riders who are flagged red on its risk management system from entering events, and contacting them to say they need to drop down a level before moving back up again.

“We were also discussing going one step further and potentially, if they are flagging amber, sending an email to make them aware and suggest they continue to get more form before stepping up,” she said.

The forum broke into smaller discussion groups to focus on specific issues. Course-designer Mike Etherington-Smith reported back from the five-star group.

He said the group agreed that five-stars are still the pinnacle of the sport and need to remain as such, retaining the technical requirements, and that the variety in global five-star events is good as they suit different horses.

“One of the things that everybody felt is that the pathway to these competitions is absolutely key,” said Mike.

“Somehow there has to be a way of filtering out what I call the tourists, people going there just because they think they’re good enough and they want to have a crack. If you’re good enough, then great. But if you’re not, don’t go near it.”

He added that a “major piece of education has to be done”, not only with the athletes but also with coaches, officials, national federations and the media, that just because someone is qualified does not mean they are ready.

“We have a really good bunch of five-star organisers, who are absolutely alert to all the issues and we can feel very confident in the way they’re thinking and the way they’re looking ahead,” he said.

FEI eventing committee member and course-designer Alec Lochore reported that his working group flagged concerns over “considerable variation” in standard of courses globally and how this might be addressed.

“A two-star in western Europe has to be the same as a two-star in Japan, or New Zealand, or Argentina,” he said.

One of the ideas was to analyse fixtures’ statistics, which would show if an event – or even a designer – has an abnormally high cross-country clear rate and may suggest those courses are “too soft”.

“A one-off can be tackled more easily, but if there’s a trend with a course-designer or with a venue… then the FEI should be involved,” he said. “They should issue a supported warning with a plan for the improvement of the standard, to work with the course-designer, and failing that, they might even have to appoint somebody to go in there to assess the situation.”

FEI risk management steering group member Laurent Bousquet said consequences could include forcing an event to drop down a level, if it does not improve sufficiently.

He added that courses should also be the same standard throughout the year.

“There were some comments saying, ‘Well [a course] could be a bit softer in March than in October’. No. If your horse is not ready to run a four-short in March, you have to run at three-star. That’s it,” he said, reiterating the effect variations in standard may have on who collects MERs.

Officials were also urged to raise any concerns they have before an event, which could be rectified before the competition starts, and asked to be “absolutely accurate and honest” on feedback forms after a fixture.

There was also debate over whether the number of longer black-flagged routes across country a competitor can take and still get an MER should be limited to two. One related suggestion was to reduce the cross-country time penalties allowed for an MER.

On one side, it was argued that competitors who take every available long route are not answering the cross-country question. On the other, could it push riders to make poor choices?

“All of the conversations that we have at these meetings are about trying to have better horsemanship from our riders. That’s really what it comes down to,” said rider Jonathan Holling, who is also a national safety officer and part of the risk management steering group.

“And to me, I just personally feel like this really would discourage good horsemanship.

“I understand [competitors] have to answer the questions. So then I would say course-designers need to design courses that when you go the long route, you’re still educating those horses and riders.

“I just think we have to be careful that we don’t legislate the [good] horsemanship out of it.”

• What do you think? Send your thoughts to hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and country, for possible inclusion in the Horse & Hound letters pages.

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

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Eventing risk profiles could help reduce cross-country falls

FEI responds to frangible-device debate surrounding Pau cross-country

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Should cross-country fences be automatically removed after horse falls – and should riders face more sanctions? Those were two of the big questions debated at the FEI eventing risk management forum in Jardy (20 to 23 January).

The forum was asked “not to get defensive” or to look back at the past with rose-tinted glasses, but to look actively at how to influence the sport’s future for the best “so Versailles is not the last Olympic Games” for eventing.

Laurent Bousquet, a member of the FEI eventing risk management steering group and a trainer, put forward several ideas for discussion. He asked the forum to consider whether a fence should be automatically removed after two horse falls, and whether after any horse fall, riders should have a discussion with officials about what happened.

He also asked the forum to discuss whether riders should be given a recorded warning after every horse fall. This would mean that if a rider has three horse falls within a two-year period, they collect a two-month suspension. His final topic was whether retrospective sanctions should be applied – perhaps involving an expert panel to review cross-country footage after an event, which could have power to dish out sanctions.

Under the current rules, a fence that causes two horse falls must be reviewed and removal discussed.

The ideas sparked strong views. The running themes were whether this would help change riders’ mindsets, how many horse falls is too many at a fence, and whether removing fences in the past could have prevented further horse falls. On the flip side, points were raised over unintended negative impacts on safety.

Canada’s Rob Stevenson, a cardiologist, national safety officer and risk management steering group member, referenced statistics, which show that in the last four years, 164 horse falls happened at a fence where two horse falls or more were recorded.

“That means that by eliminating a fence after a single horse fall we would have avoided 80 falls over four years,” he said. “And I guess the challenge that I put out to our group is if you can think of anything else that immediately can make a decision to avoid 80 horse falls over the next four years, I welcome it.”

British Eventing chief executive Helen West said she “100% obviously supports the direction to make the sport safer”, but questioned the risks that removing a fence after a single horse fall could have.

“For me personally, two horse falls at the fence and the fence comes out, feels comfortable,” she said.

“Is it fair [after one fall] for that fence to then be taken out in terms of actually the integrity of the cross-country test and having enough fences left in the track to make it of the standard and the level it should be?”

Mike Etherington-Smith warned about over-regulation

“To automatically remove a fence after two horse falls, I understand the logic, but we have to understand the reasons for it,” he said, adding that eventing safety is a “massive jigsaw”.

“We need to look at the MERs. We need to make sure that people are not getting to these competitions if they’re not ready to be there. We have to make sure that the CCI3*-L and CCI4*-L courses are up to standard, which they are not necessarily. We know that there are people getting soft qualifications.

“So I think we need to come at it from a slightly different direction. It’s not as black and white as as has been portrayed so far.”

He added he understands Rob’s logic, but “has a different view on it”, and agreed with Helen that “we have to understand the consequences”.

“It may be that we have to think about different situations for different levels of the sport,” said Mike.

“But I’m just nervous about this headlong drive to try to capture every single opportunity to reduce risk in the sport, which we need to, but not every single opportunity is going to be appropriate.”

Rider Jonathan Holling, who is part of the risk management steering group and a national safety officer, questioned whether automatic removal makes sense from a course-design perspective.

“I don’t think we’re at a place where, whether we decide it’s one, two or three [horse falls], we should just blanket statement say, ‘that fence comes off’,” he said.

“In my opinion – and this is just food for thought – I think there are fences on course[s], where if you take that fence off because you’ve had a horse fall, or God forbid two, you could potentially be making the next combination more dangerous.”

‘There has to be a wash-up’

Six-time Burghley Horse Trials winner William Fox-Pitt welcomed more discussion around this, suggesting that perhaps three horse falls at a fence should be the automatic number for it to be removed.

On when officials should step in and pull a rider up, he added: “It’s a really tough one. Responsibility lies with the rider, but obviously the ground jury are watching and they see stuff that maybe they don’t like. I think very often the riders are at error, but they do need help. Sometimes we do get it wrong. Our adrenaline is going and we do make mistakes.

“So sometimes I think the ground jury has got to be braver and maybe you regret pulling someone up sometimes and think you know what, we did actually get that wrong and we’re learning from it, but I think sometimes they’re too nice.”

He added that he believes there should be a correlation between horse falls and warning cards.

“There’s got to be a wash-up, you can’t just have a crashing fall and walk away from it these days,” he said, adding that he “wouldn’t necessarily want to see riders being punished”.

“I think you’ve got to be at least brought forward to the ground jury to discuss it, look at it, analyse it.

“I would be pretty disturbed if I did have three horse falls in a season and a half, or two seasons. I think that is quite a big deal. It should be assessed.

“As a sport we have got to start to analyse, assess and accept these things as being something that we are addressing. The rider I think probably does need to be cautioned or know they’re being looked at, because then we all do become more aware.”

He also welcomed the idea of a retrospective penalty, adding that things can be missed on the day, but riders “should pay the price”.

“I think [riders] have to know there is a risk that someone will look at that and realise how horrifyingly you rode or what you did, and you should be penalised. And I feel very strongly that there should be elimination in that too,” he said.

• What do you think? Send your thoughts to hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and country, for possible inclusion in the Horse & Hound letters pages.

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FEI responds to frangible-device debate surrounding Pau cross-country

Debate rages on ‘dumbing down’ cross-country as safety work continues

Risk profiles for cross-country courses could be on the cards thanks to new research

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Changes to FEI maternity rules in dressage and showjumping have been welcomed – but there remains no such provision for eventing.

Maternity leave in horse sport has been discussed at length over the years and extensively reported on by H&H. The topic was back under the spotlight when the FEI announced it would review the rules after Olympic champion Jessica von Bredow-Werndl was denied her planned competition return after having her second child, owing to the “FEI’s perception of the regulations” (news, 29 September).

This month, the FEI announced changes to the maternity rules for dressage, showjumping and driving to “introduce further flexibility” and give athletes the option of adapting the duration of their leave to their individual situations.

