Jump of obstacles

The jump of obstacles is a equestrian Sport which is held in a delimited ground on which obstacles were built. The bars which compose them are mobile and fall when they are touched. For the Horse and the rider the rules of the game are to succeed in crossing the obstacles in a precise order without reversing them.

General information

This discipline is often taught as of the level beginning because, in addition to its ludic aspect, it allows the riding to acquire qualities essential to the horsemanship in its globality like ease, balance and confidence.

In jump of obstacles, the Horse and its rider must be in perfect harmony. A such Centaur, horse and rider will have to control many parameters such as the impulse, speed, the trajectory, the number and the length of the treads to guarantee jumps without fault.

In parallel with work on the obstacles, an essential work of raising, musculation and easing on the dish is carried out so that the horse obtains the finest possible raising and an optimal physical potential.

History

Although the principles of horsemanship were already described by Xénophon, then detailed increasingly in-depth with the wire of the centuries, one finds very few writings on the horsemanship of jump of obstacles before the end of the 19th century. Indeed, before the coding of the hunt, by “English Enclosure Acts” at the 18th century, which obliged the hunters to follow the traces of the pack and thus has to jump the obstacles being on the passage, there was hardly reason to jump the obstacles in the countryside.

But towards the end of the 19th century, the hunts through enclosed fields became numerous both in the United Kingdom and on the continent. The obstacle races and the horse shows became increasingly popular.

In spite of its rather recent advent, this sport evolved/moved already much.

Equestrian technique

The jump of obstacles, of share its specificities, requires a particular equestrian technique. So that the horse has the freer back and more credit, the rider is very often held balances some on its clamps. The clamps are regulated rather short for better following the horse when it jumps. The rider can thus take support above and unfold its body and its arms when the horse stretches itself during planing it jump. The horse needs all its athletic capacity to connect the obstacles. Also the rider must communicate with him by the lightest means and most discrete possible, while as far as possible avoiding disturbing its motricity and its balance.

However, on certain subjects, the divergent points of view and can be the source of many discussions. Certain riders use techniques which are appropriate well for certain horses and riders, but less with the others.

It is with each one to make the share of the things with its sensitivity, its experiment and its horses. All its life, the rider will seek its clean horsemanship, drawing from its experiment and making use of what the experiment of the others can bring to him. With final, they are its horses, if it can listen to them, which will say to him if it is on the right track or not.

See also: Technical equestrian in jump of obstacles

Formation

Formation of the riders

The horsemanship of jump of obstacles is a highly technical sport which requires flexibility, sensitivity and experiment. The basic training of the young riders is often spread out over a decade. But makes some, the formation of the riders is never finished and must continue throughout their career which can be very long. An good example of longevity was given to us by Nelson Pessoa which was always classified among in the first 10 world riders has more than 60 years. Into growing old the rider loses flexibility and reflexes, but it compensates for this loss by its experiment, a refined sensitivity and a better listening of the horses than it goes up.

Formation of the young horses

General information

Until the 7 years age, the horse of jump of obstacles is a " young person cheval" , but its formation often continues until more than 10 years. As from approximately 12 years, the horse of jump of obstacles in general is regarded as ripe and is tested. The great champions have often more than 12 years. Starting from this age, one works primarily to maintain all their potential physical as a long time as possible, 16 years or more. Baloubet of the Wheel the horse of Rodrigo Pessoa is always with the more international high level in 2006 at age the 18 years.

Jumps in freedom

Education with the obstacle can start as of the three years age while making jump the young horse in freedom. This work makes it possible to the young person to learn how to regulate only its beaten and his jump without being constrained by the still unusual presence of the rider on its back.

To preserve its physique in full transformation and its mental, the meetings of jumps in freedom must be spaced enough in time and of gradual difficulty. The horse starts by crossing bars on the ground then a brace approached with the trot then with the gallop. Then it jumps small vertical, then a oxer. Later, it will be gymnastic thanks to doubles.

To make jump a horse in freedom, it is necessary to proceed in a place closed with at least two provided people chambrières to channel the foal. It is not advised to make jump a horse in freedom if none the people present has a tested experiment of the horses, jump of obstacles and work in freedom. Indeed, by these exercises, the young horse must be framed by sure instructors. With this stage of its life, it is paramount never to ask him more than it cannot give. It must take confidence in its physical possibilities and improve its technique in all safety.

A horse can jump in advantageous freedom of way during all its life.

