The FEI has today confirmed the shortlisted bidders for the FEI World Championships 2026. The shortlist comprises five Organising Committees who have applied to host events in various disciplines, as follows:
The FEI Board will allocate the FEI World Championships 2026 at its in-person Board Meeting on 18 November 2023 in Mexico City (MEX), following a thorough review by the FEI Evaluation Commission and taking into account recommendations by the Technical Committees.
Following three decades of a unique host formula for senior World Championships under the FEI World Equestrian Games™ format, in 2022 the FEI returned to a more flexible approach accepting single and multiple World Championship bids with a focus on catering to the needs and specificities of each discipline. Herning (DEN) hosted hugely successful events in Jumping, Dressage, Para Dressage, and Vaulting whereas Eventing and Driving Four-in-Hand competitions took place at Pratoni Del Vivaro (ITA), venue of the 1960 Olympic equestrian events. The FEI Endurance World Championships 2022 were held at Butheeb (UAE) last February.
“We are very pleased with the variety of bids we have received,” FEI President Ingmar De Vos said. “Following the outstanding FEI World Championships 2022 organised in Denmark, Italy and the UAE, we are confident this flexible approach with single and multiple bids serves not only the sport, but also the fans and the development of equestrian around the world, allowing different nations and venues to bid to host a major FEI event.”
Olympic qualifications
The FEI World Championships 2026 in Jumping, Dressage, Para Dressage, and Eventing will be the first qualifying events for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
A bit of history
The FEI World Championships have a long history.
Dressage is the FEI discipline with the longest tradition of Championships. A Grand Prix de Dressage, organised in Lucerne (SUI) as early as 1927, had hosted 12 riders representing five nations.
Official FEI Dressage Championships were organised on all non-Olympic years between 1930 and 1939 in Switzerland, France, Austria, Hungary, Germany, and Great Britain. The last such event took place in August 1939, only days before the outbreak of World War II.
The FEI tried to revive the event after the war with limited success. Participation gradually improved and European Championships were organised in 1963, which led to the first FEI Dressage World Championship held in Bern (SUI) three years later.
The first Para Dressage Championship, which took place under the leadership of the FEI, was held in July 2007 only a year after Para Equestrian came under the FEI umbrella. The event enjoyed a truly international representation gathering 133 athletes from 35 nations. Since 2010, FEI Dressage and Para Dressage Championships are being held concurrently.
The first FEI Jumping World Championship was organised in June 1953 at the Parc des Princes stadium in the south west of Paris (FRA). The event was drastically different from its modern equivalent as only 19 athletes from 11 countries, including Yugoslavia, Cambodia and the USA, competed. No women took part since female riders would not be able to enter Jumping competitions until 1956.
The first FEI Eventing World Championship was organised in 1966, the same year as the first FEI Dressage World Championship, at the beautiful estate of Lord Burghley in Lincolnshire, Great Britain. The Championship gathered 39 athletes representing five nations: Argentina, Great Britain, Ireland, USA, USSR.
The previous year the FEI had established the configuration according to which World Championships in the Olympic discipline of Jumping were held every four years in the non-Olympic even years and continental championships were organised in the odd years. This pattern is still in use today for all the FEI Olympic and Paralympic disciplines.
The non-Olympic disciplines
The first edition of the FEI Driving World Championship for Four-in-Hand was held in 1972 in Münster (GER) two years after Driving had become an FEI discipline. Since then, the event continues to be organised every two years.
Endurance became an FEI discipline in 1982, one year before Vaulting. The championship histories of these two non-Olympic disciplines have run in parallel from the start with World Championships organised every other year on even years.
FEI Endurance European Championships had been held in 1984 and 1985 until the first FEI Endurance World Championship was organised in September 1986 at Pratoni del Vivaro (ITA).
In 1983, one year after Driving, Vaulting also joined the FEI. In 1984 the first FEI Vaulting European Championship was organised and was followed by another European edition in 1985. This second European edition was open to the rest of the world. A strong showing from the USA convinced the FEI the time had come for a World Championship. The first FEI Vaulting World Championship took place in in the small Swiss town of Bulle from 18 to 20 July 1986.
