Text © World of Showjumping

The International Jumping Riders Club’s (IJRC) General Assembly 2023 took place in Geneva, Switzerland, on Friday morning. At the centre of discussions was the FEI Tack App, alongside topics such as the formula for the Longines Ranking, the elimination rule in the FEI Jumping Rules art. 241.4, the returning issue of entry fees and mandatory fees, while some riders used the opportunity on giving FEI feedback on their flagship events – such as this year’s European Championship and the World Cup Final. 

With horse welfare being at the core of many of the discussions, Ludger Beerbaum voiced an opinion that seemed to sum up the riders’ concerns regarding many of the FEI’s initiatives, regulations and rule changes. “What really matters, is not right. I think we have an issue there; a strong issue,” he said. 

IJRC Director Eleonora Ottaviani and IJRC President Kevin Staut were present to lead the discussions, as were IJRC board members Henrik von Eckermann, Ludger Beerbaum, Max Kühner and Francois Mathy Jr. Representing the FEI, newly appointed FEI Jumping Director Todd Hinde was present alongside Paule Gerritsen and Gaspard Dufour, while Stephan Ellenbruch – Chair of the FEI Jumping Committee – was available online from Saudi Arabia. 

On the agenda was the election of a new president for the Club, as well as two new board members. Francois Mathy Jr. was elected as the new IJRC President – replacing Kevin Staut – while Michael Duffy and Richard Vogel be taking over as board members for Henrik von Eckermann and Max Kühner – joining FEI Athlete Representative Rodrigo Pessoa, Ludger Beerbaum, Emilio Bicocchi, Steve Guerdat and Kevin Staut, as well as a US representative to be elected by the North American Riders Club (NARG).

The FEI Tack App, which was launched at the beginning of the year with the intention of bringing clarity as to which tack is allowed to be used at FEI competitions and help the equestrian community navigate the current FEI rules and regulations, has according to the IJRC board members done the opposite – causing chaos and confusion, and it quickly became the main topic of the discussions at the General Assembly. 

While Francois Mathy Jr. questioned the FEI Jumping Director on who makes the decisions as to which tack is included in the app, Max Kühner pointed out how it is difficult enough to implement annual rule changes successfully – which now are accompanied by current monthly updates in the app. Furthermore, the IJRC board members asked: Is the app currently to be considered as a binding rule, and if not, what is its legal status? “In practice it has been used as a rule, because the stewards have made people change their tack – just to be clear. So that was legally incorrect then?” Ludger Beerbaum asked Todd Hinde who had explained how the Tack App will be replacing the guidelines for tack, equipment and dress as of January 1, 2024 – a rule change recently approved at the FEI General Assembly in November. 

We also need to have trust in the rules, and we need to have the possibility to adjust to the rules if you change things

- Max Kühner to the FEI on their Tack App -

“When you come to a championship and in the warm-up they take out your bit because it has just changed two days ago; I think that is not the way a federation should act at all,” Kühner said about the fact that a rider at this year’s European Championship was forced to make adjustments to the bit he was using shortly before he was going to enter the ring – as the set-up was no longer permitted according to the FEI Tack App. “We also need to have trust in the rules, and we need to have the possibility to adjust to the rules if you change things. If you want to go on with the Tack App now, you need to give every rider the chance to realize what is going on there.”

Ludger Beerbaum pointed out how the app is more confusing than clarifying and that it should be suspended until the FEI has better solutions to offer. “I have been confronted two times this year with a silly rule where a leather bit was not allowed anymore – changed, but nothing to find in the rules – and we had to change it ten horses before we went in the ring in the Grand Prix. That’s really strange and it should not happen,” Beerbaum offered as another example on how the Tack App has been implemented this year by FEI officials. “We have to change this; better today. And with all the other rules, we have been told that we can only change them once a year – for the next General Assembly. But with this – which really matters – you made such a chaos. We have to change it, to be very clear.” 

“Until it is not really clear, and for everyone easy to follow, and everyone knows – all the parties, stewards, riders, know what we are talking about, then we can have it as a rule – but until then, it should be suspended. Very clear,” Beerbaum said. 

But with this – which really matters – you made such a chaos

- Ludger Beerbaum to the FEI on their Tack App -

Richard Vogel made a good point of how contradictory the monthly updates are in terms of horse welfare. “I think it is a sport with a lot of history and most major rules we are following have also a history and are quite old, so I actually don’t see a reason why we have to bring in new rules every month,” Vogel said. “The second point is, mainly thinking about horse welfare, if we, let’s say we forbid to put vet-wrap around a bit, and from one day to the other that rule is out and we have to take it off, I think we just should be fair enough to the riders and mainly the horses to give the riders time to adjust to the new rule. I think no one puts vet-wrap around the bit to make it sharper, or to make it less comfortable for the horse, but if from one day to the other you tell the riders you are not allowed to do it anymore, then we get into a situation where we have to put something in the mouth that maybe the horse is not used to have, or is even a bit less comfortable for the horse. Having the horse welfare in mind, I don’t think these new rules and especially the change from one day to the other without giving a heads up, makes it nicer to our horses especially.” 

