“Look Really Horrific”: Paris Olympics Horse Treatment Has Equestrian Community Boycotting Their Own Nations

History is repeating itself. While equestrian racing has always been a majestic event, one thing still stands out as an eyesore: the treatment of the horses. There has been a sudden rise in people calling out the equestrian industry to permanently ban racing events. First, in 2022, we all saw the major flak that the Kentucky Derby received because of the ongoing abuse issues against the horses present. Then again, in 2023, people gathered all around the Del Mar racetrack to protest against the deaths of multiple horses at the venue.

Ellen Ericksen, one of the activists present at the protest, even spoke about the problems. “Horses are dying at this racetrack, racing and in training,” Ericksen said. And now all of this is happening again at the Paris Olympics. On July 31st, a video of champion Charlotte Dujardin went viral, sending massive shockwaves throughout social media. The “golden girl” of equestrian racing was allegedly banned from the Paris Olympics because she whipped her horse more than 20 times in the video, which is seemingly 4 years old. Even on July 27, Brazilian rider Carlos Parro was issued a warning from Equestrian’s governing body. “The FEI Officials have issued a yellow warning card (to Parro) as the action of the athlete could have caused unnecessary discomfort to the horse,” the FEI noted in their statement.

That ain’t all. Even on Day 1 of the dressage event, a horse was found bleeding during his performance. Following this, the FEI issued a statement stating that athlete Emiliano Portale (ITA) was eliminated because blood being found in the horse’s mouth. Now people on Reddit have gotten together to discuss these ongoing issues in the equestrian world. One of the Redditors was quite mad, as expected. “I can’t even applause my own country, cause the team they chose was ALWAYS KNOWN from riding harsh. Yet people admire them. Total bulls**t,” they wrote. Multiple other people have come out, showing their disgust regarding the entire scene.

The Equestrian Community’s massive surge of outbursts against recent mishaps

One of the users directly went on to call out the FEI. “The FEl refuses to follow and enforce their own rules or add/amend rules that follow very basic equine welfare practices and standards,” they wrote in the thread. While the FEI has taken minor steps like disqualifying players (in the case of Portale), there are yet to be any major changes in the event altogether. Another user went on to criticize the kinds of equipment being used at the event. “It’s not only how they ride but also the equipment they’re allowed to use. The bits or bit combinations of some look really horrific,” they wrote. The Paris Olympics have made a change in this regard. From multiple reports, it was seen that there were cold showers and fans placed to help the horses deal with the July heat. While this does not solve the wide issue regarding equipment, it is still a step in the right direction.

Another user talked about the entire “being the boss” culture. “There’s a whole culture of being rough on horses, being “the boss”. It’s how I was trained (riding for 17 years, eventing). I was once told to “rearrange [my mare’s] teeth” when she kept refusing an XC jump,” they wrote. This reminded us of how Dujardin was found treating her horse with multiple whips to keep it in check. Finally, one user was very straightforward regarding the entire thing. “We can’t trust that people are treating their horses well, and rules are not followed. I don’t even watch the horse events anymore,” they wrote. The FEI, or equestrian industry, indeed has to go through a total change to make sure that the horses are treated well under their care. For now, we can only raise our voices and wait for proper action.