All About Olympic Equestrian - Men and Women can Compete Together

Show jumping is the most familiar of equestrian events and the easiest to follow. It's as simple as this: the horse and rider attempt to clear a series of jumps or obstacles in a specific order and within a prescribed amount of time.

There are five basic kinds of jumps:

• Verticals: including solid-looking gates and fences, among the most difficult jumps.
• Spreads: fences with two or more vertical jumps several feet apart, including triple bars and "oxers." Parallel oxers present the most difficulty.
• Combinations: consisting of two or three jumps a stride or two apart, designed to be one of the toughest tests of the horse and rider's athletic ability.
• Walls: designed to look like actual brick or stone walls.
• Water jumps: usually with a low hedge or fence at the leading edge and a shallow pool of water beyond that.

By the end of the final round in the individual jumping competition, riders and horses will have faced almost 100 obstacles.

The eventing competition is the ultimate test of a horse and rider's teamwork, skill and endurance. In individual competition, horses and riders must compete in dressage on the first day, in cross country the next, and still have enough stamina left to complete the final day's show jumping course.

The object is to finish with the fewest penalty points, though some would say to finish at all is an accomplishment. If there is a tie in the individual event, the rider with the best cross-country score wins. A tie in the team event is won by the team whose third competitor earned the highest total score.

A team can consist of five riders, but only the best three scores are used. All team riders receive a medal if they win.

Olympic dressage is a formal, ballet-like event in which the horse and rider must perform a series of movements marked by a panel of judges. Competitions are performed in a sand arena and consist of three rounds: Grand Prix, Grand Prix Special and Grand Prix Freestyle.

It's all about poise and appearing effortless. Riders strive for harmony, lightness and a smooth, uniform motion of the horse at all times, giving the impression that the horse is performing all the movements of its own volition. It takes years to build the necessary strength and fortitude to enable the horse to perform these difficult movements with grace and ease.

During the entire routine, the rider's upper body should be relaxed and erect. The hands should be low and close together, but not touching each other or the horse, while the elbows and arms should be close to the body.

The horse's attitude is equally important: it should appear happy and alert, its ears cocked, or slightly back, its head still and its tail swinging gently. The horse should also respond willingly, easily accepting the rider's control. The hind feet should be active. Circles and transitions between gaits should be smooth.

You might hear judges referring to a horse's "collection." When a horse is collected, its hind legs are engaged, stepping forward under the horse's body, shortening its base of support and resulting in better balance for itself and the rider. An "uncollected" horse will not exhibit this same degree of engagement and will show a longer base of support with the line of its back more lengthened.

Equestrian was introduced to the Summer Games at the 1900 Paris Summer Games. In the 1900 Games, the events included in the equestrian program were jumping, high jump and long jump.

The sport returned to the Olympics during the 1912 Stockholm Summer Games. This time more disciplines were included in the equestrian schedule. Since 1912, the sport has been contested regularly at the Summer Games.

Olympic winner (with gold medal performances in equestrian events in 1968 and 1972) went on to appear in films, Dead Cert and International Velvet. The name? Cornishman V.

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