Horseball is a sport played on horseback where a ball is handled and goals are scored by shooting it through a hoop with a diameter of 1m. The sport is a combination of polo, rugby, netball, and basketball. It is one of the ten disciplines officially recognized by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI); in 2015 the International Horseball Federation (FIHB) and the International University Sports Federation (FISU) signed memorandums of understanding with the FEI. [1]
Horseball was invented by Captain Clave of the French Army, a show jumping world champion. It is based on Pato, the Argentine national sport. The game was designed to improve partnerships between horses and riders, that could be played on a standard equestrian arena, and would be fun to play. It was developed by a French group under the presidency of Jean Paul Depons, a riding instructor and rugby player from Bordeaux. This group established the rules of horseball in France.
In the late 1970s, the French Equestrian Federation (FFE) accepted horseball as a discipline and it soon became popular in France. Horseball spread internationally in the early 1990's. In 1992 the International Commission of Horseball was estabished, with France, Belgium, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, and Portugal as members. The first European Cup was held in Paris in December 1992, at the Salon De Cheval. [2]
Horseball is an equestrian sport that is like a combination of rugby and basketball, played on horseback. It is a fast-paced team game, with the objective of scoring goals. Each team has four players, and two substitutes. Teams must make at least three passes between different players before scoring. Players can be substituted at any break of play. The ball is a football held in a harness with six handles, so that it can be picked up. Players may hold the ball for less than 10 seconds, and must pass the ball when making an attack. If the ball falls to the ground, players may only pick it up without changing pace, or dismounting. This is called "ramassage". Players score by throwing the ball through a goal. This is a 1-metre diameter vertical hoop at the end of the pitch, suspended 3.5 metres from the ground and hung 1-metre into the pitch. The game is usually played on a rectangular pitch, with dimensions of 65 meters by 25 meters. Games last 20 minutes, in two 10-minute halves, and with a 3-minute half-time break when the teams change ends. The team that scores the most goals win. [2]
The FIHB organize several international competitions: the European Championship, the World Championship, and the clubs FIHB Champions League. [2] The annual European Senior Championship is the older international tournament, the first was in 1992 in Paris. This is a mixed-sex teams tournament. The European Ladies Championship was first held in 2003 in Abano Terme 2003 (Italy). The European Under-16 Championship is the youth tournament with mixed-sex teams, the first in 2004 in Lamotte-Beuvron 2004 (France). The World Championships for senior mixed teams were first held at Ponte de Lima in 2008. The teams that played in the championship were Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Portugal, Spain. France won, Spain got Silver, and Portugal Bronze. World championships are held every four years, with the next competition due to be held in Argentina in 2025. [3]
The club level competition organized by the International Horseball Federation is the FIHB Champions League. This competition began in 2007 in Stockholm, Sweden, between the top clubs from each of the four highest ranked European nations. In 2007, it was won by Chambly Horse-Ball France), Sporting Clube de Portugal CEJC got Silver and Caramel from Belgium got Bronze. The 2024 competition was held in Le Mans, and involved the top clubs from eight nations. [4]
Korfball is a ball sport, with similarities to netball and basketball. It is played by two teams of eight players with four female players and four male players in each team. The objective is to throw a ball into a netless basket that is mounted on a 3.5 m high pole.
Dressage is a form of horse riding performed in exhibition and competition, as well as an art sometimes pursued solely for the sake of mastery. As an equestrian sport defined by the International Equestrian Federation, dressage is described as "the highest expression of horse training" where "horse and rider are expected to perform from memory a series of predetermined movements".
Equestrianism, commonly known as horse riding or horseback riding, includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the use of horses for practical working purposes, transportation, recreational activities, artistic or cultural exercises, and competitive sport.
The Selle Français (SF) is a breed of sport horse from France. An athletic horse with good gaits, it is usually bay or chestnut in color. The Selle Français was created in 1958 when several French riding horse breeds were merged into one stud book. The new breed was meant to serve as a unified sport horse during a period when horses were being replaced by mechanization and were transforming into an animal used mainly for sport and leisure.