First assembled jumps

As for work in freedom, it is good to start by crossing bars on the ground then pilot wheels with trot. Trot is a pace often used for the first jumps of the young horses. Indeed, in their youth, they cannot be used yet for full potential of their bodies. In the pace of the trot, they always have two feet on the ground, their balance is thus easier to manage.

Then, to learn how to them to start again themselves with the reception and to connect the jumps, the teacher will make them jump of the small courses of pilot wheels to trot then to the gallop when all is held well with trot.

This stage, it is important not to make jump the young horses with speed so that they are not obliged to react to the last moment to jump, this precipitation could make them panic. From their inexperience, they need to observe to proportion their jumps. But it very often arrives that the young horses have a balance such as they cannot gallop yet slowly, their balance forwards pushing to accelerate the pace. A good part of work will thus consist in accustoming them to another balance, more moved back. A good exercise with such horses is to make them carry out a circle after each jumped obstacle. The rider makes use of the circle to rebalance and gather its mounting to go to jump the obstacle following under best the conditions. The contact with the mouth of the horse during the exercise must remain tiny to check that it remains in balance.

A little later, for the muscler on the height, one will make them cross braces-oxers. Like the brace, this type of obstacle, low in the medium, encourages the foal to jump in the center. The bar of behind gives the trajectory in height and width. At this stage of work the horse must be trustful, it must be able to come to jump these obstacles by preserving a regularity in its pace without modifying its rate and its amplitude in the accesses.

Lastly, work on small lines of obstacles will improve the style of the jump. It is capital to take care to preserve the right horses during all the stages of the jump.

In the event of refusal or of disorder of the horse, the rider will not hesitate to lower the obstacles a little.

A few weeks before the beginning of the season of contest, the young horses will jump all the standard of obstacles and they will be confronted with all kinds of bases. The ideal is to make them jump a course of drive on a ground which they do not know and to accustom them to the presence of many other horses. They will be thus frightened at the time of their first contests.

Obstacle

The obstacle is the key component of this discipline. It is presented in many forms and colors.

An obstacle classically consists of bars, candles and candlesticks to support the bars, of bases. In contest, flags (red on the right, white on the left) and a sequence number are added, appearance is neat with decorative candlesticks and varied bases.

For the drive, the obstacles easy to handle with few bases and the light candles are preferred.

The obstacles can be varied types: vertical, oxers, obstacles of flight, rivers, doubles, triple, obstacles of ground. The courses of hunting and derby comprise some natural obstacles.

In addition to its particular characteristics, the fitting of an obstacle in a course can be determining on its level of difficulty.

Competition

Preamble

The contest of jump of obstacles are used to be measured with the others. They are, most of the time the ultimate goal of this discipline, although there exist many professional riders even which make never or very little competition. Indeed, there exist riders of jump of obstacles whose activity consists in assembling the horses to the drive to prepare them for other riders which will assemble them in competition. One can also practice this sport, for his pleasure without feeling of attraction for the competition.

In contest, the horses must show athletic qualities (force, addresses, flexibility, speed), morals (courage, generosity) and to know much to make, result of their raising and their experiment. The rider, if he wants to give himself a maximum of chances of success, must have at the same time qualities of teacher and pilot.

The jump of obstacles in competition requires a complex organization, multiple contests and championships are organized throughout the world.

Payment

As in any sport, the contests of jump of obstacles obey rules. The various nations, on the level of their specific payment, test for the majority of them, to stick closest to the international rules. These international rules are updated every year by the international equestrian Federation.

See also: Rule of contest of jump of obstacles

Actors

The contests of jump of obstacles require a complex organization in which many actors is necessary.

The candidates which are measured between them, the trainers which frame the candidates, the chiefs of tracks and the men of tracks which carry out the courses, the judges of guaranteeing ground of the compliance with the rules, the judges with the bed which organize the relaxation of the competitors, the organizing whose role can vary from pilot and head of undertaking with man and woman with “to do everything”, the veterinary and the doctors are impossible to circumvent for a contest. If the sponsors are ardently sought, other specialists such as the marshal-shoeing , the restorers , the receptionists can prove to be essential as soon as the number of participants increases.

Course

A course is composed of obstacles varied, simple or combined, laid out on the ground in a sequence pre-determined by the chiefs of tracks. It is built on a delimited ground of different nature (grass, sand, etc). It is composed of obstacles varied, simple or combined, laid out on the ground in a sequence pre-determined by the chiefs of tracks. All the obstacles included in the course must be crossed with less faults possible.

