The FEI has suspended double Olympic dressage champion and British sports icon Charlotte Dujardin following an official complaint with video alleging horse abuse.
On 20 July 2024 Dutch lawyer Stephan Wensing filed a complaint with the FEI, British Dressage, and the British Equestrian Federation against Dujardin. The lawyer, representing an undisclosed complainant, alleges a breach of Article 142 of the FEI General Regulations: "Abuse of Horse."
"Unacceptable"
"My client believes that any form of animal cruelty is completely unacceptable and there needs to be an adequate response," Wensing wrote in the official complaint. "In this case, this is all the more compelling as Ms Dujardin also serves as a role model as an Olympic rider."
He continued, "my client cannot tolerate Ms Dujardin mistreating horses with impunity. My client understands that this is not an one-off incident, which makes the issue even more serious. The video thereby makes it abundantly clear that Ms Dujardin feels no shame whatsoever and it even appears that mistreating a horse is the most normal thing in the world for her."
Video Footage
The official complaint included a video which shows Dujardin "beating the horse excessively with a whip. This not only breaches FEI regulations, but can also be considered a very serious form of animal cruelty," the lawyer stated.
The video has not been made public. (Editor's note: on Wednesday morning 24 July 2024 a clip of the video was first shown on Good Morning Britain. The full clip was later published by The Sun).
The video is almost one minute in length and shows Dujardin on the ground, training a rider on a horse in canter. With a lunge whip cracking she is hitting the horse against its legs and hindquarters. Approximately 23 lashes can be counted within the time frame of the clip.
The lawyer stated that the video was made in 2022.
Dujardin Withdraws from the Olympics
(Photo © Astrid Appels)
Dujardin was given a deadline of 17:00 Swiss time on 23 July to respond to the allegations. At 16h44 she posted a statement on social media
Dujardin claims the video was "filmed four years ago". She added, "what happened was completely out of character and does not reflect how I train my horses or coach my pupils, however, there is no excuse. I am deeply ashamed and should have set a better example in that moment."
At 19h26 the FEI officially announced the provisional suspension of British Dressage athlete Charlotte Dujardin (FEI ID: 10028440) effective immediately from the date of notification, 23 July 2024. Both the BEF and BD have also imposed a provisional suspension on Miss Dujardin from all national and international competition pending the outcome of the FEI investigation.
She will not be eligible to ride the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris next week. First reserve Becky Moody (Jagerbomb) is expected to take her place with second reserve Andrew Gould (Indigro) moving into first reserve place.
The 39-year-old Dujardin was on the cusp of launching her bid to become Great Britain’s most decorated female Olympian. The six-time Olympic medallist needed one more medal of any colour to overtake retired cyclist Laura Kenny. The 39-year old Dujardin won team and individual gold in London 2012 and team silver and individual gold in Rio 2016 on Valegro. With horse Gio she won double bronze in Tokyo 2021.
British Dressage Issues Statement
At 20h02 British Dressage and BEF also made their statement:
British Dressage Chief Executive Jason Brautigam added; “At British Dressage our commitment is to ‘bring people and horses together in harmony’, and as part of this we constantly strive to achieve the highest standards of horse care. We do not condone any behaviour that goes against our guiding principles and take a zero-tolerance approach to any breach of our equine welfare policies. These historic allegations are deeply upsetting for everyone involved in our sport, but we fully support the FEI investigation and will take any appropriate disciplinary action when this process is complete. Our priority now is to rally behind our athletes and horses representing Team GB in Paris as they take on the responsibility of showcasing the best of our sport on the world stage."
British Equestrian Performance Director and Team GB Equestrian Team Leader Helen Nicholls said; “Obviously the events of the last 24 hours have been disappointing on many levels for all affected. No one more than Charlotte Dujardin recognises the part welfare holds in sport and as such has done the right thing in stepping down to allow the FEI tribunal to take place in a timely manner. Our focus remains on supporting our athletes to deliver to their potential on the world stage and we look forward to the Games getting underway on Saturday.”
Olympic Status in Peril
FEI is on high alert about public perception as a concern for animal welfare has been growing rapidly and the voice of (laymen as well as knowledgeable) activists on social media getting heard more.
Recent cases of animal neglect, abuse and cruelty (either alleged or proven) concerning riders at Helgstrand Dressage in Denmark (right after the big Viegaard neglect case), Dr. Cesar Parra in the USA ,and Canadian Olympian Evi Strasser, have made the FEI wide awake for such matters. In 2020 Brazilian dressage rider Leandro Aparecido got suspended for three years by the FEI for abusing a small pony. In eventing, Sir Mark Todd was also caught up in a controversy two years’ ago over a video of him hitting a horse 10 times with a branch. In show jumping, four-time Olympic champion Ludger Beerbaum was under investigation by the public prosecutor's office in Münster for allegedly using illegal training methods on horses in 2022.
In February 2022 the IOC confirmed equestrian sport in the initial sports programme for the 2028 L.A. Olympics. In October 2023 the IOC's Executive Board re-confirmed that equestrian sports will feature as part of the programme at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. However, for eventing a new format needs to be agreed on.
Be a Guardian
On the same day the complaint against Dujardin was filed with the FEI, the FEI has just posted its anticipated press release on their new "Be a Guardian" initiative launched on 19 July.
"The FEI is calling on community members to embrace their roles as guardians of FEI horses," it says. "The ‘Be a Guardian’ initiative represents a significant shift in the FEI's approach to equine care, emphasising the importance of horse welfare. Based on the concept of guardianship, the Equine Ethics and Wellbeing Commission created a comprehensive document highlighting six priority areas and 30 recommendations to improve the welfare of sport horses."
"Inexcusable"
Eurodressage contacted lawyer Stephan Wensing for an explanation why his client filed the complaint.
"It is inexcusable that dressage sport should be accompanied by animal abuse," said Wensing. "If top sport can only be performed in such a way that the welfare of the horse is compromised, than top sport should be abolished. Everyone who handles horses has their responsibility and this also applies to bystanders who become aware of excesses. Equestrian sport should regulate itself and ensure that there can never again be a discussion about horse welfare in sport. Here lies a very important task for the judges, who for far too long have lost sight of the core value of dressage, and have overvalued spastically moving horses."
Wensing continued, "it is extremely sad that one of the most successful riders in the world needs to suffer this fate. However, this rider has not taken any responsibility and this cannot go unpunished. The federations and in particular the FEI should be expected to act even more adequately against animal cruelty precisely to ensure the survival of equestrian sport."
Delayed Response
His client further added, "the evidence I have is strong and it mustn’t be looked at as a single scenario. This needs to be pushed out wider to ensure that dressage stays a sport, because if our top riders are training like this, we will not have dressage in the Olympics for the years to come."
Dujardin concluded her statement today with "I am sincerely sorry for my actions and devastated that I have let everyone down, including Team GB, fans and sponsors. I will cooperate fully with the FEI, British Equestrian Federation and British Dressage during their investigations, and will not be commenting further until the process is complete."
Photos © Astrid Appels
Related Links
FEI Announces Provisional Suspension of Dressage Athlete Charlotte Dujardin
Charlotte Dujardin Withdraws from 2024 Olympics Following Allegations of Horse Abuse
Equestrian Sport Confirmed in Initial Sports Programme for Los Angeles 2028 Olympics