For many athletes, it will be the greatest day of their lives. The top sporting stars from 206 countries will make their grand entrance by boat on the Seine. Amid much pomp and ceremony, the 2024 Games will begin as the Olympic torch, a symbol of peace and unity, sets the Olympic cauldron ablaze.

But Charlotte Dujardin, a highly-decorated sportswoman in dressage - a sport where horses show off their moves in front of a panel of judges - will not be taking part in the celebrations.

Mere days before the opening ceremony, Dujardin has pulled out of the OlympicsA major international multi-sport event held every four years. in response to a video which appears to show her striking a horse 24 times with a long whip during a training session.

The incident, which Dujardin says took place four years ago, has sparked widespread outrage, with animal rights organisations demanding that dressage be banned from future Olympic Games.

Dujardin was set to be one of Britain's leading lights at the upcoming Olympic Games. She has won a multitude of equestrianRelated to horse riding. From the Latin "equus" or "horse". Olympic medals - three gold, one silver and two bronze - and was hoping to score a medal of any colour in order to become the most-decorated British female Olympian of all time.

Dujardin has been suspended by both the International Federation for Equestrian Sports and the British Equestrian Federation.

Equestrian sports have long been controversial. They have had historically high rates of rider risk - 12 equestrian athletes died in a particularly deadly period between 2007 and 2008 - and grisly animal cruelty allegations have repeatedly emerged in the community.

After several incidents of animal cruelty were uncovered in the modern pentathlon at Tokyo's 2021 Olympic Games, committee members decided that modern pentathlon would no longer be ridden at the Olympic Games. Riders feared that the outcry would pose an existential threat to equestrian sport, putting dressage at risk.¹

A series of strict bans have put an end to many unethical training methods over the last few decades. But experts say that the equipment that riders use on horses in equestrian sport, including nosebands, shock collars and spurs, are psychologically and physically harmful to horses.

Dujardin is not the only equestrian athlete who has been hit with allegations of animal cruelty in recent years. Andreas Helgstrand and Cesar Parra, both highly successful dressage athletes, were also seen in videos inflicting physical violence on their horses. In 2019, international outcry was sparked after 30 horses died within a six-month period at a racetrack in California. 

Dressage originated in ancient Athens, but became an important equestrian art during the RenaissanceThe "rebirth" of Western learning began in the late 15th century, as European scholars rediscovered ancient manuscripts and began to make developments in science and art.. Before it was a sport, dressage was a military pursuit. Horses were meticulously trained and schooled in grace and agility to aid their riders in battle.

As the ancient Greek philosopher Xenophon wrote in The Art of Horsemanship, "indeed a prancing horse is a thing so graceful, terrible and astonishing that it rivets the gaze of all beholders, young and old alike".²

Dressage only became a sport in the 19th Century, before being accepted as an Olympic sport in the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm. And until 1952, only commissioned military officers were eligible to compete in the category.³

But it is still far from a sport for the everyman. Top dressage horses cost as much as £200,000, leading many to dub the sport a preserve of the affluentWealthy. elite.

Should the Olympics drop dressage?

Yes: A horse cannot volunteer to take part in an Olympic sport. It will always take place against its will. We should put an end to such cruel and barbaric practices.

No: There will be cruel sportspeople who mistreat their horses just like there are cruel pet owners. But they are the exception, not the rule. You cannot end an important cultural tradition over one bad apple.

Or... Most of us do not care about dressage at all. It is a preserve of the rich and wealthy which only they are interested in keeping. We should abolish it to make room for more equitable sports.

FOR YOUR SUMMER READING CHALLENGE CLUE GO TO STEP SIX IN THE SIX STEPS TO DISCOVERY BELOW.