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“To grow and promote our sport, we should all work together towards common goals,” FEI Jumping Director Todd Hinde tells World of Showjumping. “I do believe that the riders have acknowledged the challenges our sport is facing, as well as how crucial it is that they represent our sport as good ambassadors in terms of horse welfare and horsemanship. I believe ensuring our social licence to operate is on everyone’s mind, and that the riders share our goal of guaranteeing that we have best practises in place that are met. The riders are coming on this journey with us to ensure the longevity of our sport, which has to be a shared vision for all.”

“There's no question that we have different needs in the various FEI disciplines,” Hinde points out. “However, I think we all need to work together to ensure that all our athletes and officials across disciplines are aligned. If we are all aligned in our mindset, we are stronger together.”

Hinde was appointed as FEI Jumping Director in July 2023, after the sad passing of Marco Fusté – who held the position from 2020 until his sudden death in January 2023. “Management and having a vision for the sport have always been big passions of mine,” the 37-year-old Australian, who started in his job in September 2023, explains.

Management and having a vision for the sport have always been big passions of mine

“Growing up in Australia, I competed myself. I also lived in Europe for a few years, before heading back to Australia,” Hinde tells about his background. “When I got back from Europe, I looked at my career path and reconsidered where I wanted to go in life. That's when I stepped into the chef d’equipe role for Australia, and I did my first FEI championship with the team at the FEI World Equestrian Games in Tryon in 2018.”

Hinde worked in the Australian Equestrian Federation as high-performance jumping manager between 2019 and 2023, right up until moving on to the FEI. “I was always very interested in management, so I made the decision early on to stop riding and focus more on that. I took advice from my good friend Steven Lamb, who told me I needed to learn a bit more of the industry first. When the time was right, I applied to become chef d’equipe.”

However, joining the FEI was not on Hinde’s horizon. In his role as FEI Jumping Director, he has followed in the footsteps of Marco Fusté and John Roche. Fusté succeeded Roche at the beginning of 2021, as the well-known Irishman had retired a year prior after having worked at the FEI since 1987.

I want to be here to ensure the longevity and growth of our sport

“Coming in after those two greats, as I call them, left me with very big shoes to fill,” Hinde says when asked how he felt taking on the job as FEI Jumping Director. “I worked a lot with John when I first started as chef d’equipe. Then in more recent years, I worked quite closely with Marco. When the opportunity of applying for this role was presented to me, it sort of opened my eyes; I had never thought about this step in my career. I had a few people support and encourage me, and I took the step to apply – and haven't looked back since.”

A year in, Hinde’s enthusiasm has not faded. “The passion is definitely still there,” he says. “I love our sport, and when I talk about our sport, I mean not just jumping, I love equestrian. I'm a very passionate equestrian, and jumping is my chosen discipline. I want to be here to ensure the longevity and growth of our sport. I love seeing new, younger and emerging riders come through. We've certainly seen many younger Longines League of Nations teams and FEI Nations Cup teams over the last couple of years. Chefs d’equipe keep giving younger riders the opportunity to step up and you see them then go on and grow. I think it's pretty amazing to see that. We're so lucky that we are a sport where athletes compete on equal terms when it comes to factors such as age and gender.”

One of the biggest ambitions for Hinde when he first took on the role within the FEI was to ensure the communication amongst all stakeholders was working. “I want to make sure that the relationships between our stakeholders – our riders, grooms, owners, officials and organisers – fortifies and that we become a united group. I believe we are all in the sport for the same reason: We are all driven by passion. For me, improving communication was my first task and I feel like I am achieving that. I do feel like the relationship with our stakeholders has grown in the right direction. I want to continue to work with our stakeholders and grow our sport for the better.”

I'm never closing my door to thoughts and questions

However, being the messenger between the FEI and its various stakeholders has left Hinde in hot water at times. “It's a position where I sometimes think we need to take all the emotions out,” he explains about his approach to interacting with different groups of stakeholders. “Our riders are the stakeholders who I would say are the most passionate about our sport. They are our athletes and when they have a thought, a new idea, or there is something that's not working for them, they express themselves strongly. Whether that is maybe leaving it too late and boiled to a head, that's a question that is always on the table. However, I'm never closing my door to thoughts and questions. Personally, I don't take offence to it because I know they're doing it from passion and from a good place in their heart. I actually kind of love that because it shows how strongly they feel about our sport. Once the heat of the moment is gone, everyone's level of emotions drops and that’s when you can start to have true discussions and work out the best solution moving forward.”

During the FEI Sports Forum 2025, Hinde presented his thoughts on the FEI Jumping Rules, which are going through a full revision this year. “One of the biggest things that I identified when I first started, was the structure of our rule book,” he explains. “It's such a historical rule book and over the years, it has been added to continuously. We have areas where if you want to find an answer, you might have to go through several articles to find them. The biggest task is streamlining our rule book and making it an easier, simpler book to understand.”

6.5.2025 No reproduction of any of the content in this article will be accepted without a written permission, all rights reserved © World of Showjumping.com. If copyright violations occur, a penalty fee will apply.