Under the new rules, the minimum maternity leave period has been reduced from six months to three; the maximum period of 12 months remains unchanged. Riders can come back earlier than originally indicated, by giving four weeks’ notice, or 10 weeks for showjumpers who wish to be eligible for CSI invitations. Riders will continue to retain 50% of their ranking points during this leave.

These rules have also now been introduced for endurance and para dressage, while vaulting is being examined by the technical committee.

World and European team gold medal-winning German showjumper Janne Friederike Meyer-Zimmerman, who was involved in founding campaign group EqualEquest following the birth of her son, said the changes are “positive” and the FEI is sending a “clear signal” to women in top class sport.

“Nevertheless, we will continue to be involved [in campaigning]. More self-determination and flexibility are essential so that women can remain competitive in equestrian sports,” she said.

The FEI said it had listened to the riders who wanted the option of returning to competition earlier than six months.

“The board is in favour of supporting athletes wishing to achieve the best balance between family and a high-level sports career,” said an FEI spokesman, who added that the FEI will “keep on reviewing” the maternity and medical leave across disciplines to make sure they remain “relevant and fair”.

But despite the latest review, eventing remains without any maternity rules. The FEI eventing committee said it considered including medical and maternity leave provisions, but it was “not in favour” owing to “risk management reasons”.

Five-star eventer Kirsty Chabert told H&H she believes event riders should be able to retain some of their points when they take time off to have a baby, and that returning to competition was in the “forefront“ of her mind after she had her son in December 2018.

“I don’t see why we shouldn’t be able to freeze our points, we’ve worked hard to gain them and we’re constantly trying to get back to the job as quickly as we can. I had a complicated C-section, but I still felt the need to be back competing as quickly as I could,” she said.

“Thinking of risk management, I would say eventing is the riskiest of the three disciplines, and possibly the most strenuous. When you’ve got to be able to hold your pelvic floor and core for potentially 11 minutes and jump down into drop fences and still be able to be safe, surely by freezing your points you’re then not rushing to get back doing a discipline that you might physically not be fit enough to do.

“I think there needs to be a generic rule that’s across the disciplines, if that’s possible.”

The FEI spokesman told H&H the safety of athletes is “paramount” and it was felt that freezing ranking points would be “counterproductive” in eventing.

“Maternity leave provisions were not proposed in eventing, reflecting the eventing committee’s position on safety. This follows extensive work with the community in the past years to reinforce the eventing risk management policy by implementing rules that put more emphasis on recent results, to ensure athletes and horses are active at the level they compete and, ultimately, to reduce risk,” said the spokesman.

“This includes rider categorisation, minimum eligibility requirements (MERs), return to play rules or development of the horse form index, among others. Trends are being monitored through the collection of data and statistics and these clearly show that using current results as part of the MERs is a strong contributing factor to safety.”

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New rules around blood-related showjumping eliminations and dangerous cross-country riding are among those to be approved for 2023.

Voting took place at the annual FEI General Assembly in Cape Town (10-13 November), following a rules review process throughout the year where national federations and other stakeholder had their say on proposals. The final drafts went to the vote and all were approved for eventing, dressage, para dressage, and showjumping.

A new rule comes into force for eliminations in showjumping, and follows a proposal from the Swedish national federation after a combination completed their round in Tokyo despite the horse bleeding from the nose. Under the amended rule the president of the ground jury, or in their absence a designated ground jury member, may ring the bell to eliminate a combination while a round is ongoing if it is decided it would be “contrary to the principles of horse welfare” to allow the combination to continue – and this elimination is final and not subject to appeal.

The original proposal from the Swedish federation asked for the rule to state “Horses bleeding from nostril (airways) will result in elimination”, but during the review process the FEI jumping committee argued that the wording needed to be broader, and the International Jumping Riders Club agreed.

“The IJRC agrees with the jumping committee that believes that a broader concept going beyond just the relatively rare case of blood in the nostrils is needed in order to give the ground jury the clear authority to take action where there are serious horse welfare concerns,” the IJRC said.

In eventing, course-designers will have the right to monitor possible cases of dangerous riding during the cross-country phase and report this to the ground jury, who will take the decision on elimination. This topic was discussed at the FEI sports forum in April (news, 12 May), during which FEI eventing committee chairman David O’Connor highlighted that on the day of the event, often the course-designer is “the most educated person about, on how horses jump”

“We’ve had no backlash from course-designers on this, they’re very happy to do it. To have their expertise I think is hugely important,” he said.

Eventing course-designers cannot officiate at the same venue for more than six consecutive years at CCI4*-S and CCI4*-L, including championships, and for more than eight years at CCI5*. But they may officiate again after a three-year break.

The timeframe for eventing MERs used for athlete categorisation will be reduced from eight years to four years following a review from the FEI risk management steering group with EquiRatings. Athlete categories will also be updated according to the performances at the end of each month, instead of twice a year.

Horses who have not competed at FEI competitions within 13 months will have to complete a lower-level event to compete at CCI4* and above. To compete in a CCI4*-S they must complete a CCI3*; for a CCI4*-L they must complete a CCI4*-S, and to compete in a CCI5* they must complete a CCI4*-S or CCI4*-L.

In dressage, under the new rules – of which 91.21% of voters were in favour – the short grand prix test will only be allowed in a CDI5* or CDIO5* if the grand prix is scheduled during prime-time sessions; end of the afternoon or evening, and when there are “clear restrictions” on arena availability. In May, the FEI board had approved the option for organisers to offer either the standard or the short grand prix at World Cup qualifiers.

Other changes include competition categories: small, medium and big tours have been replaced with individual CDI star ratings – plus new qualification criteria for CDI4* will come into force, requiring combinations to qualify at CDI3* by scoring 63% in a grand prix or grand prix special.

From 2023, if a horse is stopped in a freestyle event, owing to extreme weather for example, the rider will now be permitted to start either from the beginning of the test or from where they stopped.

You might also be interested in:

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The FEI has responded to comments made by some riders after the Pau Horse Trials cross-country last Saturday (29 October).

Frangible cross-country devices were the topic of debate after the five-star cross-country phase when eight riders activated the MIMClip on fence 21B, therefore incurring 11 penalties. This fence was an open corner in a water complex, three strides after a drop some two thirds of the way around the Pierre Michelet-designed track.

The subject became a talking point among riders as some considered they had not hit the fence hard enough for it to warrant its collapsing, though undoubtedly there were some cases where the device saved falls.

One of the riders to incur 11 penalties at this fence was Switzerland’s Felix Vogg, who had been in the lead after the dressage phase with Colero.

A spokesman for the FEI told H&H: “Representatives of the FEI eventing risk management steering group (RMSG) have collected evidence from all relevant sources and undertaken a full review of the circumstances surrounding the release of the safety device on fence 21B during the cross-country at the CCI5* in Pau, where eight combinations incurred penalties.

“Pierre Michelet said: ‘Fence 21AB was a true five-star test with a drop into water over a big log and three strides to an open corner designed to be jumped at an angle. The best riders did this well. For some riders, they jumped in awkwardly and/or took extra strides, taking off either too close or straight on to the corner deploying the frangible device. This was the five-star test’.”

“Two of the activations almost certainly avoided a horse fall which is exactly what the sport is trying to achieve,” said Geoff Sinclair from the RMSG in relation to the Pau Horse Trials cross-country.

The FEI added that in light of all evidence reviewed, which included video and scientific measurements, the RMSG concluded that the frangible device “provided the expected release”.

“The fence required an accurate approach and rewarded the riders with the correct line towards the angled corner,” the spokesman said. ‘The Pau organisers ensured that the clips were changed any time a horse touched the fence so that it was fair for every competitor.

“The FEI has collected data for the past 20 years and has identified open corners as the fence type that cause the most horse falls. This is why a specific standard has been developed for fences intended to be jumped at an angle.”

The spokesman said the the FEI eventing “vision statement” and risk management policy states that five-star cross-country courses must maintain the highest level of difficulty, as well as maintaining the correct influence on the overall results, but with a safe approach.

“The result of the Pau 2022 cross-country achieved this goal as no horse falls were registered during the test and the difficulty of the course was of five-star level,” he said.

• What are your views about MIMClips and the penalties associated within them in FEI eventing? Let us know your thoughts by emailing hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and county.

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Discussions around making cross-country safer without removing the challenge continue – as new data highlights where risk could potentially be reduced and scope to create course risk profiles.

In a newly published FEI-funded study, researchers at the universities of Glasgow, Bristol and Nottingham Trent aimed to identify cross-country fence risk factors using data from FEI eventing competitions between 2008 and 2018. Fences including corners and trakehners were identified as having increased odds of a horse or rider fall, compared to square spreads – and fences featured later on course, those with an approach and/or landing downhill or into water, and combinations, also had increased risk.

The researchers said it “should be considered” whether it might be possible to design around the “more challenging” fences, and suggestions included ensuring more challenging fences are not “over-represented” in the second half of the course, and including more alternative routes. They said the findings are the “first step” towards building a “risk profile or score” for every FEI cross-country course, which could be used to support the development of horses and riders, and be taken into account for qualification criteria.

