R-Haltenswert, the independent organisation hired by the show organizers of the 2025 World Cup Finals to check upon animal welfare, has observed "systemic" problems in training and tack adjustment.
Horse & Hound's Oscar Williams interviewed André Hascher of R-Haltenswert for a summary of their findings.
Equine Quality Control (EQC) pilot project
The OC of the FEI World Cup Finals 2025 in Basel wanted to set an example with a higher standard of animal welfare and zero tolerance to infractions of FEI rules. They partnered with the R-Haltenswert for this "Equine Quality Control (EQC) pilot project."
"As part of this project, three independent and highly qualified experts from the equestrian world will observe what happens on the warm-up areas for the entire duration of the tournament. They record any potential objections and exchange information with the officials on a daily basis," the organzing committee stated in their press release.
The three independent experts were Falk Stankus, Jonathan Marquardt, and Marcel Egger.
Only FEI stewards had jurisdiction at this event, but the inspectors of the EQC were included in conversation with the stewards and lead veterinarian, when they flagged issues.
The warm-up was live streamed in the trade fair for all spectators to watch.
The Findings
“What’s positive is that we have an organising committee who did what they said and were totally behind us,” Hascher told Horse & Hound. “The organisers opened all the doors, there was nothing hidden. I hope many other competition organisers follow their example. The negative is that sections of the audience showed there are some riders they didn’t want to look at. You could hear it [some combinations were whistled] in the arena."
On one occasion they asked for a re-check of the tightness of the noseband with a show jumper, the steward only looked and refused to do a re-check. When this was asked to the dressage stewards, they did a recheck.
"We strongly requested that one horse be checked again for its curb bit, and this was done immediately. However, the way it was checked was flawed – and in our opinion, there’s a partial lack of expertise among the stewards," Hascher told Horse & Hound.
The stewards also told grooms to wipe excessive foam off the mouths.
"Show Dressage"
“What was also a pity is that many riders started well in the first 20 minutes; they often had a good seat, good rhythm, and control. But then they seemed to enter ‘competition mode’, and everything became tense. They pushed the horses more, raised them too high, and lost the swing in the back – and I think that was visible in the arena," Hascher explained to Horse & Hound.
“We don’t see so much classical riding any more,” he said. “It’s become more mechanical, more show dressage.”
“I knew things wouldn’t change just because our EQCs were present,” he said. “But we had hoped to see only occasional, accidental mistakes. Instead, many of the problems we observed felt systemic.”
Read the full article with more observations of the show jumper and an FEI statement on Horse & Hound.
Related Link
Organizing Committee of 2025 World Cup Final Launches Equine Quality Control Pilot Project