Equestrian sport must have a ‘social licence’
The World Games endurance fiasco must be learned from
PUBLIC trust is vital for sport to have a place today, and to secure a safe future, the equestrian world has been warned.
So says former Metropolitan Police commissioner Lord
Stevens, who heads the FEI independent equestrian community integrity unit.
The FEI asked the unit to investigate the endurance fiasco at the 2018 World Equestrian Games (WEG, news, 20 September).
After a false start, where some riders were misdirected, the ride was cancelled on welfare grounds.
“There was a catalogue of errors that created the perfect storm which resulted in a false start,” Lord Stevens told the general assembly.
“There were a number of issues, such as clear lack of communication by officials, which may in part be caused by a lack of readiness of the venue leading up to the competition.”
He added ancillary projects at the venue that took time and resources were a “major factor”, as were staffing levels.
“You, the FEI, invested heavily into the Games to ensure an endurance event took place and it is unacceptable events unfolded as they did,” said Lord Stevens.
“Now we must take all these issues and learn from them. It’s not just endurance, there were
other complaints, therefore it’s more important now than ever to keep integrity at the heart of everything we do and all this takes place on a hugely turbulent sports landscape in general.
“In this kind of atmosphere in sport, even the smallest incident involving integrity will be the subject of headlines, and causes enormous reputational damage.”
He added the FEI is held in a “position of respect” by other federations, by leading the way on scrutiny by independent bodies.
“More and more sports are realising it is no longer OK to make your homework and mark it yourself,” said Lord Stevens.
He said the FEI reporting hotline, which can by used by anyone to raise concerns of abuse, harassment and bullying, is crucial and had three times more calls this year than in 2017.
“I see this as a very optimistic sign that people have confidence to call us and we can act in the way they want us to,” he said. “There must be a platform where victims can be protected, be heard and their story told.
“This informs and encourages others to stand up to behaviours that need to be eradicated. Nothing else is satisfactory.” Roly Owers, chief executive of World Horse Welfare, which acts as an independent welfare advisor to the FEI, echoed Lord Stevens’ message on public trust.
“For the equestrian sector to thrive, we need to understand the emerging importance of having a social licence to operate,” he said.
“FEI values cite that the horse is at the heart of the sport. They are absolutely right.”
FRONT AND CENTRE
HE said “every federation needs to put welfare front and centre”, and “constantly” remind the public how they are doing this.
“You can have the best rules in the world, but they amount to nothing more than a muckheap if they are not enforced and this inflicts extraordinary damage on the integrity of our sport,” he said.
“I want to stress the vital role of all officials, judges, stewards and vets, and the critical importance of their training, expertise, conscientiousness and independence. They are integral to fair sport and the safeguarding of horse welfare.
“It is essential officials never feel intimidated or threatened for calling out bad behaviour, and they must always have robust support of organisers, federations and the FEI if equestrian sport is to thrive in increasing scrutiny.
“Let no one allow the integrity and professionalism of your officials to be questioned. There is so much to celebrate in equestrian sport and while we need to recognise the growing risks, we need to grab the opportunity we have, right here, right now.”
‘Rules amount to nothing more than a muckheap if they are not enforced’
ROLY OWERS