I apologize if a link has already been posted to this story:
http://motherboard.vice.com/read/why-is-dressage-still-an-olympic-sport-equestrian
Wow. $4,000 a year? Think they forgot a zero or two.
Oh man, I was about to break out my popcorn out when I saw the title. :lol:
There are lots of sports in the Olympics I don’t understand, but I don’t have to understand them to recognize they take great skill and/or strength. I see articles every Olympic cycle criticizing more obscure sports like dressage or curling. What I get from each one is that the author does not really understand, and they do not want to take a step back and learn even just a little bit about it. They just want to find something to feel self-righteous/smug about.
Wow. That article certainly didn’t go where I expected it to go.
Every discipline has its problems. Some have more than others. But defining all of horse sport by a few (rather disparate) examples is not just wrong, it’s offensive.
[QUOTE=Foxtail;8793303]
Wow. That article certainly didn’t go where I expected it to go.
Every discipline has its problems. Some have more than others. But defining all of horse sport by a few (rather disparate) examples is not just wrong, it’s offensive.[/QUOTE]
A few examples, one of which has nothing to do with dressage (Tennessee Walker soring). Felt like a rant. Hope the author feels better now.
Honestly, I would have been far less offended if it were the run-of-the-mill “All they do is sit on the pony! That’s not a sport; the horse does all the work!” article. I am seriously considering contacting the publisher over it.
[QUOTE=Foxtail;8793318]
Honestly, I would have been far less offended if it were the run-of-the-mill “All they do is sit on the pony! That’s not a sport; the horse does all the work!” article. I am seriously considering contacting the publisher over it.[/QUOTE]
did you not bother to at least scroll down or across the page?
its obviously a magazine devoted to Animal Rights - so blame avg & her beloved partner, and all the others who dragged Dressage (during late 90’s & the noughties) down to the level where AR’s groups started taking notice.
I doubt you will get much pleasure from the “publisher”, but hey, go for it!
do let us know how you get on…?
(disclaimer: I myself have protested against Sow Stalls, Caged Chickens, and factory farming in general)
It’s sad how many people think dressage horses are sored like some of the walking horses. Apparently, its stories like these that give them these ideas.
Actually, it was published on a subsidiary of Vice Media that deals with current issues and trends in technology. Whatever the ideology of the author, the website isn’t devoted to animal rights.
[QUOTE=Joanne;8793228]
I apologize if a link has already been posted to this story:
http://motherboard.vice.com/read/why-is-dressage-still-an-olympic-sport-equestrian[/QUOTE]
That was very poorly written with tons of errors and misinformation. Such as confusing the Big Lick with dressage. My question is why bother to post it like it deserves some credibility?
Lots of people write garbage on the internet, no point in giving it attention.
I get the average person not understanding dressage and a discussion around that but this isn’t a good basis for that topic.
ps Hey OP, are you a horse owner or rider?
I used to be a horse owner and rider. Health issues are preventing me from owning/riding now.
Horses owned in the past:
- Pony
- Welsh pony
3/4/5. Arabian mare & her 2 fillies - Arabian mare
- Hanoverian mare
8 Hanoverian gelding
I’ve always envied people who could so blatantly and unashamedly display their ignorance.
I honestly think we could simply do with a world championship alone and get out of the Olympics with all equestrian events.
I don’t see the need or the Olympics much anymore anyway, so pulling out all equestrian events and putting them in venues where people can appreciate them, and having it available to all via streaming just makes more sense to me. Let all sports go their own way. The spirit and need for the Olympics is dead.
I think the Olympics is still seen as the pinnacle of achievement for an equestrian though. Until people change their minds about that, I feel the sport won’t be removed from the Olympics.
I agree that there are problems with abuse in the sport, I think this year has been the best in terms of the welfare of the animals and correct riding. As others have said, there are abuse issues in other sports with abusive coaches, athletes forced to dope, etc.
Also agree that it is mostly a sport of the rich at this level of competition, but mostly because so many riders have sponsors or owners of their horses that are super wealthy. Steffen wouldn’t have Revel/Legolas without Akiko’s sponsorship. Gal and Hans wouldn’t have their fabulous horses without Glock. Of course there are those that have made it from nothing or very little (Laura and Charlotte).
Overall the article was biased and unresearched. I’m usually a fan of the things published by motherboard/vice but this was pretty bad.
[QUOTE=Velvet;8793943]
I honestly think we could simply do with a world championship alone and get out of the Olympics with all equestrian events.[/QUOTE]
Agreed, about getting out of Olympics, but I’m not so sure about no WEG.
[QUOTE=alicen;8793811]
I’ve always envied people who could so blatantly and unashamedly display their ignorance.[/QUOTE]
The thing is, of course, they don’t realize it’s ignorance. They’re proud of their “knowledge.”
Whatever happened to the idea of about eight years ago of making reining an Olympic sport? OK, so it’s not as “ancient” as dressage and jumping. Cycling isn’t either.
“Why is dressage still a thing? Dressage is possibly the worst Olympic sport, and is also arguably cruel. No event bums me out as much as competitive dressage.”
Wonder if she has watched eventers? Dressage AND cross country jumping – the horror! (disclaimer: extreme sarcasm. I’m an eventer and love my sport.).
Riding a Grand Prix Dressage test and shooting a rifle, which is more difficult athlete wise? I don’t mean shooting isn’t a talent and accuracy is not easy but really, they should put all the complainers on a horse and see how much physical talent it really takes. Not to mention the equine athlete.
Don’t they know the horse does all these movements on their own, we are just asking for it when we want.
I like that idea mxk, but with one caveat. As someone who shoots rifles competitively (silhouette, not the Olympic 10m format) I think that anyone who complains about a sport should be given the opportunity to try it out. At the elite levels, I think every sport is equally difficult, but in different ways.
Credibility was totally lost on reading this;
“Correction: An earlier version of this story conflated Tennessee walking horses, a breed of gaited horse sometimes used in dressage, with dressage horses, and misattributed a video of horse abuse to the sport of dressage. This error has been corrected to reflect accurate reports of cruelty in dressage.”
