Will Paris 2024 be an Olympic Games-changer for horse welfare?

The question of whether horses belong in the Olympic Games is not a new one, what is more recent, however, is the shift in public attitudes towards how animals are treated. This raises questions about whether the welfare of horses (or any animal) can be protected when athletes are pursuing Olympic glory.  This issue came to a head during the Tokyo 2021 Games when second-to-second coverage meant we also got to see some pretty-dreadful moments. Reaction from the public and the media to the images and news being streamed from Tokyo poured even more fuel on the arguments that horses don’t belong in professional sports.

It turns out that the French National Assembly (the French Parliament) was paying close attention and probably weighing the pros and cons of having horses at their Olympic Games in Paris 2024. The French government commissioned a report which was published in May last year and which explained the welfare incidents of Tokyo as the reason why “the equestrian events at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games must be a model in terms of equine welfare.”

The French report recommends incentivising good welfare. They say, and I quote: “An equine welfare scoring system could be in place during training and competitions, over the entire duration and presence of the horse in the Olympic precinct… A score would be awarded at the end of each event, with a brief explanation of the bonuses and penalties obtained by each horse. The detail of the mark would be accessible to everyone on the internet. This would allow teams to pay more attention to equine well-being, to raise awareness among amateur and professional riders at a lower level and finally, to offer the general public a positive message about this sport.”

Now, this does have the potential to be a Games changer for sport horse welfare! But it’s easier said than done. Even if it was to be adopted, which we won’t know until closer to the time, considering where we are at, it will be very difficult to implement.

I presented my analysis of the current situation, and how we got here at the RSPCA Australia Animal Welfare Seminar in February, and you can watch it here.

With Covid still rampant around the world, the grandstands at Tokyo were eerily empty. But thanks to internet streaming services, all sports were, for the very first-time, broadcast in their entirety and around the world. There was spectacular riding and horse-power on display, there always is at that level of competition, but the second-to-second coverage meant we also got to see some pretty-dreadful moments.

Just before Tokyo, the FEI had implemented changes to the teams format – specifically to persuade the International Olympic Committee that equestrian sports are universal and inclusive. Due to the time constraints, there can only be so many horses at the Games, so the FEI reduced all teams from the traditional 4 to 3 riders – to allow more nations to get in. It sounded like a great idea at the time…

But it meant allowing less-experienced nations, and therefore, less prepared horses and riders to compete. And the results, which were broadcast all around the world were ugly. 15 such horse-rider combinations from these less-experienced nations accumulated 166 penalties between them. Three were withdrawn and one eliminated.

The decision also put team members under additional pressure to complete their rounds. Previously, a team of four could drop their worst score. Now all three team members had to complete their rounds for their country.

And that would have been on everyone’s mind, because nobody, not his rider nor the officials, thought to stop the Irish horse Kilkenny from finishing a full show jumping round despite bleeding profusely from the nostrils. Any racetrack veterinarian would first assume a pulmonary hemorrhaege by the colour of the blood and the amount of bleeding, from both nostrils. And yet, nobody gave the horse the benefit of the doubt. There was actually no provision in the FEI rules to stop the horse mid-round, because he was not bleeding from the mouth or around the spurs area.

And there was more… In the eventing competition, the Swiss horse Jet Set – was euthanased as a result of an injury during the cross-country phase.

And then there was Saint Boy, in the Pentathlon… Who was not partaking in the Olympic spirit and will go down in history for providing a real-life example of an equestrian sport losing its social licence to operate – in a moment.

It turns out that the French National Assembly (the French Parliament) was paying close attention and probably weighing the pros and cons of having horses at their Olympic Games in Paris 2024. The French government commissioned a report which was published in May last year and which explained the welfare incidents of Tokyo as the reason why “the equestrian events at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games must be a model in terms of equine welfare.”

The French report recommends incentivising good welfare. They say, and I quote: “An equine welfare scoring system could be in place during training and competitions, over the entire duration and presence of the horse in the Olympic precinct… A score would be awarded at the end of each event, with a brief explanation of the bonuses and penalties obtained by each horse. The detail of the mark would be accessible to everyone on the internet. This would allow teams to pay more attention to equine well-being, to raise awareness among amateur and professional riders at a lower level and finally, to offer the general public a positive message about this sport.”

Now, this does have the potential to be a Games changer for sport horse welfare! But it’s easier said than done. Even if it was to be adopted, which we won’t know until closer to the time, considering where we are at, it will be very difficult to implement.

Watch the presentation to find out why.