Dressage (a French term meaning "training") is a path and destination of competitive horse training, with competitions held at all levels from amateur to Olympic. Its fundamental purpose is to develop, through standardized progressive training methods, a horse's natural athletic ability and willingness to perform, thereby maximizing its potential as a riding horse. At the peak of a dressage horse's gymnastic development, it can smoothly respond to a skilled rider's minimal aids by performing the requested movement while remaining relaxed and appearing effortless. For this reason, dressage is occasionally referred to as "Horse Ballet." Although the discipline has its roots in classical Greek horsemanship, dressage was first recognized as an important equestrian pursuit during the Renaissance in Western Europe. The great European riding masters of that period developed a sequential training system that has changed little since then and is still considered the basis of modern dressage.

Early European aristocrats displayed their horses' training in equestrian pageants, but in modern dressage competition, successful training at the various levels is demonstrated through the performance of "tests," or prescribed series of movements within a standard arena. Judges evaluate each movement on the basis of an objective standard appropriate to the level of the test and assign each movement a score from zero to ten - zero being "not executed" and 10 being "excellent." A score of 9 (or "very good") is considered a particularly high mark.

More on [ Dressage ]

Horse & Hound Dressage news

Dressage rider Andrew Gould starts training for the London marathon
Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:41:00 -0000
International dressage rider Andrew Gould faces a new challenge next year — pounding the streets of the capital in the Virgin London Marathon
'Blue tongue' rollkur dressage video row escalates
Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:00:00 -0000
Pressure is mounting on the FEI to look again at hyperflexion or rollkur following a video of Swedish team dressage rider Patrik Kittel schooling his horse at Odense, Denmark on 18 October
Global Dressage Forum blog: Stickland's statistics set to rewrite judging
Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:05:00 -0000
Nuclear physicist David Stickland explains his analysis that's set to change the way dressage is judged
Global Dressage Forum blog: rollkur takes centre stage again
Mon, 26 Oct 2009 19:18:00 -0000
Controversy kicks off the Global Dressage Forum in the Netherlands with the rollkur debate taking centre stage once more
British Dressage allows ear covers and fly fringes
Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:00:00 -0000
British Dressage will allow ear covers and fly fringes in outdoor summer competitions to protect horses from insects
Andrew Gould attends Katie Price book signing dressed in drag
Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:03:00 +0100
Dressage rider Andrew Gould appeared at his pupil Katie Price's latest photo call and book signing in London's Selfridges yesterday — dressed in drag

Subscribe to D RSS feed