The International Federation for Equestrian Sports is the international governing body of equestrian sports. FEI was established in 1921 and its headquarters are in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Endurance riding is an equestrian sport based on controlled long-distance races. It is one of the international competitions recognized by the FEI. There are endurance rides worldwide. Endurance rides can be any distance, though they are rarely over 160 km for a one-day competition.
The FEI World Equestrian Games are the major international championships for equestrianism, and are administered by the Fédération Équestre Internationale (FEI). The games have been held every four years, halfway between sets of consecutive Summer Olympic Games, since 1990. Prior to that year, all ten of the FEI's individual disciplines held separate championships, usually in separate countries. The modern WEG runs over two weeks and, like the Olympics, the location rotates to different parts of the world. Riders and horses competing at WEG go through a rigorous selection process, and each participating country sends teams that have distinguished themselves through competition as the nation's best in each respective discipline. At the 2010 Games, 57 countries were represented by 800 people and their horses.
Equestrian vaulting, or simply vaulting, is most often described as gymnastics and dance on horseback, which can be practiced both competitively or non-competitively. Vaulting has a history as an equestrian act at circuses, but its origins stretch back at least two-thousand years. It is open to both men and women and is one of ten equestrian disciplines recognized by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports. Therapeutic or interactive vaulting is also used as an activity for children and adults who may have balance, attention, gross motor skill or social deficits.
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 European Dressage Championships are the European championships for the equestrian discipline of dressage. They are held every two years in odd-numbered years. Gold, silver, and bronze medals are awarded in both individual and team competitions. There are also championships held for juniors, young riders, and ponies. Since 2015, the competition has shared a site and branding with vaulting, reining, jumping, and driving events. For sponsorship reasons, eventing is not included, as it is part of the FEI European Championships, echoing the combined World Equestrian Games concept. The first official combined event took place in Aachen in 2015.
The Canadian Equestrian Team or CET collectively describes the athletes that represent Canada at the highest levels of international equestrian competition, specifically at the World Championship, Olympic, and Paralympic levels.
Jessica Mendoza is one of the UK's top female equestrian athletes, who broke into the world's top 100 riders, and into the top 10 British showjumping riders in Spring 2015. She is also a regular contributor to the British monthly magazine PONY.
Belgium competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the nation's official debut in 1900, Belgian athletes have appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympic Games, with the exception of the 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis.
Royal Moroccan Equestrian Federation is the governing body of equestrian sports located at the Dar Es Salam facility in Rabat, Morocco. It has been an affiliated member of the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) since 1958. The federation oversees equestrian sporting which includes horse racing, dressage, jumping, and the traditional equestrian sport of fantasia. Started in 1956, the federation was created under the Moroccan Ministry for Youth and Sports.
Equestrianism in Qatar holds significant economic and cultural importance. Following the Emirate's independence in 1971, the Al Thani family invested to make Qatar one of the major players in horse racing and equestrian sports. The Qatar Racing and Equestrian Club (QREC) was established in 1975, and the prestigious Al Shaqab stables were created in 1992. Today, Qatar is home to elite riders and world-renowned purebred Arabian horses. Since the early 21st century, the country has hosted lucrative horse races and major equestrian competitions, including the Global Champions Tour and international endurance riding competitions. While equestrianism is less prominent in Qatar compared to some neighboring Arab states, the ruling family continues to invest significantly in this sector. However, Qatar's rapid emergence on the international equestrian scene has been accompanied by controversy, particularly concerning allegations of doping in endurance events and horse racing.
Mylord Carthago is a gray Selle Français stallion and show jumping champion. Descended from Almé Z and sired by the Holsteiner stallion Carthago Z, his potential was recognized early on. At the age of seven, he was entrusted to French rider Pénélope Leprevost, who trained him. The pair went on to win European and World show jumping runner-up titles in 2010 and 2012. Mylord was also one of France's last national stallions and the threat of his sale from France in 2014 led to negative reactions from the show jumping public and political figures. Diagnosed with cervical osteoarthritis, Mylord was retired from jumping in 2014 to be a full-time breeding stallion.
Equestrianism is the third most popular Olympic sport inFrance, and the leading sport for women.
Totem de Brecey is a gray Selle Français gelding, ridden in eventing competitions by the French rider Christopher Six. It participated in the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2021 and won a bronze medal in the team event.