The German equestrian federation has no doubt about it that the proposed blood rule must be instated in order not to lose any medal chances at the upcoming Olympic Games. For secretary-general the end justifies the means!
In an official statement posted on the FN website on 24 October, Lauterbach motivated his decision to vote in favour of the Blood Rule at the 2011 FEI General Assembly in Rio de Janeiro, mid November.
"This rule only works at Championships and not at other international and national dressage events," said Lauterbach. "There are plenty of veterinarians at top events, which can guarantee a quick check-up."
Favoritism, inherent to the proposed rule, is no issue to Lauterbach. He does not question the unsportsmanlike factor of the rule as elite athletes get preferential treatment at their international championship compared to other dedicated competitors at national and international events.
For Lauterbach medal potential is all that counts. Therefore, he decided to vote on a rule which promotes a negative image of the dressage sport allowing bleeding horses to re-appear in the show ring in order not to lose medal chances.
"It is undisputed that a horse will only stay in the competition based on a veterinary diagnosis. The point is to distinguish a minimal injury from a real health problem. The welfare of the horse will remain the main priority," according to Lauterbach.
Austria on the Fence, Sort Of
In an interview with the Austrian magazine Pferdeplus, Austrian Equestrian Federation president Sissy Max-Theurer expressed that she's still undecided on the Austrian vote.
"We've hadn't had a discussion yet about this theme within the Austrian Equestrian Federation, but there were many discussions about it in the dressage world and I can see the problem from all angles, as horse owner, judge and show organizer," Max-Theurer stated. "Personally I haven't made a decision yet on the rule proposed by the FEI Dressage Committee. In my opinion you have to find a rule that treats all riders equally and not only the senior riders at the Olympic Games, World and European Championships. I don't find it fair. In principle I favour that there will be a veterinary at all national and international competitions who can judge from the warm up ring if a horse can compete or not. It continues to happen that a horse harmlessly bites its tongue or lip, without harsh involvement of the hands."
The incident of Adelinde Cornelissen's elimination at the World Equestrian Games after Parzival bit his tongue is part of the entire "Blood on a Horse" debate, according to Max-Theurer.
"More often you see horses which have been pierced and are bleeding because of the rider's use of the spurs and they are often never rung out, sometimes because the head judge at the short side at C didn't properly see it and judges on the long side, who can assess it more clearly, don't have the possibility to bell out a pair. It's important that one can intervene already before they enter the arena, either through a steward and even better through a vet."
Max-Theurer considers it important that FEI Stewards work more properly and meticulously, checking upon the horses. "At vet inspections they have to pay more attention to the mouth and the use of the spurs." Max-Theurer stressed that the stewards have to be careful not to confuse incidents such as horse fly stings that could bleed or mudfever wounds. "Blood can have many causes and when one drafts a rule, one not only has to focus on the mouth."
"In principle one has to be fair to the horse but also to the rider," Max-Theurer explained. "I can imagine that a test could continue after a horse has been rung out for blood in his mouth and a check-up by a vet shows that it's a minor injury. However this has to be rule at all shows and not just at championships."
USA Against the Blood Rule?!
According to Dressage-News.com, "the U.S. Equestrian Federation is seeking approval of its own dressage committee to have the U.S. delegation to the General Assembly seek to have the so-called “blood” proposal removed from the package of dressage proposals and submitted as a separate single issue for a vote. The U.S. will then propose sending the issue back to the FEI Dressage Committee to prepare a new proposal for a rule dealing with “blood” that essentially provides for elimination if blood is visible and no opportunity to compete again."
Interesting is that the FEI Dressage Committee which voted in favour of the proposed blood rule has U.S. representation in its American member Anne Gribbons.
"U.S. officials admit privately that exposure of the issue may lead to the proposal being witdrawn before the General Assembly," Dressage-News stated. "Either way, a successful effort by the U.S. would delay implementation until the 2012 General Assembly, well after the Olympics in London next July."
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Photo © Barbara Schnell
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