Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Gary Stuart on November 10, 2008 at 9:09am

Excellent analysis as always by Astrid Appels in Eurodressage
www.eurodressage.com.
This is one complicated situation.

Permalink Reply by Barbara F. on November 11, 2008 at 5:26pm

Hi Andrew,
What a true and thought-provoking analysis! I couldn't agree more!
p.s. Is that magazine from Spain?

Permalink Reply by TheVikings on December 8, 2008 at 8:38am

I personally find Sjef Janssens behaviour repugnant. I am very sad to see the entire dressage world dancing mindlessly to his and Anky's tune. I long for a complete upheaval of the manner of judging, the manner of riding being judged, and if necessary a hiatus in competitive dressage until vital issues - including the 'training'methods being applied by certain riders - have been sorted out. And I mean out.
Dressage does not deserve to survive as a sport as long as it ignores its own institutional mistreatment of one half of the persons involved, the horses.
Ceterum censeo hyperflexionen esse delendam.

Permalink Reply by Gary Stuart on December 8, 2008 at 9:00am

Hi,
What did you think of Isabel Werth's response? Also, something confuses me. I understand that Sjeff and Anky are in the camp against Mariette Withages, but didn't Sjeff call that middle of the night meeting in HongKong and didn't Withages agree to it? This very politically confusing.
Also, I agree with Andrew above that there is wide-spread abuse. Is focusing only on hyperflexion not missing a number of other pieces of the puzzle (over-tightened nose bands, etc.)? I'd love some knowledgeable input on this. Thanks.

Permalink Reply by Bernd on December 16, 2008 at 9:38am

I think it is totally unacceptable that team captains, riders, FEI prsidents, whoever try to pressurize judges. If judges cannot feel to rate their scores independetly, the dressage sport cannot survive. We don't have more objective criteria than expert judgements. Without that, the sport will be dead. - Its that simple.
The fact that judges sometimes make mistakes only speaks for training them better. Judging needs training, just as riding does. So the FEI should find a good training program, qualify them, improve them, coach them,- but keep them shielded from competitors' pressurizing.
Competitors who do that are just trying to fake a result just as with doping. The punishment should be the same.
Besides that:
I think judges need to be assigned to the competitions on random basis.
Tests should be composed on the ground just as with show jumping. We have course builders for that, whay don't we have "test builders" for thed ressage performance. It would be more interesting to wathc nad you could see better who has the best communication with the horse, if you had to go through unexpected lessons.

Ciao

Permalink Reply by Barbara F. on December 16, 2008 at 10:11am

I totally agree. What good ideas!