FEI World Equestrian Games 1990 - 2018
The inaugural FEI World Equestrian Games™ were held in the Swedish capital Stockholm with the 1912 Olympic stadium as the main venue. On the initiative of the then-FEI President HRH Prince Philip, the World Championships in all the FEI discipline were held in the same city from 14 July to 5 August 1990. Given the smooth organisation and success of these Games, what should have been a one-off event, was extended and seven more editions took place in The Hague (NED) in 1994, Rome (ITA) in 1998, Jerez de la Frontera (ESP) in 2002, Aachen (GER) in 2006, Lexington, KY (USA) in 2010, Normandy (FRA) in 2014, and Tryon, NC (USA) in 2018. Please click here to visit the FEI History Hub where you will find more details about FEI World Championships.
FEI Eventing European Championships Juniors and Young Riders 2024 - Change of dates
At the request of the Organiser and with the approval of the FEI Eventing Committee and the European Equestrian Federation, the Board agreed to the change of dates from 15-18 August 2024 to 22-25 August 2024 for the FEI Eventing European Championships for Juniors and Young Riders taking place in Strzegom (POL).
Following the successful launch of the FEI Tack, Equipment & Dress Database and its mobile version the FEI TackApp, the FEI would like to provide the community with an update and clarification, following several queries received from different stakeholder groups.
The FEI Tack, Equipment & Dress Database is still in its first phase of development, as tack, equipment and dress items are currently being entered into the system. This entails uploading existing tack, equipment and dress items with accompanying photographs and/or videos across all FEI disciplines and marking them as “Permitted”, “Not Permitted”, “Not Applicable”, with exceptions where required.
Due to the high number of tack that is being used, or is attempted to be used, in FEI Competitions, this first phase of populating the Database will continue in the following months. Please note that pending items, which have not yet had their designation processed by the FEI, are temporarily marked as “Not Applicable (N/A)”. The FEI is currently developing an additional designation “Pending Review”, which will be used for those items so that the “N/A” designation can be used for items that are truly Not Applicable, i.e. not used in certain FEI disciplines.
This first phase is the most time consuming and once concluded, the number of new items being uploaded to the Database will diminish significantly. Once the first phase is concluded, a thorough review will be carried out to ensure consistency across disciplines and a good quality of photographic and video content. Each time a new item of tack, equipment and dress is added or amended, it will appear in the “Recently Updated” section of the Database.
Following an FEI decision, all “Not Applicable (N/A)” items which will be marked as “Not Permitted” items, will be uploaded into the Database only once a month i.e. on the first Monday of each month. These items will appear in the “Recently Updated” section of the Database. This will allow all stakeholders to acquaint themselves with any new item that may be relevant to them for upcoming competitions. At a later stage, the FEI aims to develop notification alerts which users will be able to activate for their respective discipline(s), when a new item (marked “Not Permitted”) is added. All other “Permitted” items will be uploaded into the Database on a regular basis. Together with items being amended during the final review, “Permitted” items will also appear in the “Recently Updated” section of the Database.
The FEI will continue with developing new features of the FEI Tack, Equipment & Dress Database, to further enhance its practicality and usefulness. In the future, FEI Officials and others will be able to submit new items of tack, equipment and dress directly to the FEI via the FEI TackApp for review and eventual designation in the Database.
In the meantime, we are grateful for your patience while the Database is being populated and perfected. We strive to make the FEI Tack, Equipment & Dress Database and its mobile version, the FEI TackApp, an essential, indispensable and user-friendly tool for FEI Officials, Athletes, their Support Personnel and other stakeholders.
The Rules Revision Process 2023 is well underway with the first draft of the proposed changes now available to National Federations and Stakeholders for review and feedback by 16 August 2023 prior to being submitted to the General Assembly for approval in November as per the timeline below:
1 March 2023
National Federations and Stakeholders with whom the FEI has signed an MOU have the opportunity to propose Rules changes as per the FEI Periodical Rules Revision Policy.
28 June 2023
The FEI provides National Federations and Stakeholders with the first Draft of proposed Rules change.