Lead author Euan Bennet told H&H that although some of the findings might be “common sense”, the study provides quantification of the data.

“The really important thing that we want people to take away from this is we’re not suggesting that challenging fences should no longer be used – but we think we’ve identified that it’s possible to design around some of these more difficult elements,” he said.

“It’s not about making things easier, it’s about making things safer; having course-design that prioritises safety without detracting from that challenge. We think the results show that’s possible so that’s why we’d like to open up more of a discussion on that.”

Difficulty

The topic of cross-country difficulty and eventing safety and falls has been discussed at length this year, with Bramham course-designer Ian Stark sharing concerns around the sport’s future direction, and riders including Piggy March and Pippa Funnell speaking out against “dumbing down” courses (news, 23 June).

Badminton course-designer Eric Winter told H&H the study is “interesting” but that there is a “difficult line to walk” when it comes to course-design.

“Course-designers don’t want to see a horse on the ground. We absolutely hate that and try to prevent it as much as we possibly can. You don’t get to run a horse round the cross-country beforehand and you can’t tell how things are going to ride. It might ride perfectly for 90 horses and the 91st will fall,” he said.

“Course-design is an art, it’s not a factory-produced widget where thousands come out the same – it’s to do with the piece of ground you have. You could say don’t use downhill stuff and only build on the flat, but when you have horses travelling at 570 metres a minute and they’re a little bit tired, all sorts of unpredictable things can happen.

“It’s a really difficult thing because it’s easy to say X percentage of horse falls were at water jumps – so what do you do about that? You take water out of the competition. Then you say X percent of falls were at fences with a roof over the top, and you take those out. Before long you’ve only got logs left, and you end up galloping around a grass field. Without challenge, there’s no value.”

Mr Winter added that he would like to see future research around qualification.

“There are horses qualifying at the moment without doing some of the key challenges – they’re qualifying at four-star to go five-star without actually landing in a water jump. When a horse at four-star doesn’t have to perform that exercise to qualify, it leaves the sport at risk,” he said.

An FEI spokesman told H&H the study has allowed the FEI to “gather insights” regarding eventing risk management. The FEI eventing risk management steering group will review the conclusions and discuss these at the eventing safety seminar in January.

You might also be interested in:

Debate rages on ‘dumbing down’ cross-country as safety work continues

Course-designer Ian Stark on Bramham’s cross-country: ‘The sport is vulnerable and we need to ask questions about what direction we’re going in’

Eventing risk profiles could help reduce cross-country falls

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“DUMBING down” cross-country is not the answer for the future of eventing, it has been agreed – but riders need to take responsibility for their preparation and discussions are needed across the board to improve safety.

Questions have been raised around horse and rider preparation and qualification for the upper levels, after a number of falls at events including Badminton and Bramham.

Following Bramham, the event’s course-designer Ian Stark shared concerns around the vulnerability of the sport – and which direction it should go in the future.

“I think the sport has got a lot of thinking to do and I’m not the right person to say what way it should go. There’s a need to try to standardise and make sure horses and riders are ready for the level,” he said, adding that he believes levels should be progressive and provide an education, from advanced to CCI4*-S to CCI4*L.

“I need to go away and think about things. If I need to make things easier, I need to decide whether I’m comfortable doing that and helping the sport be dumbed down.”

Before Badminton, Piggy March spoke of the need for sufficient cross-country preparation for the big three-day events in her H&H column. Following Bramham, she told H&H that Ian’s course was “brilliant” and “the sort of course it should be”, but she shares his concerns for the sport’s future, describing it as “worrying times”.

Piggy said Covid had put the sport in some “negative situations” and the loss of a number of events over the years, including the likes of Belton, means that some combinations are not getting the exposure they need to “proper” cross-country courses.

“I said in my column that we needed rider frighteners; it’s not that we want to be riding at horrible fences, but it’s educating horses on the way up to experience some bigger ditches or beefier timber and teaching your horse to stay brave,” she said.

“At the moment, I think we’re at a stage where maybe not all combinations are quite ready or haven’t been exposed to serious competitions. The top end of our sport is becoming easier to qualify for and it’s been a bit of an ongoing thought for the last few years. Obviously we’re trying to keep a clean and safe sport, but it doesn’t necessarily mean it has to be made easier.”

Piggy added that riders need to take responsibility in producing and educating their horses.

“I think more probably needs to be done in terms of being realistic on what events are ‘proper qualifications’ in terms of standard, and when to move up a level. We don’t need more qualifications, just the right ones that educate horses and riders to prepare them for the next level. We’re obviously losing some events and we need to look at whether it’s down to financial difficulty or a new era of riders just going to places that are easier,” she said.

“Some of the old-fashioned courses maybe don’t get as much support from the riders as they used to, but looking back, many top-level horses got produced and ran various times at a lot of these old-fashioned events.

“I don’t know whether people are getting very protective about records or reputation and so go for easier options. It’s knowing which event we’re preparing for and being realistic about how we qualified and if our horse is ready for this.”\\

In the public eye

Pippa Funnell spoke last year about her concerns around “dumbing down the sport” and the importance of events such as Chatsworth, Gatcombe and Bramham for preparing riders for five-stars .

Pippa did not have a horse entered for Bramham, but walked the course with some of her Wesko Equestrian Foundation pupils. She told H&H she was in support of the track, and agreed with many of Ian’s comments and concerns.

“If Bramham and other CCI4*-Ls are made too easy, it opens the door for far more combinations who are not experienced enough or capable of qualifying for five-star level,” she said. “There is a strong FEI qualifying system, but horses and riders need tracks that suitably prepare them for the next level. A lot of people think if they’ve got their qualification, they’re ready to step up and so often they’re not,” she said.

“But that’s where it’s the rider and trainer’s responsibility to say, ‘Yes, we’re ready’ or ‘No, we need more experience’; we need to be honst and ask are we, and more importantly our horses, capable.”

Pippa, who described herself as an “old fart, like Ian”, believes the old long format, with steeplechase and roads and tracks, provided a good education for horse and rider, particularly about riding soft brush and speed, and teaching that there are no quick ways to get horses fit. She believes some riders take short cuts or do not understand the importance of fitness, which is vital for safety.

“People need to learn to ride on different terrains, keeping a horse on its feet and keeping them balanced down hills and through the woods – but they can’t learn that doing arena cross-country schooling or on very flat courses. These courses have a place in the sport, but I think people mustn’t try to think of them as easy routes to get qualified. There mustn’t be an easy route,” she said.

“Some riders are absolutely natural and very good, but as we know, eventing is a risk sport and for the sake of its future, people have got to analyse their rounds.

“There will always be the occasional fall – I’m not saying there aren’t going to be moments where you have to dig deep – but we have to be very aware of the horse’s welfare and wellbeing and the image it creates.”

Pippa would like conversations between stakeholders, including riders, course-designers, the FEI and British Eventing on the sport’s future.

“I don’t think we can point the finger at any one situation, but I think we all need to come together and fight for what is in the best interest of firstly, the horses, the riders and the sport,” she said

An FEI spokesman told H&H it is “fully committed” to mitigating and minimising risk in eventing, and is “continuously” collecting and reviewing data to assess how or where to implement changes to increase safety.This year, the FEI also launched the Horse Forum Index with support from EquiRatings aimed at boosting safety by allowing riders to track their progress (news, 3 February).

The FEI spokesman said from January to Badminton, there were more than 40 three-star and four-star competitions in Europe, nearly 70 events before Bramham.

“The FEI welcomes input and will be sure to address these concerns at the FEI eventing committee and eventing risk management seminar,” he said, adding that the 2023 eventing rules revision is under way and proposals include minimum eligibility requirements and additional requirements to compete at four- and five-star for horses who have not competed within 13 months.

You might also be interested in:

Course-designer Ian Stark on Bramham’s cross-country: ‘The sport is vulnerable and we need to ask questions about what direction we’re going in’

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Air vests are officially recommended for cross-country in international eventing fixtures for the first time in 2022.

This new recommendation is just that – it is not a compulsory requirement, and body protectors to the correct standard must still be worn.

“We can’t make it mandatory yet for two reasons,” FEI medical committee chairman Mark Hart told the eventing risk management seminar (22 January).

“One, we don’t have enough definitive evidence to show the beneficial effect, and if there is any potential downside.”

He added that the FEI has started to contact other sports, including motocross and car racing in this area, as it looks further towards protection for the neck, chest, back, abdominal organs and shoulders.

“I think more research needs to be done. I think the preponderance of evidence is that air vests probably do help a majority of the time,” said Dr Hart.

“As we know from seat belts, there are rare cases where seat belts actually are deleterious. You have to look at the overall benefit of a particular safety measure, knowing that it’s not going to work in every situation.”

H&H has contacted British Eventing to ask whether it will be recommending air vests for cross-country in national classes.

Dr Hart also spoke of upgrades to the FEI rules for provision of medical services at events. In essence, this is moving towards ensuring qualified professionals with certain skills are on duty for each phase, rather than choosing medical cover based on job title. These are recommended for two years, before they have to be followed, and will become mandatory from 2023.

