Eventing is an equestrian event where a single horse and rider combine and compete against other competitors across the three disciplines of dressage, cross-country, and show jumping. This event has its roots in a comprehensive cavalry test that required mastery of several types of riding. The competition may be run as a one-day event (ODE), where all three events are completed in one day or a three-day event (3DE), which is more commonly now run over four days, with dressage on the first two days, followed by cross-country the next day and then show jumping in reverse order on the final day. Eventing was previously known as Combined Training, and the name persists in many smaller organizations. The term "Combined Training" is sometimes confused with the term "Combined Test", which refers to a combination of just two of the phases, most commonly dressage and show jumping.
The individual eventing event, part of the equestrian program at the 2004 Summer Olympics, was held from 15 to 18 August 2004 in the Olympic Equestrian Centre on the outskirts of Markopoulo in the Attica region of Greece. Like all other equestrian events, the eventing competition was mixed gender, with both male and female athletes competing in the same division.
The equestrian events at the 1928 Summer Olympics included dressage, eventing, and show jumping. All three disciplines had both individual and team competitions. The competitions were held from 8 to 12 August 1928. Teams were now fielded by three riders, rather than four, the purpose being to reduce pressure on national federations to find that many riders in order to compete for team medals. Riders had to be considered amateurs, which was defined as either an actively serving professional officer, or as a gentleman rider as defined by the rules of that rider's national governing body. A total of 113 entries were present from 20 nations: Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the USA. This was the first appearance for Hungary, Japan and Argentina in equestrian events at an Olympics. Additionally, after being shut out from two Olympic competitions, Germany also returned to the Games to win a few medals in the equestrian events.
The equestrian events at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich included show jumping, dressage and eventing. All three disciplines had both individual and team competitions. The equestrian competitions were held at 3 sites: an existing equestrian facility at Riem for the individual show jumping and eventing competitions, the Olympic Stadium in Munich for the Nations Cup, and Nymphenburg, a Baroque palace garden, for the sold-out dressage. 179 entries, including 31 women, competed from 27 countries: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Denmark, the German Democratic Republic (GDR), France, the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), Great Britain, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, the Soviet Union, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. The youngest participant was Kurt Maeder from Switzerland at 19 years old, while the oldest rider was Lorna Johnstone from Great Britain at 70 years old.
Combined driving is an equestrian sport involving carriage driving. In this discipline, the driver sits on a vehicle drawn by a single horse, a pair or a team of four. The sport has three phases: dressage, cross-country marathon and obstacle cone driving — patterned after the mounted equestrian sport of eventing. It is one of the ten international equestrian sport horse disciplines recognized by the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI). Combined driving became an FEI discipline in 1970 when Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, the then-president of FEI, produced the first rule book.
Equestrian sports were first included in the Olympic Games in the Summer Olympics of 1900 in Paris. They were again included in 1912, and have been included in every subsequent edition of the Games. Currently, the Olympic equestrian disciplines are dressage, eventing, and show jumping. In each discipline, both individual and team medals are awarded. Since the XV Olympiad in Helsinki in 1952, women and men compete on equal terms.
The Equestrian events included three disciplines: dressage, eventing, and show jumping, and were held at the Deodoro Military Club.
The team eventing at the 2008 Summer Olympics took place between August 9 and 12 at the Hong Kong Sports Institute.
The individual eventing event, part of the equestrian program at the 2000 Summer Olympics, was held from 20 to 22 September 2000 in the Sydney International Equestrian Centre. Like all other equestrian events, the eventing competition was mixed gender, with both male and female athletes competing in the same division.
The team eventing equestrian event at the 2011 Pan American Games was between October 21 and 23 at the Hipica Club and the Santa Sofia Golf Club in Guadalajara. The defending Pan American champion is the team from the United States.
The individual eventing in equestrian at the 2012 Olympic Games in London was held at Greenwich Park from 28 to 31 July. Michael Jung of Germany won the gold medal. Sweden's Sara Algotsson Ostholt won silver and Sandra Auffarth, also of Germany, took bronze.
The equestrian events at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo featured three disciplines for both individual and team competitions.
The individual eventing event, part of the equestrian program at the 1996 Summer Olympics, was held from 23 to 26 July 1996 in the Georgia International Horse Park, in Conyers, Georgia. Like all other equestrian events, the eventing competition was mixed gender, with both male and female athletes competing in the same division.
The individual eventing competition of the equestrian events at the 2015 Pan American Games took place July 17–19 at the Caledon Equestrian Park. The cross-country portion of eventing took place at nearby Will O' Wind Farm, which is located in Mono. The eventers complete a 3-star level dressage test, stadium, and cross-country course. Eventing consisted of three phases: dressage, cross-country, and show-jumping. Scores from each phase were converted into penalty points, which were summed to give a score. For each rider, the best three scores in each phase counted towards the final score. In the dressage portion, the pair performed in front of three judges. The judges gave marks of between 0 and 10 for each of ten required elements; the scores for the judges were averaged to give a score between 0 and 100. That score was then subtracted from 100 and multiplied by 1.5 to give the number of penalty points.
The team eventing competition of the equestrian events at the 2015 Pan American Games took place July 17–19 at the Caledon Equestrian Park. The cross-country portion of eventing took place at nearby Will O' Wind Farm, which is located in Mono.
The individual eventing in equestrian at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles was held at the Riviera Country Club (dressage), a specially built course in Westchester (cross-country), and the Olympic Stadium (jumping) from 10 to 13 August. NOCs were limited to three horse and rider pairs.
The team eventing in equestrian at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles was held at the Riviera Country Club (dressage), a specially built course in Westchester (cross-country), and the Olympic Stadium (jumping) from 10 to 13 August. NOCs were limited to three horse and rider pairs.
The individual eventing event at the 2020 Summer Olympics is scheduled to take place from 30 July to 2 August 2021 at the Baji Koen and Sea Forest Cross-Country Course. Like all other equestrian events, the eventing competition is open-gender, with both male and female athletes competing in the same division. 65 riders from 29 nations are expected to compete.
The individual eventing in equestrian at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin was held on the May Field (dressage), in Döberitz (cross-country), and at the Olympiastadion (jumping) from 13 to 16 August. Of the 50 horse and rider pairs to begin the competition, only 27 finished. Three horses died during the competition.
The equestrian events at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris were run from 27 July to 6 August at the Palace of Versailles, featuring 200 riders across three disciplines for both individual and team competitions, namely dressage, eventing, and jumping. Men and women compete together on equal terms.
