-- this was the column I included in the Newsletter I sent on 15 November to our subscribers. Sign up for free if you want to get these mailings in your box.
The last Newsletter I sent twelve days ago ended with my anticipation for the IDTC - IDRC - IDOC joint meeting in Ermelo (NED) where I was supposed to speak on the influence of social media on dressage/equestrian sport and its social licence to operate. Lo and behold that never came to be.
As the days of the meeting crept closer, the anxiety within the IDTC - IDRC clubs (not so much IDOC) grew exponentially. In fact the line in the newsletter which read "let's see how united they stand for progress and change" became a trigger for questioning the presence of the only journalist allowed to attend the closed congregation altogether. It seemed like it needed to be kept more secret than a Free Masonry meeting with its handshakes and grips.
The meeting started on Tuesday 5 November and on Monday morning I was literally called out of bed with the request for absolute silence and discretion. In a semi polite way they imposed a gag order. I was not allowed to write a word about the meeting, not even hint at the atmosphere. I understood the message clearly. I needed a little time to reflect on this request which would challenge the ethics of any journalist. Was curiosity going to kill the cat? I really wanted to hear what stakeholders were going to say on blue tongues, the FEI noseband measure device, and how they weighed the danger of the animal welfarists and keyboard crusaders. However, at what cost?
In the afternoon I made myself a cup of tea as part of my routine when serious brain work needs to be done, and wrote an email cancelling my presence at the meeting with a proper motivation.
Let me share three verbatim paragraphs from that email:
I still clearly remember the glory days of the Global Dressage Forum where discussion was celebrated, ideas were interchanged, and the attendance of the press was preferred as the pepper and salt (and maybe a pinch of chili) on the debate. The GDForum, the Stakeholders Clubs, and the sport benefit from the visibility and publicity the press generated afterwards. The wider audience got to read what was discussed, which arguments were being used pro and con, which scientific research was considered relevant, and which issues were controversial but brought out to the open.
Alas, since the Global Dressage Forum ceased to be, the Stakeholders Clubs have equally closed their doors to open debate and proper communication with the press. For years I have been trying to get access to the IDTC-IDRC meetings, but was always barred. Even when the meeting was staged right on my doorstep in Lier (Belgium) I got a firm “no." The same argument keeps echoing: the attendants want to be free to speak up and not inhibited by the presence of a journalist. Isn’t it interesting that the IJRC has no problem with welcoming journalists at their meetings?
With dressage sport in a clear crisis and the demand for major change to improve animal welfare pressuring the FEI, I applauded that this year’s joint meeting includes the IDOC and DO. I initially got the impression that press would be allowed this year. At least this is how I interpreted the invitation sent in August to join the meeting and "participate in a discussion of Social Media. Social Media has a profound impact on our sport and you as a trailblazer must have a unique perspective from which our colleagues could benefit.”
There was a bit more yaddy-yaddy on the meeting in that mail, but I want to share my conclusion now that the Olympic year 2024 is slowly drawing to a close:
I do hope that the Stakeholder Clubs will soon conclude they have to be more public facing and transparant in their communication and decision-making process. After the Dujardin video scandal, the genie is out of the bottle and cannot be put back. Mainstream media have developed an interest in the weak spots in dressage and only progressive thinking will guarantee our future as an Olympic discipline.
From the information shared of the 2024 FEI General Assembly, it looks like the FEI is taking the issue more seriously but the stakeholders (riders, trainers, judges?) have the foot firmly on the brake. 2025 is going to be an interesting year.
-- Astrid Appels