There is also a move towards continued monitoring of riders who have had a fall, throughout their time at a venue. At the moment, riders must be checked by the medical officer after a fall – regardless of whether they fell in training or competition – before they get back on a horse or leave the venue.

With concussion in riders “high on the radar”, Dr Hart said there is a responsibility “to check in on” riders throughout their time on site.

“We know that a lot of concussions are missed,” he said. “The hard part is that we cannot always diagnose a concussion in the first five minutes. Sometimes concussion symptoms come on 30 minutes later, even that night or the next day.”

He added that bleeds on the brain also “don’t always present right away”.

“I think we need to get two parts of this concept. One, we do have measures to immediately assess whether somebody has had a serious concussion or not,” he said.

“But secondly, [realise that] this is a dynamic process and I think we have to change the medical response to those people who fall, who possibly had a concussion, [and that they] have to be evaluated throughout their time on the venue.”

He said time-frames have not been specified; the key message is that someone can “look great after a fall”, but there remains a “responsibility to check in on them”.

Dr Hart also indicated that the FEI is looking at the potential of concussion blood tests in the near future.

“It’s fascinating,” he said. “My day job is as a cardiologist and we use blood tests to look at damage to the heart every day.”

He added that there are tests already, some of which look for markers indicating brain injury immediately after suspected concussions, and some used hours later.

“I think blood tests will be very important, but there’s a lot of research that has to happen to correlate that with the clinical scenario that’s happening, and what we do with the results once we have them,” he said. “We are definitely working on that.”

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Rotational falls have “halved” since the FEI started collecting data in 2010, but work must continue to lower that number as far as possible, the FEI eventing risk management seminar was told (22 January).

The ratio of rotational falls has decreased from one in 327 starts in 2010, to one in 663 starts (0.15%). FEI stats showed that nearly a fifth (18%) of the 29 rotational falls in 2021 resulted in serious rider injury.

“Rotational falls are absolutely the most serious type of falls we have to avoid,” said risk management steering group chairman Geoff Sinclair, adding while the numbers are low, it is “29 we would love not to have”.

“I don’t think we will ever get to completely preventing them, but we definitely want to watch this very carefully. It’s a little bit higher than it was in 2018 [0.13%] and 2019 [0.12%], definitely something we have to be working on very hard to make sure those are avoided where possible.”

Serious consequences of inaccurate results

Events and federations were warned of the grave consequences of inaccurate results, such as incorrect fall type or faults allocated to the wrong combination, when accurate data is crucial for both improving safety and for minimum eligibility requirements.

“In the past two years, we have had many issues with the results we receive that have not been recorded correctly,” said FEI eventing and Olympic director Catrin Norinder, adding that results cannot be modified after a competition.

“It is becoming a problem and we don’t want it to become a trend.”

Eventing committee chairman David O’Connor added the importance of this cannot be underestimated, imploring those present to take the message to their national federations.

“What we cannot have is to not accurately know what is going on. It affects judgements, it affects riders, it affects horses, it affects everything.”

The FEI defined “serious injury” in 2019, to help with consistency of the information it was receiving. Concussion, too, is reported as a separate category and is an area predicted to have an ever increasing focus.

“Measuring concussion will be an important part of our sport, as it is in all sports. It is even an insurance risk for our sport in the future, I think, so we need to be careful,” added Mr Sinclair.

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

A HOTLY anticipated new tool to improve cross-country safety is available for riders to use for the first time.

EquiRatings’ Horse Form Index (HFI), developed with the FEI, has now been launched publicly, meaning that riders and owners can use it.

EquiRatings founder Sam Watson told the FEI eventing risk management forum (22 January) that the aim is to give riders another way to help them gauge their performance when planning their next event.

“It is about getting people to look at their performance objectively,” said Sam.

It works by calculating horses’ most recent performances, giving a A++ (current maximum of A at CCI5*-L and A+ at CCI4*-L, owing to the sample size being too small at these levels) to E assessment grade for each level at three-star and above. This grade is accompanied by a description, from “excellent” to “significantly low (unsuitable for this level of competition)”, to help riders make informed choices.

“In the language we are using, we would like this to become something that people start thinking about – not just saying, ‘Am I qualified’ but ‘What’s my level of form?’”

He added that it will give some people a new objective, which is to improve their rating at the level they are at.

It does not replace minimum eligibility requirements (MERs), but is a way of helping riders understand how prepared they are. The HFI will also be available for officials at competitions, through the FEI entry system, and national federations will be able to view HFI ratings when entering horses.

Development of the HFI, which builds on EquiRatings’ extensive research and previous form indexes, was initially presented at the 2021 FEI eventing risk management forum. The completed index was revealed at this year’s forum and it is readily available for any rider to use on the FEI website.

Sam said he has been using the HFI himself, for a horse he is thinking of taking to Badminton.

“I should have this horse in the C category by the time we go, with one more run, but currently he would be in the D category,” said Sam, adding that the result surprised him. “That has just raised my awareness. I think a lot of this horse – he has been to the European Championships and jumped clear, but it made me think he isn’t as experienced potentially as I was maybe thinking. It just got me thinking that this spring is important, do not take that cross-country for granted, even though you think he is a good cross-country horse, try and get ourselves better prepared and push those ratings up.”

He said getting the wording right has been really important, as that is what turns stats and data into language people can understand, which is what ultimately makes the tool useful.

“When someone is on the fence about making a decision, as they often are [on whether] this horse is ready for the next level or not, they now have an objective tool to help them make the decision,” said Sam.

“We have talked in the past about trainers and it can be a difficult conversation when you’re being employed by an athlete to give that advice.

“They could nearly use this rating as a benchmark to help them have those difficult conversations.”

For more information on how to view your rating, visit: inside.fei.org/fei/disc/eventing/risk-management/hfi

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits. 

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

THERE are growing calls for the FEI to re-examine the automatic 11 penalties given for breaking a frangible device across country in international eventing.

Michael Jung lost out on winning his third consecutive Olympic individual title in Tokyo by breaking a yellow MIMclip – this type of MIMclip was introduced this year and is used at fences jumped at an angle, such as corners. It breaks with less force than the traditional red MIMclip.

Olympic gold medallist Oliver Townend and 2018 Burghley winner Tim Price both finished in the top 10 at Bicton five-star last week, but lost placings because they received 11 penalties for breaking frangible pins.

While riders recognise the value of frangible devices in making eventing safer, they are questioning whether it’s right that horses are always penalised if a device breaks.

Oliver said: “We’ve trained these horses to drop the back legs on a vertical going into a coffin to jump the ditch correctly and jump out safely, and I think the FEI need to realise what the top riders want. There isn’t a five-star rider in the world that agrees with the penalties for the pins.

“The pins are a safety thing and I do believe if the ground jury decide it saved a fall, then award 11 penalties, but just to be handing these 11 penalties out to good horses that have done a very safe, correct job – it’s not cross-country any more.”

William Fox-Pitt, who has won 14 five-stars, said ahead of the Bicton cross-country: “The devices were introduced to save lives, not to give you 11 penalties, and now they are becoming a big factor in eventing that we are all concerned about. I’m really hoping we can look at what we do.”

William said he would be in favour of penalties only being awarded if the horse had broken the device by hitting the fence with a front leg.

“If you have a pin with a back leg and manage to stand up, good on you, it’s eventing. But if you have it in front, that maybe has saved your life and you should be penalised,” he said.

There is already a proposal to change the FEI eventing rules to include an addition to the wording around when 11 penalties are given. The current wording says “Activating a frangible device where the dimension of the fence is modified”, while the new proposals add after this “if one of the frangible device clips clearly breaks (hook clearly opens from the bolt)”.

An FEI spokesperson said: “In accordance with the rules revision process, the stakeholder feedback on the eventing committee proposals will be reviewed in the coming weeks before the final draft is submitted for approval at the FEI General Assembly in November.”

If approved, this change would come in for the 2022 season.

The FEI also issued an update on 30 August saying the FEI frangible device working group has agreed with MIM that the bolt should not be removed when fitting yellow MIMclip kits at all levels. This change will increase the amount of force needed to break the clips on these kits.

This update was “not directly related to the Olympic Games but to new information and best practice analysis”, said the FEI spokesperson.

Both the proposed rule change and the fitting instruction alteration are relevant only to the penalties incurred for activation of MIMclips; neither affect penalties given for breaking a frangible pin.

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

AN inquiry into concussion in sport is calling for UK-wide protocols on dealing with head injuries, and improvement in the reporting of sporting injuries.

The Government’s Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) committee launched the inquiry following increasing media attention on the “growing evidence” that there is a link between taking part in sport and developing dementia later in life, and aimed to examine whether this issue needed Government intervention. Following the conclusion of the inquiry, which included evidence from health professionals, experts and sporting bodies, a report was published last month in which recommendations were made.

These include NHS England reviewing how it collates concussion data and ensuring doctors have patients’ full medical history available to better inform treatment. The report also recommends that the Government immediately mandates the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to work with sport national governing bodies to establish a national framework by July 2022 for reporting injuries, and establishes a research fund and a specialist group to review emerging science on concussion.