To improve the app, the FEI has agreed to an ‘Expert Working Group’ that can assist the already existing FEI Equipment Expert Group – “I think that’s definitely going to help us make this app a lot clearer and a lot smoother for everyone to understand,” FEI Jumping Director Hinde said. 

In the discussion about tack, noseband tightness and the new measuring device that the FEI will introduce as of 1 January 2025, Peter Charles asked the FEI to try to simplify their approach. “I’ve been around for a long time, longer than I should have been, and if you want to make things work well, keep it simple. My God, you’re making it complicated,” he said. 

My God, you’re making it complicated

- Peter Charles to the FEI -

“All your Tack App, right, that is absolutely confusing the job. You should have a gelling-in period, you should not have it [Editor’s note: The updates] every month, once a year would be plenty. If you got to do it, do it every three months. Advertise your app a month before so that the riders have a chance to adjust, whether it’s a bit or a bit of tack. You’re making things so complicated for people. Now you are telling me your stewards don’t know what they are doing, you need this bullshit [Editor’s note: The measuring device]. That’s terrible. They know what they are doing; the stewards are doing a good job – it’s working. They are not stupid, their fingers work – they can tell if a noseband is too tight. Now you bring this thing out – what does it look like? I think it looks terrible. And I think the stewards are sensible people, they have got common sense, they are well-able to police the sport and they are doing a good job. You are undermining them by giving them this tool and it gets more complicated: More tools, more issues, more rules. It doesn’t have to be that difficult; none of it. It can be simple, with good horsemanship, common sense, it can all work.” 

Reigning Olympic Champion and current world number two, Great Britain’s Ben Maher also took part in the discussion. Applauded by those attending the assembly, Maher pointed out how the FEI “miserably failed” to provide a quality event at the 2023 FEI Jumping European Championship in Milan, Italy. “I may be the only one in the room that thinks this, but Milan – the European Championships this year – firstly, the sport was incredible, so nothing to say about who was winning or who was losing, but the sport was great that weekend because of the riders, the horses and the owners,” Maher said. “But the venue, supposedly the European Championships are the flagship horse show of the year for the FEI, and in my opinion as a rider, it was the worst show I’ve been to since I can ever remember.”

“Just to list of few points,” Maher continued. “The ground; the surface the first day was not a fair playing field for all 80 riders. Whether it was better at the beginning or the end, that is neither here nor there, but it was not consistent. It did improve over the weekend, but that could have ultimately altered some people’s results by the end of the week. The stabling area; they did the best job that they could with the situation but when you put a horse show in the middle of a building site, you are already starting with many difficulties. I had owners there as everybody else did; they had to sit on the floor, nowhere for them to go. Riders’ stand; no cover, not enough spaces, no space for riders to sit and watch. Again, my wife, owners; not able to come into same area where us as riders were allowed to drink and eat. And just to be honest, disappointing that this venue gets approved and passed and then following along from that, we all leave – I have to double check the timeline with my federation – but it took nearly seven weeks for my prize money to be paid which is also the longest I believe it’s taken to be paid for the last 12 months.”

 The FEI, coming up with all of these rules, all of these things to try to improve the sport, but the one show of the year that they have, to show that they are the best and they do a great job for the horses, the riders and the owners, they miserably failed this year

- Ben Maher on the 2023 FEI Jumping European Championship-

“Obviously, I make some people unhappy in Milan, but I feel the FEI, coming up with all of these rules, all of these things to try to improve the sport, but the one show of the year that they have, to show that they are the best and they do a great job for the horses, the riders and the owners, they miserably failed this year,” Maher said.

“You are not the only one in this room,” Ludger Beerbaum said in support of Maher’s message, while Sweden’s Henrik von Eckermann shared his view as well: “I also want to point out the World Cup Final – which is also one of the flagship events of the FEI – with the most important thing for me being the ground, and it was absolutely a disaster in Omaha,” the Swede said. “I won it, I am happy with that, but it was a disaster. And the venue itself, I was there for the one before, and it was ok, but now, actually, it was… Like you say Ben, it is disappointing that this is the main event, and I love to ride for my country and I love to ride the World Cup Final – but this is the main events of the FEI and it is absolutely not good.”

“I was not in Omaha, but I was in Milan and I can totally agree,” Beerbaum added. “We have to also really be aware; we are talking here about this green thing on the nose to improve horse welfare [Editor’s note: The FEI’s proposed measuring device for noseband tightness] but what really matters, is not right. I think we have an issue there, a strong issue.”

