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Spectator's Guide to Equestrian-Dressage

The Basics

Riders communicate with and control their horse with the aid of their hands, legs and seat. In dressage, a horse on the bit with impulsion (see below), or horse attentive and responsive to all the aids is said to be "on the aid." You may notice riders using either a long or loose rein. With a long, or stretched, rein, the rider allows the horse to reach out and down with his head but maintains contact with his mouth; a loose rein has no contact between the rider’s hands and the horse’s mouth. Reins, leaning and leg pressure all enable the pair to execute the following moves expertly.

A horse in sych with its rider moves to a consistent rhythm that even the uneducated equestrian spectator will pick up. This rhythm, maintained in all of a horse’s paces, is an integral part of "cadence," the result of the proper harmony that a horse shows when it moves with well marked regularity, impulsion (see below) and balance. Cadence must be maintained in all the different exercises and in the variations of each pace. Watch how riders maintain the cadence of a pace right up to the moment when the pace is changed, called a transition, or the horse halts. During a transition, judges are watching for the change in pace and speed to be clearly shown at the prescribed marker; though they must be done quickly, they should always be smooth and never abrupt.

The 60m x 20m flat and level dressage arena is marked with letters at specific measured intervals indicating where movements are to occur. Judges are placed at each letter, where they determine a competitor’s collective marks by gauging the following:

  1. Paces (Gaits): freedom (taking long, relaxed strides without any sign of stiffness or constraint) and regularity should be exhibited in the following paces: Collected: Highly animated pace with shorter strides and higher elevation marked by the lightness of the forehand and engagement of hindquarters. Working: Horse not ready for collected movements, shows properly balanced and forward with even elastic steps and good hock action. Medium: Horse goes forward with free and moderately extended steps and an obvious impulsion from the hindquarters. Strides lengthened but not fully extended. Extended: Horse covers as much ground as possible. Maintaining the same cadence, he lengthens his steps to the utmost as a result of great impulsion from the hindquarters.
  2. Impulsion: Desire to move forward, elasticity of the steps, suppleness of the back and engagement of the hindquarters.
  3. Submission: Attention and confidence; harmony, lightness and ease of the movements; acceptance of the bridle and lightness of the forehand.
  4. Rider’s Position: Correctness and effect of the aids.

    Dressage Moves

    Spectators will notice pairs making the following moves throughout the competition: While these moves, as is traditional, have stood the test of time and are the same moves you might see at any dressage competition, the competition format has changed this year. Now, all riders compete in the Grand Prix test, after which team medals are awarded. Qualified individuals (24) then progress to the Grand Prix Special. Finally, the top 12 riders are allowed personal expression in the arena in the deciding round, the Freestyle.

    Freestyle Moves

    The Freestyle is new to the Olympic Programme. Also called the "Kur," the freestyle is a competition of artistic equitation including all the school paces but absolutely free in the form and manner of the presentation performed within a fixed time, much like in ice skating or gymnastics. The program a rider selects should clearly show the unity between horse and rider as well as harmony in all the movements and transitions. Unlike earlier rounds, technical and artistic scores are both awarded in the freestyle; in the case of a tie, artistic impression becomes the determining factor.

    Watch for horse and rider to try these moves in the freestyle:

    Competition Format

    The Grand Prix test is the first one scheduled in the Games, and the top three results of each country determine the team placings. In individual competition, the Grand Prix, Grand Prix Special and Freestyle each count for a percentage of the final score.

    Only the top 24 best rider/horse combinations progress from the Grand Prix test to the Special, which is a more condensed and intense test calling for all the difficult movements in rapid succession. Surprisingly, this test flows better for most horses, and often the scores are higher than in the Grand Prix.

    The results of these two compulsory tests determine which 12 horse/rider combinations go on to the musical freestyle. Dressage is making history at the Atlanta Olympic Games by introducing the freestyle to Olympic competition. In the freestyle, many of the movements from the previous tests are required, but the rider is allowed to show them in any order and at any place in the arena, and he or she can repeat and emphasize a horse’s strong points by clever use of choreography. The rider is also free to choose music which complements the gaits and personality of the mount. The freestyle is already gaining tremendous popularity among spectators involved in the sport, and the hope is that the Olympic freestyle performances will create even more interest in dressage and gain new devotees for the sport.

    Courses

    A Walk through the Grand Prix
    In the Grand Prix test, the horses perform a total of 38 separate movements, each of which is judged by five different judges and given a score ranging from 1 to 10. The judges are placed at different, lettered stations around the arena and they do not confer with each other during the ride. At the end of each ride, the score sheets are collected and the total points added up to determine the placing. The rules set by the FEI, including the judges’ criteria, govern all international equestrian events. *Terms defined in the Dressage Spectator’s Guide.

    Herman Duckek Prepares Dressage Arena

    It all started one day in 1974, when Herman Duckek was asked by a member of the FEI Bureau, Mr. Knud Larsen, to be in charge of preparing the arenas for the 1974 World Championships in Copenhagen. Educated in agriculture, as riding master and -- at that time -- chief of the largest riding club in Denmark, Duckek had a feel for good arenas.

    The World Championships in 1974 in dressage took place in the park of the castle Christiansborg, now the site of the Danish government. The arena had been used for 300 years to train horses from the royal stable. Though it had been used for centuries, it was still perfect from regular maintenance. Herman learned the secret to maintaining such a perfect course all by digging a hole.

    It was in Copenhagen that Duckek was asked to build the 21 arenas used in the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal. Most of them are still in use today. Preparing for the Games taught Duckek the importance of knowing each detail of an installation.

    Since then, Duckek has created the dressage and jumping arenas for the World Cup finals (except three) and the dressage arenas for the six last World Championships (except Den Haage) and European Championships. He has supervised major riding installations in four continents, as well as the riding grounds at Madison Square Garden, Meadowlands, Royal Winter Fair Toronto, Gothenburg, Stuttgart, Berlin, Dortmund and many others. And, of course, has been involved in riding arenas in both the Seoul and Barcelona Olympic Games.

    This is an official publication of The Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games Sports Publications Department. Written by Jennifer Knight. Special thanks to Anne Gribbons.


    Olympic Factoid
    More tickets were sold to the competitions of the 1996 Games than to any other Olympic Games or sports event in history. The 8.6 million ticket sales figures topped sales to the Los Angeles and Barcelona Games combined.