“The Government has delayed taking action, deferring to the numerous sporting bodies. We recognise sport will never be, and can never be, 100% safe. However, the Government has a duty to ensure that sporting activity, at every level, bears no unnecessary risk. We recommend it establishes a UK-wide minimum standard definition for concussion that all sports must use and adapt for their sport,” read the report.

Medical Equestrian Association (MEA) chair Megan Hardman told H&H the report is “very valuable”, and data collection is important, but added that in equestrian sport, a “culture change” is needed around riders returning to the saddle too soon after injury.

“At grassroots level we need riders to destigmatise head injuries so there’s not that bravado that you have to get straight back on. It’s that real ‘battling through injury’ mindset and being ‘brave’ – we see it in all equestrian sports,” she said.

“As doctors we might say to a rider ‘you need two weeks of no riding’, but once that person walks away from that event we have no control over what they do. Unless they really buy into it and believe what you tell them, we can’t force them to do it.”

Dr Hardman added that as a result of the report the MEA and British Eventing (BE) plan to produce guidance to be handed out to riders at events on what to do following a head injury.

“We already provide advice cards but it’s not explicit enough for riders in my opinion,” said Dr Hardman. “What we need is something that says ‘do this’. We also plan to have someone from the Injured Jockeys Fund to talk to us about what we should be doing with these people and why it helps them so the MEA and BE are putting out the same message.”

British Equestrian chief executive Jim Eyre told H&H the organisation and its member bodies are “committed to upholding the highest standards” of welfare for all, and takes the risk of neurological injuries and concussion “extremely seriously”.

“With the FEI, we have taken a proactive lead in this area and share their aim of reducing risk and improving management of injuries, with each member body having its own protocols to manage falls with the risk of concussion,“ he said.

“While riding helmets will help to protect riders from significant head injury trauma, we recognise they may not protect from concussion. Therefore, concussion as part of athlete welfare is regularly reviewed at all levels, from Pony Club to BEF’s world class programme. “We recognise more can always be done in terms of awareness and education, and we welcome the DCMS report and look forward to the follow-on work with UK Sport and the HSE”.

The British Horseracing Authority provided evidence to the DMCS inquiry and a spokesman told H&H the organisation “welcomes” the report.

“Discussions with the Government have already been undertaken on this subject and we look forward to continuing that work, as well as engaging with other sporting governing bodies, to understand what role British racing can play in the implementation of the report’s recommendations”.

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Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade your subscription to access our online service that brings you breaking news and reports as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Mats Björnetun on his trajectory from hot rods to cross-country safety devices

Under the MIMsafe brand, my company is the industry leader within the field of crash-tested dog cages, gates and universal cargo nets. We also produce MIMclips, the frangible devices which allow cross-country fences to “collapse” safely to help prevent falls. These became mandatory on 1 January 2021 on all fences to which they can be fitted at all FEI events.

Originally I was a farmer. I wasn’t interested in studying at school, but I was interested in motorcycles and hot rods, and was involved in drag-racing. Engineering and building things fascinated me.

In 1986, I started MIM Construction AB in my barn in Frändefors in Sweden, with a partner. Our aim was to solve automotive functional design problems for neighbours – and our goal was just to survive.

Four years later we were invited to Germany to visit Volkswagen, who have been clients ever since, alongside the likes of Audi and Porsche. That was so far ahead of the goals I had set that, since then, I have only had fun. If there are two different projects in view, I have always chosen the one that looks more fun.

My wife has had horses since she was young, and was interested in eventing. I had a farm, so in the mid-1990s, I said, “I can try to build a small cross-country course here.” We had some novice competitions here in 1994 and 1995, and after that I became the organiser of an event at a larger estate nearby, Baldersnäs, and from 1998 to 2002 we ran World Cup events there. I didn’t know much about horses, but I liked the world of eventing and its people.

I “retired” from organising in 2005, but somehow I ended up as event director of Malmö in 2008. That’s where I met Andy Griffiths, who was the technical delegate, and that was the beginning of MIMclips.

I saw from the beginning that we were not doing enough about safety in eventing. Because of the amount of crash-testing my company had done, I understood how to handle and absorb energy and about speed and direction; I knew we had to do more.

Through Andy, we were invited to a meeting in 2010 with lots of high-profile people from eventing, such as Mark Phillips, Mike Etherington-Smith, Hugh Thomas and David O’Connor.

Beforehand, MIMsafe had created its own crash machine, and I employed a crash expert from Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden. So when it came to that first meeting, we had so much knowledge that we scared everyone! That wasn’t our intention – we just wanted to show that we had a starting point.

Fully implementing something new always takes 10 years. So where we are now – that approved frangible devices must be fitted to all fences that can be constructed with them at all FEI events – is where I wanted to be in 2010. MIMsafe makes a financial loss on the MIMclip, but that is unimportant to me. I want to help a sport that I love.

The key element of the MIMclip is the hinge. When a horse hits the rail or the gate, or whatever, the energy created by the horse goes into the fence and accelerates it out of the horse’s way.

The laws of gravity mean that a free-falling object accelerates as it falls; if you drop something on your feet it hurts, but the first centimetre of the drop doesn’t hurt because it falls very slowly. The hinge on a MIMclip allows the rail to which it is fixed to fall down in a controlled arc, and stops the horse’s fall trajectory.

Eventing people are used to seeing the red MIMclip attached to fences such as oxers and gates, but we now have a yellow MIMclip, which is used for fences designed to be jumped at an angle, such as corners, and for tables.

It is triggered at 70% of the force that it takes for the red clip, and that comes with its problems. Spectators love to climb on fences while walking the course before or after the competition. How do organisers then ensure the frangible devices have not been inadvertently weakened? To solve this, we’re producing a silver clip to replace the MIMclip temporarily when the course is not being used.

We can never make cross-country 100% safe. It’s an exciting sport that involves solid fences being jumped at speed; competitors have a choice – to ride or not to ride, and they must take responsibility for themselves.

You can also read this feature in the 13 May issue of Horse & Hound magazine.

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A US eventing rule change increasing minimum eligibility requirements has been put on hold until 2023 while further investigations take place.

The proposal, developed by the United States Eventing Association’s cross-country safety subcommittee following analysis of US eventing accidents, was first outlined at USEA’s annual meeting and convention in 2019. It called for an increase to minimum eligibility requirements (MERs) and rider categorisation, in US Equestrian’s (USEF) rules of eventing.

At the time Jonathan Holling, chair of the USEA cross-country safety committee, said he wanted riders to have more of a base knowledge and ability than the standard MERs asked for.

“We looked at records of very successful upper-level riders – Olympic calibre riders – and we found that in most cases (virtually all of them) did two to three times more than our minimum requirements to be able to move a horse up,” Mr Holling said.

“When we looked at that, we said, ‘maybe we don’t have right what we are requiring for the base of the sport.’ We felt pretty strongly, and the data confirmed, that one way we can increase the skill of riders and the horsemanship and relationship between the horses and the riders is to raise the minimum eligibility requirements. In a nutshell, people will have to do more at a level before they can move up.”

Under current rules, each national level has a different set of requirements, for example a horse can compete at intermediate level when it has four MERs at preliminary level horse trials, and one of these results can include 20 cross-country jumping penalties. A MER at national level is a completion with no more than 50 penalties in dressage, no jumping penalties and no more than 36 time-penalties across country, and no more than 16 jumping penalties.

The proposed rule change called for riders to hold licences in recognition of proven competence at a certain level. To hold an A licence, riders must have obtained 25 MERs at intermediate level and above, B riders must have obtained 25 MERs at preliminary and above, and riders who do not have these MERs would be categorised as “unlicensed”.

In line with the licences, this would mean to compete at preliminary level, A riders must have obtained an MER at four training level horse trials within 24 months, B riders must have obtained seven MERs within 24 months, and unlicensed riders must have obtained 10 MERs within 24 months. B and unlicensed riders must have obtained these with a horse as a combination.

In February 2021 following feedback from USEA members, the USEA board of governors voted to modify the proposal to lower the requirements, but still recommend the establishment of rider licences and increase of MERs. The revised proposal included a requirement that at preliminary level and above at least one MER must have been obtained within eight weeks prior to the competition.

The revised proposal also called for licence requirements for preliminary level to be changed to; four MERs for A riders at training level or above, B riders must have obtained four MERs plus two additional MERs with no more than 20 jumping cross-country penalties, and unlicensed riders must have six MERs, plus two additional with no more than 20 jumping cross-country penalties.

On 1 March the USEA’s board of governors submitted the proposal to USEF. The board “made it clear” they shared the position of the USEA cross-country safety subcommittee that more needs to be done to ensure riders and horses obtain more than just a minimal amount of experiences.

The USEF board gathered feedback from the public on the changes and received more than 1,200 responses and it had been recognised that due to not the USEA annual meeting and convention and other meetings not running in person last year, a portion of the membership did not feel “fully informed” about the proposal. Subsequently the board determined work needed to be done to investigate the questions raised and communicatie the reasoning behind the rule change.

“The USEA cross-country safety subcommittee has done an amazing job to champion a major change in how horses and riders are allowed to move through the ranks of our sport,” said Jonathan Elliott, USEA vice-president of competitions.