The formula of the Longines Ranking also came up for discussion with Ludger Beerbaum pointing out how it’s time to improve the list, so that it reflects the development of the sport over the last thirty years. 

“If I say improve, I think we have to be aware that I think it is more than just the prize money that should count for the ranking list,” Beerbaum pointed out as he detailed a few factors that should influence the amount of world ranking points a rider can earn in a class. “For example, it is different if you are placed in a Grand Prix with 19 starters or 40 starters, it is different if you are placed in a Grand Prix with 10 of the top 20 on the ranking list or just one.” 

“I think there is a possibility to improve the current list,” he continued when speaking about the point system. “Another aspect is when we came to having the thirty best results per year counting – some riders wanted to shoot me when I put this up – I think we are now at the level where we can talk about 25 or maybe just 20 results. Because that takes a lot of pressure off from the riders, horses, owners.”

I think it is more than just the prize money that should count for the ranking list

- Ludger Beerbaum on the formula for the Longines Ranking -

Max Kühner provided the IJRC General Assembly with some data and facts. “The points, which are given to a Nations Cup, in every Nations Cup there were more points given than in an Olympic final class or a World Equestrian class. For example, in Sopot, there were 2880 points to 31 riders, 32 riders have started. In a WEG final, there were 2740 points I think all together given. This is a little bit of an dis-balance – and in every Nations Cup, there were many more points than at the highest championships, and this is maybe something we have to look at. I think Nations Cups should be interesting, also points-wise, but also some riders don’t have the chance to participate in a Nations Cup because they come from a small country and this has also to be taken in regard. There are so many things, and the sport has changed, we really need to look at it again and put it all together and not fix it in one comparison.”

Peter Charles spoke for the importance of accessibility when it comes to which competitions and shows should be able to distribute the highest amount of points, and how this is everything when it comes to the credibility and integrity of the sport. “Accessibility is everything. When you have accessibility to the horse sports through selection, through good results, through good riding, good horsemanship, you can progress in this sport,” he said. “That is very important to keep, because you need integrity to be there at the end of the day. If you are going to sell the sport, you got to have respect across the board. If you are going to give more points for certain competitions, whatever that may be, it has to reward – as Ludger said – the difficulty of the competition, the process of how the rider gets there, championships being at the very top because it is very difficult to get to a championship, Nations Cups, whether it’s is team competitions or the Global Tour, the balance has to be in favour of the degree of difficulty. And it has to be across the board. If things are a closed shop, and accessibility is hard or denied, you cannot have a balanced view of how that is reflected in the sport for competition purposes or points value, because it is an unlevelled playing field. And the minute you start rewarding an unlevelled playing field, the sport will lose its integrity for sponsors and it will lose its outside audience, because they won’t have respect for the best being there and competing against the best.”

The minute you start rewarding an unlevelled playing field, the sport will lose its integrity for sponsors and it will lose its outside audience

- Peter Charles on the Longines Ranking -

Jessica Kürten – Chair of the FEI Athletes’ Committee – was also of the opinion that time has come to change the ranking formula, and that other factors than the prize money need to come into play when deciding the star-level. “When you are going to shows at various levels, we are going to some venues that are absolutely fantastic and the venue has been put there with a heart for the horse, for the rider, for the sport, and there are some venues that you know are just a money machine for the organizer,” she pointed out with reference to how a venue should be up to speck in order to be able to award full points. “I think it is time to perhaps think about the ranking points; where you give the points; should the points be linked also to other factors, to promote a better level at the top of the sport?”

“The show organisers need to reach certain levels to be a five-star competition, and at a five-star competition it is not only about prize money but reaching certain levels in order to be that level of competition,” Kürten continued to speak about how it should work. “We are all aware of what Ben said, and that is the beginning of the end of our sport; we want to have good venues, we want to have good sport.”

“It is time to think outside of the box; we have to look at ways to promote people to work together in order that the riders and the horses have the best possible possibilities for the sport,” Kürten said. 

Jessica Kürten also encouraged the riders to be much more pro-active in order to avoid strange decisions from being made. “The riders have to get much closer to their federations, because the federations in the end have so much vote on what’s being done,” Kürten pointed out. “The federations have such a big say, there is so much politics going on behind the scenes in the sport that riders actually don’t want to get involved with, but I have seen it now a lot that we need to be very pro-active in order to make sure the message that is getting across to the EEF, to the FEI, to the federations, is our message – and not political messages from people wanting to make careers. And I think this is something which is really important.”

We need to be very pro-active in order to make sure the message that is getting across to the EEF, to the FEI, to the federations, is our message – and not political messages from people wanting to make careers

- Jessica Kürten, Chair of the FEI Athletes' Committee -

“I do believe that the riders need to understand that the politics in the sport are very big and a lot of it is just about peoples’ own career and I think that is something that the IJRC is very well aware of, but I think all the riders should be aware of this when they wonder why strange decisions get made,” Kürten said.