This year's FEI Para Dressage European Championship will take place at the Dutch National Equestrian Centre in Ermelo, The Netherlands – a venue well-used to the big occasions because it regularlys hosts the annual FEI WBFSH Dressage World Breeding Championships for Young Horses, most recently in 2024.
A total of 57 combinations, representing 20 nations, are set to take part across the five classification grades. Thirteen of those nations will also contest the team competition on the Friday and Saturday.
The Dutch National Equestrian Centre offers top-class and highly accessible facilities. It's located in the Gelderland province, which is also home to the National Olympic Training Center Papendal and the Veluwe National Park, which offers great trails for horse riding, walking and cycling.
View the full definite entries list
Stay up to date with everything that's happening in Ermelo here, or via our Facebook and Instagram feeds.
You can also stay up to date via British Dressage's Facebook and Instagram feeds.
All results and timings are available to view via Equipe. The start lists will be updated after the first horse inspection takes place on Tuesday 26 August.
Para dressage is a test of horse and rider's ability to perform a range of movements in harmony, across the gaits of walk, trot and canter. Athletes classified into five grades (1–5) depending on their levels of mobility, strength and coordination. Grade 1 tests are ridden in walk, grade 2 and 3 include walk and trot, and grade 4 and 5 are comprised of walk, trot, canter and lateral work.
To assist them during their tests, riders may use additional aids such as looped reins or callers, and can enlist 'friend' horses to stand just outside the arena to help the competing horse stay relaxed. The aim is to ensure that all riders within a grade are competing on as level a playing field as possible.
All horses are examined on arrival and must pass a horse inspection by the ground jury and a veterinary delegate prior to the start of competition to ensure that they're fit to compete. All horses contesting the individual final must pass a second horse inspection on the morning of the rest day.
The day before competition starts, each nation takes part in an arena familiarisation session in the main arena, in order to help their horses become acclimated with the environment. The arena is set up exactly how it will be during competition, including all dressings and filming equipment. Nations will be allocated time slots for their familiarisation session, based on a draw process.
First up is the competition for individual medals, known as the FEI Para Grand Prix A. Athletes in each grade perform a set routine of movements, which are marked out of 10. Additional marks are given for the general impression of the test, which includes harmony, skill of the athlete and their accuracy. Scores are given as a percentage, with the combination with the highest percentage in each grade receiving the gold medal.
The top eight combinations in each grade will qualify for the freestyle test on the final day.
Teams are made up three or four athletes, at least one of which must be in grades one, two or three. No more than two athletes within a team may be the same grade. Each combination rides the set test for their grade, which is scored as per the individual test – no scores are carried over from the previous test – and the top three scores are added together to produce a team total. The nation with the highest total takes gold.
Eight combinations from each grade compete for medals by riding their own choreographed floorplan, set to music of their choice. No scores are carried over from the individual test, which acts as the qualifier. Scores are awarded as per the two previous tests, but with additional marks for artistic merit, which includes rhythm, harmony, riding skills, choreography and interpretation of the music. The winner is the combination with the highest percentage score.
Want to see the movements the riders will be doing? You can view all the tests they ride on the FEI website.
All the action will be available to stream live with English commentary on FEI.TV via a subscription to ClipMyHorse.TV. Click here for the full schedule.
We are also expecting the competition to be livestreamed on the FEI YouTube channel – if this is the case, this page will be updated with details of how you can access it.
Keep an eye on our social media feeds for the ride times of each of our British combinations.
Tickets are available to purchase through the online box office, starting at just 7.50€ for Wednesday to Saturday and 10€ for Sunday. Alternatively, you can buy a pass covering the whole competition for 12.50€. If you're planning to visit the event, further information is available here.