“The consensus from the feedback I have received and observed is that there is a need for this change, but there are many factors to consider. In the end, this is a safety-driven rule change proposal, and we need to make sure we get it right, not perfect because that will never happen, but right.”

Mr Elliott added he believed more time was needed to continue and develop a complete proposal “with justification” for the proposed changes.

“Big strides have been accomplished over the last few years with other safety-related rule changes and the frangible technology fundraising and I am optimistic an updated [proposal] will join that evolution of our sport in 2023.”

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The board unanimously voted to postpone the rule change with the intention to further investigate and communicate the purpose behind the proposal.

“The board has made it clear that they will submit an amended proposal again with the intent for implementation in 2023. To this end, the USEA will establish a task force to further review the proposal, make additional inquiries into related data, and analyze the input received,” said a USEA spokesman.

“This task force will consist of representation by individuals from diverse backgrounds and geographically varied locations around the country. The goal is to have an updated rule in effect for the 2023 competition year.”

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade to access our H&H Plus online service which brings you breaking news as it happens as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

There was a “huge” reduction in horse falls at British Eventing (BE) fixtures in 2020 compared to previous years.

National safety officer Jonathan Clissold gave the update on Britain’s national safety figures and what the future may hold during the FEI online eventing risk management seminar (24 January).

Last season’s calendar was heavily affected by the coronavirus pandemic. While some statistics are clearly a result of that, such as a decrease of 67% in the number of events held, and a drop in starters of more than 50% (32,152 compared to the rolling four-year average of around 75,000), others are less clear-cut.

Rider falls remained at a similar level (less than 2% of starters), but the number of horse falls was down 33% on previous years. There was also a “significant” increase in minimum eligibility requirements achieved, up from a rate of 70.9% (2016-2019 average) to 74.2%.

Mr Clissold said the reasons are not clear, though one theory is perhaps people had more time for training given lockdown and the halt to the season, and they will be looking at future performances of those who achieved MERs in 2020.

He also reported on positive actions riders have taken since the continuing performance requirements (CPRs) were introduced, as well as a shift in attitude towards it. The CPR is a “drop down” rule, which works in conjunction with the EquiRatings Quality Index (ERQI) system, that forces combinations repeatedly having cross-country issues to step down a level.

He added initially people were not keen on the CPR rule, but are seeing it is for their own benefit.

“I think it’s very easy for riders to forget they’ve had bad performances. They go out and only remember the last competition, and [they will always find] a reason for why they had a run-out or a few stops and they try and make excuses for it,” said Mr Clissold.

“This rather focuses the mind on their performance.”

Article continues below…

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He said that it was encouraging to see people who triggered the CPR rule last year getting in touch with the organiser of their next event and asking to move to a lower class before BE even had a chance to contact them.

He also hinted that BE is looking at “perhaps adopting” the EquiRatings Horse Form Index (HFI) in future. This is a refined version of the ERQI system that gives a broader picture of a combination’s overall performance and how likely they are to jump clear across country or run into trouble.

The FEI has indicated it is considering adopting the HFI for international fixtures from 2023 (news, 28 January).

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H&H catches up with some interesting discussion at the FEI eventing risk management seminar, including looking at the role of various officials on cross-country day in relation to safety

PRAISING riders for good horsemanship is vital for eventing safety to progress, according to leading figures in the sport.

The message came as part of a discussion over officials’ roles on cross-country day at the FEI eventing risk management seminar (23 January).

The forum was taken through how the course-designer, technical delegate and ground jury work together before, during and at the end of cross-country day, as well as how they could be “braver” about making proactive decisions in future.

This season will also be the first year the course-designer has a more involved role on cross-country day in terms of working with the technical delegate and ground jury to deal with judging queries, sanctions and reviewing the course and/or specific fences in case of repetitive falls or weather-related trouble.

“The most important thing to remember is that we are responsible for the best interests of the horse, then we are also responsible for the best interest of the athlete – and we are responsible for the actions of all of us together as a team,” said Alec Lochore, who has been technical delegate at the world’s top events and senior championships.

“As cliche as that might sometimes sound, it’s absolutely true. Together we are all responsible for the best interest of the sport.”

He encouraged officials to “be braver” in taking action and applying sanctions, but added that it is “absolutely important” officials “don’t only have a stick” but that they also “champion and congratulate good equine welfare, riding and horsemanship in whatever form we see it”.

“Good horsemanship is not just the double clear inside the time on cross-country day. Good horsemanship is the guy or the girl at the second-last fence who pulled their horse up because it was tired,” he explained.

“It’s really important that as much as we talk of riders’ responsibility, it is our responsibility also to congratulate the riders who have done a good job on the cross-country. There are lots of reasons and times where it is absolutely appropriate to say to a rider: ‘Well done.’ Maybe at the horse inspection the next day, or maybe you go to the stables after the cross-country, because we must show and respect good horsemanship in whatever form it takes.”

The seminar discussed the importance of good communication at all times, including through any language barriers, and being “brave” enough to take tough decisions such as removing a fence or a loop of the course if necessary.

“Don’t be afraid to make a decision,” said Mr Lochore.

“It is important to understand what the processes are [and communicate with the other officials] as we don’t want to be pulling horses up that don’t need to be pulled up but, equally, better a jump too early than a jump too late.”

Officials were also urged to ensure cameras, including fence judges’ capturing official footage in case of penalty or flag rule reviews, are in the best places to provide clear footage for that fence.

FEI eventing committee chairman David O’Connor stressed the importance of being able to get hold of that footage in a timely manner during competition, while the idea of putting a penalty on the scoreboard, alongside a notice that it is “under review”, was also discussed.

US rider and FEI risk management steering group member Jon Holling spoke in the following session on how officials can help riders to make good decisions.

“As competitors and as coaches, we want the officials to be brave,” he said. “We want them to be the ones helping us on the day as the reality is, when you’re on the competition field, you try to make the right decisions, you try to ride well but sometimes the competitive juices get going and you don’t always make the right decisions.

“I know I’ve been spoken to at the end of cross-country [when I thought what had happened] was fine, then you calm down and an hour or two later and you reflect on it.”

He added it is “important the officials are brave”, explaining that, where appropriate, having a word with a rider, or even giving a yellow card, does not necessarily affect the final result

“Just because you reprimand a competitor doesn’t always mean that’s done for the rider, so use all the tools at your disposal for that,” he said.

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H&H reports on what experts believe are key factors in improving eventing safety for both horse and rider, as discussed at the 2021 FEI risk management seminar

SELF-REFLECTION and and facing up to uncomfortable truths are vital for riders if eventing safety is to progress.

The call for riders to take responsibility for their own safety – and discussion over how their coaches and peers can help them do so – was made by Chris Bartle, William Fox-Pitt and Jon Holling during the FEI eventing risk management seminar (23 January).

British eventing high performance coach Mr Bartle stressed this is “not about apportioning blame”, but instead analysing whether certain mistakes are training issues, and if those came about as a result of conscious or unconscious decision-making.

“MERs [minimum eligibility requirements] are a technical way of the FEI dealing with making sure riders and horses are ready to move to the next stage, so they are only the very base level,” he said.

“I think the important thing in coaching, and developing people’s understanding of the sport, is to have an idea that MERs are there in the background, that they are important and necessary to achieve to move to the next level. But more importantly, that the rider feels competent and confident at that level, and that the coach, in helping them make that decision, can be absolutely honest and direct as possible, even if sometimes there is a risk that you’re going to upset somebody if you say they are not ready.”

Mr Bartle also recommended that the FEI place a member of the ground jury in the riders’ tent, where riders and connections gather to watch live feeds at major events, as this is where vocal peer feedback happens in real time.

Speaking about eventing in general, William said the sport as a whole “has to be braver” at addressing cross-country riding incidents when they happen, and a word between riders can sometimes be a good way of doing this.

“MERs are a new thing, but ultimately we as the riders are responsible for ourselves,” he said.

“We mustn’t hide behind officials or MERs or any excuses, we are responsible. Are we ready? Are we riding well enough? I think a lot of riders will say: ‘Well no one said anything, my owners are supporting me, I’m qualified, so I’m going to go.’ That is where the sport has really moved on now. A qualification is not a right to continue. We need to be very honest with ourselves.”

He added that there is a responsibility from the sport, officials and trainers to support riders in that self-reflection, “to be braver” in pulling up riders and in having conversations with them where necessary.

“We all need to think, be aware and be responsible,” he added.

New tech

NEW technology that quantifies how hard a horse is working was presented by showjumper David Deillon.

David founded Alogo Analysis, a Swiss company specialising in equestrian analytics to evaluate performance and health, as he wanted to visualise and measure feelings he got as a rider. If a horse was jumping flat or over-jumping, for example, what might that mean.

The Alogo sensor fits on the girth and analyses the full movement of the horse.

Staffan Lidbeck, FEI vet, coach and risk management steering group member, said Alogo hopes to run a study at CCI5*s. There are hopes this could show links between performance and movement, such as degree of fatigue and jumping or stride patterns, plus whether risk factors in course-design predispose to fatigue.

