The FEI has today announced that it has opened disciplinary proceedings against USA's Andrew Kocher following allegations that he has used electric spurs on a number of FEI registered and national horses in international and national events, and during training.

A statement from the FEI reads as follows: 

"The disciplinary proceedings against Andrew Kocher are in accordance with Article 30 of the Internal Regulations of the FEI Tribunal for multiple alleged breaches of the FEI General Regulations, including Article 142, which prohibits horse abuse.

The Athlete has been provisionally suspended, effective immediately from the date of notification (28 October 2020), meaning that he is ineligible to participate in any FEI Events. The provisional suspension is mirrored by the Athlete’s National Federation, so he is also ineligible to participate in any national events.

The FEI Legal Department had previously notified Andrew Kocher on 29 June 2020 that an investigation had been opened following allegations of him using electric spurs reported to the independent Equestrian Community Integrity Unit (ECIU).

Information on this case is available here.

In order to ensure the integrity of the ongoing legal proceedings, the FEI will not provide further comment on this case at this time."