Equestrian at the Summer Olympics

Equestrianism made its Summer Olympics debut at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. It disappeared until 1912, but has appeared at every Summer Olympic Games since. The current Olympic equestrian disciplines are Dressage, Eventing, and Jumping. In each discipline, both individual and team medals are awarded.

Equestrian disciplines and the equestrian component of Modern Pentathlon are also the only Olympic events that involve animals. The horse is considered as much an athlete as the rider.

The International Governing Body for equestrian sports is the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI), and it is subject to rules made by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in regards to Olympic Competition. The 1924 Olympics were the first at which equestrian competitions were held under the authority of the FEI.

1900 Paris Games
Equestrian events were first held at the 1900 Paris Olympic Games, although it did not include any of the disciplines seen today. There were 4 different equestrian events.
The polo competition consisted of 4 teams made up of players from Britain, France, Mexico, Spain, and the United States.
Grand Prix Jumping, which was similar to today's show jumping event, for which 45 competitors entered, though only 37 competed.

Return of Equestrian Competition

Equestrian competition was dropped from the 1904 Olympic Games, and owed its return to Count Clarence von Rosen, Master of the Horse to the King of Sweden, for bringing it back The 1906 IOC Congress agreed to his proposal to add dressage, eventing, and show jumping to the program of the upcoming 1908 Olympic Games in London. However, due to problems with the newly-formed International Horse Show Committee, they were not introduced until the 1912 Games in Stockholm. These three disciplines would be held at every Summer Olympic Games through to the present day.

Participation of Civilians
Until the 1952 Summer Olympics, only commissioned military officers were permitted to compete in the Olympic equestrian disciplines, which also had the effect of making Olympic equestrianism a men's-only sport.[3] In 1951, however, Olympic equestrianism was not only opened to civilian riders, but also became one of the very few Olympic sports in which men and women compete with and directly against one another. In team competition, teams may have any blend of male and female competitors, and are not required to have minimum numbers of either gender; countries are free to choose the best riders, irrespective of gender.



Dressage in the Olympic Games

Dressage had changed dramatically since the 1912 Olympics. The dressage horse no longer has to jump, but the test on the flat has become increasingly difficult, emphasizing the piaffe and the passage. Today's horses are specifically bred for dressage and have movement far more extravagant when compared to the horses of the early 20th century.

Only individual medals were awarded at the 1912, 1920, and 1924 Games, with team medals awarded at all Olympics following that point.

Show jumping in the Olympic Games
In 1900, Show jumping allowed both military and non-military riders (and their mounts) to compete, excluding military school horses. Today, it is open to both sexes on any horse.
Courses have also changed considerably. Early fences were built more naturally, rather than the brightly colored poles that are today's standard. Fences were smaller, and courses were not as technical.