Steering group member David Vos, an expert on frangible devices, said it is “super exciting”.

“We will have real power output data to corroborate what everyone knows from experience, and answer a lot of questions,” he said, adding that this may also feed into questions surrounding longevity of event horses.

“For example, is this course really difficult with these going conditions today and should we try to look at course times and optimum times? It opens a whole world of data-driven decision-making and evaluation on horse welfare and performance.”

“This sensor gives you almost a stride-to-stride perspective on your riding style, on your efficiency and how hard you are making your horse work,” he added.

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The 2021 FEI online eventing risk management seminar covered a wide variety of topics including use of statistics to improve safety. H&H finds out more

EVENTING is closer than ever to boiling down risk to quantifiable numbers, to help riders understand the likelihood of jumping clear and shoulder the responsibility of their choices.

Equestrian data analysts EquiRatings presented the horse form index (HFI) at the 2021 FEI online eventing risk management seminar (23 January).

The HFI is a move away from isolated good results and looks at the overall quality of a horse’s performance, in an enhanced way to the EquiRatings quality index.

“We want to be able to say ‘what is the overall quality of this horse’s performance looking like?’” said founder and director Sam Watson, adding that the aim is for this to be a tool to give clear information about how a horse is performing, to help people make better decisions.

“The MERs [minimum eligibility requirements] and qualifications are sometimes misinterpreted by people as thinking ‘oh, well now I’m ready to move up”. As a governing body we are trying to say ‘look, we have a minimum level but we want you guys to be making the decision as to whether you need to do twice or three times as many [events] — you have to make that decision yourselves’.

“That will hopefully put more responsibility on the riders, to manage that quality of performance, that’s been our objective really since we started and this is a refined version that we think is going to be much more user-friendly going forward.”

Sam added that the index will use rolling results data, so one bad day will not matter as it is about the balance.

“It’s important this goes alongside a qualification system as until a horse is performing poorly more than it is performing well, this number doesn’t really come into play for recommending whether they should be at a level or not,” he said. “The qualification system needs to be there so we now know you have enough experience and alongside that we have a number that says ‘are you comfortable?’ did it take you 10 attempts to get MERs or just two?”

The aim is to present the information in a way that allows people to see how they measure against the statistics. For example, if their results with a horse mean they are more likely to jump clear or have a fall at a certain level of event, and where they sit on that scale.

Fellow EquiRatings founder and director Diarmuid Byrne said: “Every year and every country we’ve been to, one of the critical areas we’ve talked about is rider and owner responsibility as it’s such a critical part of risk management.

“Because it is so intangible it’s difficult to progress, to know what it means, so how do we create something that gives the responsibility to all the riders and some of the owners?

“You’re not trying to make detailed predictions, we’re absolutely not going to be able to produce a list of horses at a competition and say ‘these people will fall’, it doesn’t work like that.

“What we can do is say ‘there have been other riders who have had similar outcomes to you, and this is how they’ve performed at this level of the sport’. That is what we hope will make rider responsibility real. So if they do consider making that step up perhaps without the experience, that’s the first time we can really say: ‘that’s on you’.”

The presentation indicated there is scope for the HFI to be incorporated into the FEI rules from 2023, which may restrict certain horses with MERs but who, statistics show, are at higher risk of falls, from competing at certain events.

FEI risk management steering group chairman Geoff Sinclair stressed that no decisions have been made on that yet.

EquiRatings also looked into the validity period of MERs for horses and found there is little difference between the risk statistics of those who have had an FEI MER within 90 days and 18 months. But after that, the risk increases.

“If we’ve not seen a horse at an FEI competition, or they’ve not got an MER in FEI competition in the last 18 months and they are going to four- or five-star competitions, that’s when we start to see a significant jump [into higher fall rates],” said Sam.

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A $500,000 (£364,937) fundraising target aiming to make eventing safer in the United States has been met in less than a year.

In March 2020 United States Equestrian (USEF) national safety officer and eventer Jonathan Holling called on the eventing community to raise the sum, with the aim of increasing the number of frangible fences on course. He added that in three years, there will be “no excuse” for any fence on course than can be frangible, not to be made frangible in “some way”.

The United States Eventing Association (USEA), USEA Foundation and a group of “passionate” stakeholders have raised the money thanks to donations from USEA members and eventing enthusiasts around the country. The first part of the challenge has been achieved and the country is well on the way to the second part and with continued fundraising, it can be achieved.

“This money has gone directly to 116 different USEA-recognised events with 151 frangible tables, 53 oxers, and 34 gate/wall fences already out on course – all built with grants distributed by the USEA Foundation,” said a USEA spokesman. “The first part of the challenge has been achieved and the country is well on the way to the second part and with continued fundraising, it can be achieved.”

Mr Holling said he was “so proud” to have been a “small part” of the fundraising effort.

“The resources, effort, and money that have been put forward to increase the safety of jumps on cross-country courses has been unbelievable. When I put this challenge out there, I had no idea how it would be received,” he said.

“The fact that during this year of turmoil, heartache, and uncertainty we have been able to raise these funds should give us all restored faith in each other. Great job everyone and thanks from the bottom of my heart for helping us make it #frangiblenow.”

The fundraising was given a boost in April when it was announced the Manton Foundation, a charitable fund that donates to projects in education, arts and culture and community preservation, would offer a matching grant for every dollar raised up to $250,000 (£182,468). At the end of last year $12,000 (£8758) was needed to meet the $500,000 target, so USEF stepped in to donate the remainder.

“The team at the USEA has done a tremendous job building up their frangible technology fund over the past year. They have created new educational resources, promoted safety, and provided needed grants to ensure organisers across the country have more readily available access to frangible pin technology on their cross-country courses,” said USEF president Tom O’Mara.

“USEF is pleased to contribute the final amount necessary to help them cross the finish line and complete this fundraising campaign.”

The USEA Foundation will continue to accept donations and distribute grants to events to build frangible jumps on all USEA-recognised courses.

“The foundation is very proud to have played a role in reaching the goal of $500,000 for the frangible technology fund,” said USEA Foundation chair Dian Pitts

“Enhanced safety in our sport is a primary focus of the USEA and the USEA Foundation. We are grateful to the Manton Foundation for their matching grant and to all of the members and supporters who have generously contributed to the fund.”

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Ms Pitts added that a “special” thank you went to the members of a GoFundMe page, set up by Mr Holling, who launched the fundraiser effort last March and who asked the USEA Foundation to partner in it.

“Their continued involvement and guidance has helped develop and administer the grant program. Thank you also to USEF for believing in the program and putting the fundraising over the top,” she said.

“We are very proud to see the many frangible tables on courses throughout the country that have been built with grants from the fund.”

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade to access our H&H Plus online service which brings you breaking news as it happens as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

The United States Eventing Association (USEA) is considering adopting a new rule aimed at reducing risk, which is similar to one already in place in British Eventing competitions.

During the USEA virtual annual meeting and convention this week (8-11 December) changes to the rulebook were discussed including the rule on faults in the showjumping phase.

It has been proposed that anyone who knocks down five rails in showjumping must retire from the competition. This will apply in both short and long format competitions.

Malcolm Hook, chair of the United States Equestrian Federation’s (USEF) eventing rules working group and member of the USEA competitions, calendar and rules committee, said the proposal stemmed from discussions last year with the USEA cross-country safety sub-committee.

“We talked about it and checked with EquiRatings to see if there is any statistical evidence that knocking down rails in showjumping is indicative of the possibility of an increased likelihood of falls in cross-country and it turns out that yes, there is a relationship,” he said.

A USEA spokesman said the rule is being presented to reduce risk in eventing.

“The reasoning has been that in reviewing the incidents of poor riding at competitions the USEA cross-country safety subcommittee views it as important to highlight that poor showjumping performance should result in retirement,” he said.

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“This should be equally applied regardless of whether showjumping or cross-country occurs first in the schedule of competition. British Eventing (BE) instituted this rule for similar reasons and it would be an additional measure to lessen risk in the sport.”

The BE rule states that compulsory retirement will occur for those who incur 24 penalties (via knockdowns or refusals) in showjumping. This is enforced at the end of the round, unless the competitor retires or is eliminated.

USEA rule changes will be discussed by the USEA board of governors in December. They will then be voted on by the USEF board in June 2021, and if approved will come into effect on 1 December 2021.

Horse & Hound magazine, out every Thursday, is packed with all the latest news and reports, as well as interviews, specials, nostalgia, vet and training advice. Find how you can enjoy the magazine delivered to your door every week, plus options to upgrade to access our H&H Plus online service which brings you breaking news as it happens as well as other benefits.

Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now

Despite governance issues resulting in Equestrian Australia being placed in voluntary adminstration, the national federation has been making progress implementing recommendations made by the coroner after the death of two riders in cross-country accidents. H&H finds out more...

Safety remains Equestrian Australia’s (EA) top priority, despite uncertainty because the federation is in administration, as it pushes forward to implement a coroner’s recommendations after the deaths of two event riders.

On 9 June, EA announced it had gone into voluntary administration, stating, “clearly, the current model does not work”. This followed multiple changes in management including the fourth chair resigning in 16 months.

