ARE JUDGES TO BLAME?

Sir — I am often disappointed when I see photos of dressage winners, some not appearing as if they’re going correctly. I blame the dressage judges, who are rewarding incorrect work. Far too often I see horses behind the vertical, too short in the neck and hollow in the back.

Are these riders the best of a bad bunch? Or do the judges just not know what a horse going correctly really looks like? People often think classical dressage and competition dressage are completely different things, but this is nonsense.

The classical principles just allow the horse time to develop, which is more beneficial in terms of its career and wellbeing. Nowadays, though, riders want quick fixes, which can be to the detriment of the horse. Few are willing to put the time and effort in to training a horse correctly, which can take years.

Hopefully the judging will improve, with judges rewarding a correct way of going, which will encourage riders to ride properly and not just for a red rosette. Yes, modern sport and warmbloods are different to horses of the past, but we’ve been riding horses for thousands of years. They haven’t changed that much and they’re the same biomechanically. Barnaby Murphy Peterborough, Cambs