Welcome to the FEI Annual Report 2022.

Every year, as we compile the achievements of the year gone by, we relive many of the milestones and the highlights which have characterised those twelve months, and we are able see the patterns and the trends with even greater clarity, and in this case, for 2022, a year which reaffirms the underlying values and passion that so clearly drive our sport and our community forward.

2022 was challenging on many fronts, but it was also rewarding and heart-warming, because the challenges shed a light on the powerful strength and resilience of our community to overcome and deliver in the face of adversity. We had already discovered much of this strength with the Covid-19 pandemic followed by the EHV-1 outbreak in Europe in 2021, where we had honed our ability to adapt, be flexible and work together in the same direction for the greater good.

The onset of the war in Ukraine in February of 2022 and the ongoing conflict and devastation since then has been extremely distressing and has had a huge impact on global markets and our collective sense of security, but we forged ahead, and we rallied together to provide the best possible solutions and support to the equestrian community in Ukraine.

While it was overwhelming at first to identify how and where to help effectively, we were quick to establish priorities, and through regular and effective contact with the National Federation of Ukraine, and the Charity Foundation, we were able to provide targeted and meaningful support across all the different sectors of the equestrian community. From sport related scholarships and training grants to extensive horse welfare related initiatives including the purchase and distribution of large quantities of veterinary supplies and equipment financed by the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) Relief Fund, we made – and continue to make – an important contribution to the wellbeing of the equestrian community in Ukraine.

We had hoped the situation would improve by the end of 2022 and provide some respite to the Ukrainian people, but also that we would be able to lift the protective measures imposed on Russian and Belarusian Athletes, Horses and Officials. However, at the time of writing (Q2 2023), this has yet to happen as the war rages on and the recommendations are not entirely clear with regards to the criteria and the procedures we can use to establish the “neutrality status” required to allow Russian and Belarusian Athletes to compete again. That being said, and as the FEI Board has confirmed – on many occasions – the FEI fully supports the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) position regarding the principle that there should not be governmental interference in sport and that Athletes should not be discriminated against based upon their nationality. You can read all about the fundraising, the support we have been able to provide on the ground thanks to a global community effort and many other development initiatives in the FEI Solidarity section.

Many important milestones were achieved in 2022, both on and off the field of play, and this being a World Championship year – the field of play was exceptional! But it’s behind the scenes where I believe we achieved the most, especially with regards to our commitment to our number one stakeholder the horse when we set up the Equine Ethics and Wellbeing Commission – an independent committee focussed on the welfare and wellbeing of sport horses – which you can read all about in a new section we have created entitled World of Horse.

Being accountable and transparent for every facet of our sport and engaging in constructive ethical debate is essential to maintain our social licence to operate, and hence essential to the future of our sport. And while we can pride ourselves on numerous rules, protocols, systems and safeguarding mechanisms in place to ensure FEI Horses are treated with the utmost care and are protected from any unsportsmanlike behaviour, there is always more that can and must be done. This is why the EEWB was set up in 2022, because while there are lots of moving parts, we need to take a concerted, honest and independent look at how these all fit together, to highlight the gaps and the inconsistencies, but also to listen to the concerns of the public so that we can proactively address them, and improve and strengthen the mechanisms we have in place to safeguard our horses and our sport!.

We were certainly not short of top sport in 2022. The annual figures are coming back to their pre-covid numbers – with 4,545 international events in 2022 – including some memorable encounters. At the FEI World Championships, we had the privilege to see the crème de la crème battle it out for national and individual glory at spectacular venues and furthermore, for our Olympic and Paralympic disciplines it was also the chance to start securing team slots for Paris 2024. You can read all about the 11 nations who secured the first 25 Olympic and Paralympic qualifying team slots in 2022 and are now on their Road to Paris, among many exceptional sporting highlights in FEI World of Sport!

One of our biggest priorities is to ensure equestrian remains on the Olympic and Paralympic programme and remains relevant to audiences around the world that tune in to these Games every four years, whether they tune in to TikTok or traditional linear television. President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, was very complimentary of our sport, and of the FEI’s efforts and the willingness of our community to embrace change when he attended the FEI 100 Years celebration back in April, and also when he visited in September the FEI Eventing World Championship in Pratoni del Vivaro.

We have an incredible sport and we must continue to put our best foot forward and showcase the values that make equestrian unique, but also the ability of our community to innovate and reinvent itself in order to continue to attract and engage the next generation of fans, athletes, officials, organisers, sponsors, and the list goes, within an ever-changing media landscape, without of course compromising who we are and what we stand for. You can discover our social media engagement and fan activation campaigns in our specially dedicated section FEI Campaigns & Fan Engagement. With technology continuously progressing at high speed we have eagerly been keeping up with the latest trends and finding new, fun and engaging ways to bring our sport to the broader equestrian community.

Good governance is at the heart of everything we do, and in 2022 we continued to champion dialogue and debate through our annual consultation meeting – the FEI Sports Forum – in Lausanne in April where we touched on many of the topics I have raised above and had the opportunity to sign a historic partnership with the International Grooms Association, and then the General Assembly in South Africa where a number of decisions were made, based on these consultative sessions. You can read all about these key meetings and key decisions made in 2022 in the FEI Governance Highlights section.

Being re-elected for my third and final term at the FEI General Assembly 2022 was a huge honour, and I am grateful and humbled to have this opportunity to continue working together and to consolidate the important strides we have taken to future proof our sport. As a global community, with many different roles and perspectives, we are all parts of a well-oiled (sustainable!) machine, and I believe in recent years we have come to really embrace our differences and recognise our collective role in ensuring a successful future for our sport, our industry and for all the equestrian enthusiasts out there. All the achievements and milestones highlighted in this Annual Report are the result of this dynamic and vibrant ecosystem, so without further a due…

Thank you to all our National Federation members for their ongoing drive and ambition; to the FEI Board and Committee Members for their valuable input and guidance; to all the Officials, Organisers, Athletes, Horse Owners, Grooms, Veterinarians and support teams; and to the FEI Headquarters led by FEI Secretary General Sabrina Ibáñez, for their unrelenting efforts to manage and grow our sport in a fair and sustainable manner.

And finally, I would like to thank our partners and sponsors, and in particular the FEI’s Top Partner Longines for the fruitful collaboration and vision to represent the very best of our sport. It is a pleasure and a motivation to work with such a wonderful partner who shares the same values and is committed to the future of equestrian sport. 

Here’s to 2023 and beyond. We have some very exciting projects in the pipelines, and we have Paris 2024, so the future is indeed very bright and I have every confidence that our sport and our community can and will overcome any challenges that may present themselves in our way, and that we will continue to build on our strengths.

Happy browsing!