Event riders competing at the Tokyo Olympics will be riding a new Olympic eventing dressage test. The shortened dressage test has been designed to make the phase more spectator-friendly, with movements coming up more quickly. This means it will be more intense for both horse and rider. With fewer movements and less time to reorganise between them, it will be harder to score top marks and there are fewer opportunities to demonstrate the horse’s talent and training to the judges. The test includes movements not previously seen in eventing dressage including the canter zig-zag (canter half-pass in one direction, flying change, then canter half pass in the other direction, and a flying change) and walk to counter canter.
New Olympic eventing dressage test: a judge’s perspective
Top international dressage judge Stephen Clarke, says the new Olympic eventing dressage test is “very difficult, with no let-ups – it will be a case of do or die”.
“The counter canter strike off, which is quickly followed by two flying changes on a straight line across the diagonal is particularly challenging and will sort the men from the boys,” says Stephen. “If combinations make a mistake in that movement, it will be very hard for them to recover.”
Source: Horse & Hound
Picture: Libby Law