Dressage is in a glaring spotlight over abusive training methods. I can’t think of any occassion where a dressage horse died during a competition. If they aren’t already, maybe the FEI should also be reviewing the difficulty of cross country courses.
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It’s already completed. The cross country is over.
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Good to know. Still trying to figure it out…the xcountry replay on Peacock isn’t available, although it’s finished for the day. There’s no mention of xcountry happening today; they’re offering yesterday’s dressage, and tomorrow’s jumping.
Thank you !
LeGoff was my hero! I saw him at a clinic…oh, +40 years ago…my time flies. Given the discussion these days about abusive training methods, here is my tale.
Someone brought a horse to a clinic in a gag bit. LeGoff said, “I am the coach of the United States Olympic team. You will not ride in a gag. Go find a snaffle and come back”…I was there and that is as close as I recall…but that is the gist of the conversation.
It turns out the horse was running thru the bridle, so the riders kept putting on stronger and stronger bits in its mouth. The rider could not control the horse in the exercise of a jumping grid. LeGoff excused the rider and said to come back later. LeGoff stayed after the regular clinic time to work individually with this rider…so of course I had to stay.
He lowered all the poles in the grid but the horse continued to run. LeGoff’s diagnosis was the horse was afraid of the bridle. He then took the poles completely away and had the rider walk thru the grid until everything was calm. then trot thru…again until the horse was calm. He then put the poles on the ground. Had the rider walk over the poles, then trot. The horse got a break every time it did the exercise calmly.
Slowly, LeGoff raised the poles. First raise one side of one jump…then the alternate side of the second…etc. Eventually the entire grid was at 12 inches and the horse was calm. LeGoff ended for the day and sent the rider away. Said to come back the next day. This took about 1 hour and half.
So, bottom line, LeGoff had nothing to prove to no one. He did things on the timeline of the horse and kept to what the horse could absorb and remain calm. He backed off the demands until the horse understood. He rewarded the horse.
If I recall, the rider was able to ride the grid successfully the next day. But to me, the impressive part was the the early start of the ride to help the horse understand and stay calm.
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This is an example of good horse training for sure. Thank you for sharing 
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I would need the “glimmer in someone’s eye” level!!
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The eventing farm I have my horse in training has what they call speed bump jumps. Basically 2-3 poles on the ground together or a tiny log. They do fun cross country speed bump classes for folks like myself. You can also have a leader where you follow an experienced horse.
I love how inviting they are to all levels.
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Tadpole
He’s actually a gelding, I don’t think his FEI record was ever updated.
Sad that he fell victim to the flat penalty today in an otherwise cracking round!
I have very fond memories of the 70’s eventing scene here in the states, the LeGoff era, and his full bodied French accented bellow to his riders at the Olympic selection trials “DON’T BE A PASS - ‘ENGER’ !” We all ate together at a dinner there - that man could empty a wine bottle and tell stories.
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as spectator, LOOOVED the test! I can’t imagine riding it, everything would’ve came up fast, but loved the shorter test.
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What I have always loved about eventing is that the horse has to be excellent in three very different ways of going in terms of mindset and body. To have a horse that fit (cardio-wise) be obedient in the dressage is such a skill, especially at that level. Those horses know what comes after dressage! Then to be able to gallop and jump all the different types of xc questions (knowing when to go through a brush fence, different body shapes over the jumps for different jumps, and not expel too much energy), then to come into show jumping with enough gas in the tank to jump clear and jumping in a very different style compared the the day before. Absolutely incredible horses!
5* and Olympic Eventing are two different sports in a sense and can take two different types of horses.
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Can you explain for the clueless…eg, me. I’m stuck in the time warp of the long format.
Basically, the 5* format has several differences from the Olympics. First, there is no team in the 5*, only individuals. Second, the Olympics are concerned about exclusivity as having as many nations as possible entered. So the tests are all pretty much lower level than a 5*. The dressage test is much longer with more movements. XC is longer and the jumps are bigger and at a faster pace. Essentially the XC is a 4* L. That’s why there were quite a few horses at the Olympics that have never run a 5*. There is really no endurance phase in the Olympic eventing. The MERs for the Olympics are lower than for a 5*. Stadium jump was about the same.
Even 5* aren’t what they used to be either. The endurance phase been reduced to just XC since they eliminated roads and tracks.
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A 5* horse might not necessarily be a good enough mover in dressage to win at the 4* level (Olympics), but a 4* winning horse might not have the stamina to get around double clear at a 5*. A more extravagant mover that could win the dressage might have too much movement in the gallop that would waste energy on xc leading to time faults or not enough gas left in the tank for show jumping. This is an overgeneralization, but a sentiment that has been being discussed more and more.
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There are very few horses able to run at 5* as it remains the ultimate test of skill and partnership and toughness. However, many more can run at 4* Short and do very well: that is about where the Olympics has settled. It has some benefits and there were representatives from each continent running.
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I watched all of the xcountry and thoroughly enjoyed it. The venue was magnificent, and it was wonderful to see horses happily galloping with their heads up and ears forward (comparing to racing). God they were beautiful…gave me goosebumps.
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