The ground where a competition of jump of obstacles proceeds is called track . The people in charge of handling related to the track (to assemble the obstacles) are called men of track . In spite of the many women who make function of men of track, there does not exist the female one with this expression. The people charged to invent the courses (traced, obstacles) and of managing the men of track are the chiefs of track , actors CSO of first importance.

International contests

CSI

CSI (Contest of International Jump) is graduated from 1 to 5 " *" (star) according to its level of difficulté.

In addition to the levels of CSI, there exists a categorization according to the age of the riders or the type of mounting:

CSI-CH (Children): children of less than 14 years
CSI-J (Junior): juniors enters 14 and 18 years
CSI-P (pony): ponies (size lower than 1,49 m shoed)
CSI-V (Veteran): veterans women 45 year old minimum, veterans men 49 year old minimum which did not take part in CSI of level higher than two stars and which did not contribute in tests of which the initial height was higher than 1,30 Mr.
CSI there (Young): young riders between 16 and 21 years

CSIO

CSIO (Contest of Official International Jump) represent more the high level of international competition, except the championships and the Olympic Games.

Each country can organize one CSIO per annum. A CSIO must obligatorily organize a test of the type Coupe of nations which is run in two handles by national teams.

The CSIO are, like the CSI, graduated by a number of stars which can reach five. However, with equal number of stars, a CSIO will be of a degree (a star) more important than a CSI. Thus the level of a CSIO **** (four stars) corresponds to a CSI ***** (five stars)

International championships

Continental championships

The continental championships dispute every odd year in alternation with the world equestrian Plays and the Olympic Games.

At the conclusion of the championship by teams, the three best nations which had not been qualified during the world equestrian Plays of the previous year will be qualified for the Olympic Games of the following year.

Exemples of continental championships:

the championships of Europe relate to Europe,
the American championships side relate to all the American continent and its islands (example Dominican Republic).

World cup

The world cup disputes every year since 1979. A selecting circuit for the final is organized throughout the world and the title of “winner” is decreed at the time of a final.

Cut Samsung nations

The cut of the nations Samsung , organized for the first time in 2003, is a test of the world cup type which disputes in national team. It is about a championship which proceeds on eight of the most important CSIO of year (CSIO *****). The gaining team is the team which cumulated the most points on the unit of these tests. It should be noted that the teams of the same nation can be made up of different couples according to the contests.

Championships of the world

In 1953 the first championships of the world are organized in Paris in France.

Until 1956, this competition took place every year. Since this date they dispute every four years in alternation with the Olympic Games.

Since 1978 is delivered a championship of the world of the nations.

From 1990, the international equestrian Federation gathered all the equestrian disciplines which she recognizes on the same place in only one championship called world equestrian Jeux (FEI Games). In jump of obstacles, this competition is almost as appraisal as the Olympic Games.

Épreuves disputed at the time of the championships of the world:

test of hunting : this test is run to the scale C. It makes it possible to establish a first classification by team and individual.
1st sleeve of the cut of the nations : scale has without stop watch.

At the conclusion of this first sleeve, a general classification by teams is carried out. Only the first 10 teams will take part following the championship. The riders resulting from the eliminated teams will be able however to continue the competition to try to qualify among signal 25.

2nd sleeve of the cut of the nations : scale has without stop watch.

At the conclusion of this sleeve, the world titles by team are allotted and the first five teams are qualified for the following Olympic Games.
An individual classification is also carried out to make bring out the 25 best riders and define the order of passage of the following test.

test signal 25 : test in two handles. Only 25 the best classified at the conclusion of the preceding tests is qualified for this test.
revolving test : only the four best couples take the departure. Each rider will carry out four courses on the whole while assembling the four qualified horses. This type of test wants to thus put forward the intrinsic performances of the riders independently of that of their usual mounting.

Olympic Games

The test of jump of obstacles is one of the disciplines of the Olympic Games. It is held following the tests of complete raising and . As the tests of horsemanship are towards the end of the plays, the test of individual jump of obstacles with often place the last day.

Selection for the cut of the nations : The first five teams at the conclusion of the first sleeve of the cut of the nations of the preceding worldwide games are selected. Then, in Europe, with the championships of the previous year, the three best teams not already qualified are fished out.

Hunter

Hunter is, like the jump of obstacles, an equestrian discipline where one jumps of the obstacles. The hunter can be regarded either as a discipline with whole share with specialized riders and horses, or like a discpline of formation for jump of obstacles. Indeed, in contest, this sport highlights the raising and the style of the horse as well as the technique of the rider on tests of which the height of the obstacles is less important than in contest of jump of obstacles.