A letter of 3 June from the Australian Sports Committee (ASC) stated it had invested in the improvement of safety standards but EA had not been “forthcoming with reporting transparently” on the progress of this, as required under its sport investment agreement. Owing to “board turmoil” at EA, the ASC withdrew funding of $450,000 (£248,000) for 2020.

Following the inquests into the deaths of Caitlyn Fischer and Olivia Inglis in cross-country falls at Australian events in 2016, a 31-part recommendation report was released by deputy state coroner Derek Lee for safety improvements to be made by EA (news, 10 October 2019). This included implementing a rider representative system, a full-time national safety manager and a safety sub-committee and medical working group. It also added requirements to medical coverage rules.

EA reported on 24 June it had completed 25 of the 31 safety recommendations between January and June. These have been implemented in the key areas: safety officers, event organisation, serious incident management and review processes, athlete representatives and personal protection equipment.

EA national safety manager Meredith Chapman said “safety has been and remains our number one priority”, adding that safety is one reason change in the structure, operations and governance of EA is imminent.

“I have been very fortunate in the past six months to have met, worked and talked with many devoted and passionate people within this sport,” she said, in a letter to members.

“This experience to date has been inspiring and I believe my passion for safety is shared by many. Pro-active change is needed now to effectively meet the needs of our members, coaches, officials, funding bodies and everyone who embraces our sport.”

Six of the recommendations on course design, data collection, medical coverage and fence judging are “close to implementation”, while two require further work on logistics and process.

“The EA national safety manager has begun a review of the effectiveness of the implemented measures to identify possible areas for improvement. This review will also finalise the implementation of the six outstanding recommendations,” an EA spokesman told H&H.

“This review has been delayed by Covid-19 and the suspension of equestrian sport in Australia. However, it is anticipated that once the voluntary administration process has been completed and sport resumes in all states of Australia, a final report will be completed in 2020.”

The spokesman added the health and safety of members is “paramount” and EA is committed to making the sport as safe as possible.

The adminstration process

On 19 June, EA administrators held the first meeting of creditors. In a report following this, a second meeting was scheduled for 14 July, during which creditors may vote for EA to be wound up, which would result in the loss of recognition of EA with the FEI and the Australian Olympic Committee and the full withdrawal of funding by the ASC for equestrianism – but the administrators stated they do not consider liquidation to be in the best interests of creditors and members of EA.

Other options to the creditors are for EA to execute a deed of company arrangement, which includes working with bodies such as the FEI and ASC to improve governance and operating structure. The other option is for the administration to end.

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The project used a computer-generated forecasting model to gain a physics-based insight into rotational falls enabling the researchers to calculate the scenarios in which a horse would rotate or not. H&H speaks to those involved to find out more and garners reaction from the United States Eventing Association and the FEI to the findings...

New research into rotational falls in eventing has been called a ‘vital step’, as it is hoped findings could pave the way for new frangible device options.

The four-year project, carried out by University of Kentucky PhD student Shannon Wood under mechanical engineering professor Suzanne Smith, and funded by the United States Eventing Association (USEA), aimed to build on previous research on the use of frangibles in cross-country and to provide more information about rotational falls for device designers.

A statistical ensemble model (a computer-generated model similar to those used in weather forecasting) was used to create more than 10,000 scenarios using a variety of factors that could lead to a rotational fall, including different approach speeds and angles, fence types, and horse and rider positions, using measurements taken from more than 400 videos of horse and rider combinations competing or training.

Dr Smith, who has led research on frangibles since 2009, told H&H the aim was to gain a physics-based insight into rotational falls.

“The complexity of when a horse makes contact with a fence in the most dangerous way is such that it is really too difficult to have a ‘one-size fits all’ solution,” she said.

“To this point research hasn’t included the rider, and the rider has a significant contribution on what happens. You never know before it happens exactly where the rider is going to be so using a statistical ensemble looks at all the places they could be.”

Ms Wood told H&H the model allowed them to calculate the scenarios in which a horse would rotate or not.

“Most frangible devices have been created using a dummy or pendulum that simulates one situation, but in eventing there are different types of horses, distances, fence types and terrains. Horses can be jumping up or coming down to a fence, so that variety really affects the way the devices should activate,” she said.

“We created the critical contact situation where the horse was hitting the fence based on measurements from real horse and jumping positions. From those we are able to see whether these would rotate or not by calculating the overall probability of what’s happening at the fence.”

Ms Wood said the research shows there is a need for more different types of frangible devices.

“In FEI competition, course-designers and jump builders have MIM clips, the frangible pin and the reverse pin, but there are so many different possible scenarios,” she said. “The idea is to provide guidelines for designers to create more frangible options tailored to specific situations.

“Eventing is definitely moving in the right direction but it must be fine-tuned and that’s why adding more options for course-designers is so important.”

United States Eventing Association chief executive Rob Burke said the research was a “vital step” in connecting previous studies.

“With these models we can make more educated rules related to cross-country course and fence design. Through engineering and education we can further mitigate risk by implementing the findings into the field and in rider and horse training,” he said.

“We have amazing builders, designers, riders, coaches, and officials, and we aim to provide them with as many tools as possible to reduce risk. This research will help us to that end and it also provides direction and focus for the future. Reducing risk in eventing is, and will be, an ongoing effort, but through research such as this we are hopeful that risk will be continually lessened.”

A spokesman for the FEI, which announced a new frangible standard for January 2021 with regard to specific energies at which rails must activate and changes to testing (news 7 May), said the FEI risk management steering group welcomes Ms Wood’s study.

“Frangible devices are one of the important protective measures developed to reduce horse falls, particularly rotational, consequently, FEI-approved frangible devices have been compulsory on the defined fences where they can be fitted in four- and five-star competitions in 2020 and across all FEI competition levels as of 2021,” he said.

“The goal of the FEI is to encourage inventors to be creative, develop and test using this new standard. The feedback has been very positive, and we look forward to many more new and different concepts in the near future.”

The spokesman added that several manufacturers are working on having current and new devices tested to meet the new standard.

“The FEI looks forward to reviewing this new research from Kentucky and will include it in the ongoing efforts to keep learning and improving safety,” he said.

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Following news of a new standard for frangible devices and a change to the testing process, hopes are high that new inventions to help improve eventing safety could be on the way. H&H finds out more and asks experts for their views...

A new standard has been set for frangible devices following extensive research into eventing safety, with hopes this could pave the way for new inventions.

The research involved six months’ work by the FEI’s eventing frangible device working group; Dave Vos, Geoff Sinclair, Mark Phillips and Jonathan Clissold, plus the Transport Research Laboratory.

This included reviewing slow-motion footage of fences being jumped at multiple events as well as testing.

“The updated standard is more reliable and the testing easier to set up, to encourage new ideas, and will hopefully accelerate new developments for frangible devices,” said the announcement from FEI eventing committee chair David O’Connor and risk management steering group chairman Geoff Sinclair.

“It is important to note that realistic infield assessment to ensure fences don’t break too easily has been strongly debated and agreed with the frangible working group understanding the importance of balancing safety with true cross-country.”

Presentations on the research were given at the FEI eventing risk management seminar in January (news, 13 February), at which the new standard was agreed prior to the public announcement last month.

The main changes to the rules, which will come into play on 1 January 2021, are the addition of new specific energies at which rails must activate, and a change to the way devices are tested.

Instead of using a 120kg pendulum impactor, the new rule states a 40kg kettlebell pendulum is used to “better represent a ‘hanging leg’ impact scenario”. This involves a kettlebell on a rope released at a certain angle, which research has shown is more realistic than other tests in recreating the impact on a fence that can lead to a rotational fall.

“For the pendulum change, research indicated that many somersault falls occur as a result of a forelimb strike,” states the rule. “To more closely match a typical event horse forelimb in energy and momentum, the lower mass kettlebell… was proposed.

“This has the additional advantages that it is low-cost and easy to build. This should help enable the development of prototype fences because fence manufacturers will be able to easily make a kettlebell pendulum at low cost and trial new ideas.”

Course-designer Mike Etherington-Smith, who was involved in the creation of the new standard, told H&H this is good news for the sport.

“We asked a couple of years ago whether it was time for a review; not that there was anything wrong with the previous standard, rather it is best practice,” he said, adding that it was “fantastic” to have engineer Mr Vos on board.

“He events and he gets it — he bridges the gap where science meets eventing.”

Mr Etherington-Smith said while frangible technology, fence build and course design are important, they are only some of the factors involved in cross-country safety.

“We are never going to eliminate all falls, it is a risk sport,” he said.

He added that correct training, which maintains horses’ ability to think for themselves, and combinations ensuring that they are properly prepared for the level and event they are entering, remain vital to eventing safety.

Mr Clissold, British Eventing’s national safety officer, told H&H the new standard is “very positive”.

“The sport carries a risk and you will never take that away completely, the main thing is managing that risk,” he said.

“I think the biggest problem now is with no eventing, we have no chance to test [this new standard] out in the field.

“I’m hoping now we have more time on our hands, someone may come up with another frangible device.”

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Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now