IMPORTANT
The 1st Draft of proposed Rules changes Memos as well as the Templates to provide feedback by 16 August 2023 can be found HERE. ONLY proposals submitted online on the Rules Revision Platform using the respective Templates will be accepted.
16 August 2023
National Federations and Stakeholders are given seven weeks to review the first Draft and the proposed amendments in this first Draft and make comments and/or propose any changes in relation to the first Draft.
24 October 2023
Final Draft of the proposed Rules changes is provided to National Federations and Stakeholders.
20 November 2023
Rules Session at FEI General Assembly in Mexico City (MEX).
21 November 2023
Voting of Rules at the FEI General Assembly.
For more information on the FEI Rules Revision processes and timelines, click here.
If you have any questions please contact the FEI Director Governance & Institutional Affairs at Francisco.lima@fei.org
The Bid Process for the Qualifiers of the
Bids can be initiated by any interested party by uploading the Application Form (available to download via the FEI Online Bid Platform) to the FEI Online Bid Platform. All bids must be validated by the relevant National Federation via the FEI Online Bid Platform. The deadline to submit bids is Friday, 28 July 2023.
The applicable bid process timeline is the following:
Application Phase
MONDAY 26 JUNE 2023
Opening of the Bid Process
FRIDAY 28 JULY 2023
Deadline for receipt of applications.
All applications to be submitted by the FEI Online Bid Platform.
Review of Bids
The FEI reserves the right to create a shortlist of candidates based on its initial review of the Applications/Bids received.
END JULY 2023
Draft Host Agreement provided to (shortlisted) candidates.
JULY – AUGUST 2023
FEI and Eventing Technical Committee evaluation of shortlisted bid.
18 AUGUST 2023
Deadline for Host Agreement to be signed by Organiser and National Federation and returned to the FEI.
Allocation
29 AUGUST 2023
Allocation decision* by FEI and announcement of the Organisers of the FEI Eventing Nations CupTM 2024 Season.
*The FEI reserves the right to allocate a Qualifier(s) at an earlier or later date depending on the progress of the application/review process.
The names of candidates vetted by the FEI Nominations Committee for the Elections & Appointments 2023 are available on Inside.FEI.org. For the positions to be elected by the FEI General Assembly 2023, the candidacy files can also be consulted.
The open positions are:
Elections
• Chair of Regional Group III – Board Member
• Chair of Regional Group VII – Board Member
• Chair of Driving Technical Committee – Board Member
• Chair of FEI Tribunal
• Members of FEI Tribunal
• Member of Audit & Compliance Committee
• Members of Nominations Committee, all Regional Groups
Appointments
• Member of Jumping Committee
• Member of Dressage Committee
• Member of Para Equestrian Committee
• Member of Eventing Committee
• Member of Driving Committee
• Member of Vaulting Committee
• Members of Veterinary Committee
• Member of Medical Committee
Should you have any questions regarding the FEI Elections & Appointments 2023, please contact the Director of Governance & Institutional Affairs, Francisco Lima.
The FEI Sports and Veterinary Department would like to draw your attention to the application deadline to host FEI Transfer Up or CES (FEI Competency-based Evaluation System) Maintenance Courses in 2024.
We kindly ask you to download the relevant application & budget forms, which can be accessed via the links provided below, and to send them to the FEI via the corresponding email address also provided below, no later than the 31 July 2023.
Should you have any questions regarding the administration of our courses, please contact the relevant FEI Sport or Veterinary Department who will be able to assist you.
The FEI Board held a teleconference on 2 May. The Paris 2024 resolution taken on this occasion is listed below.
PARIS 2024 OLYMPIC AND PARALYMPIC GAMES
The Board approved the following appointments of International Technical Officials for the 2024 Olympic Games:
Eventing Technical Delegate: Marcin Konarski (POL)
Jumping Technical Delegate: Guilherme Nogueira Jorge (BRA)
Foreign Veterinary Delegate: Dr Emily Sandler (USA)
President of the Veterinary Commission: Dr Thierry Grisard (FRA)
Member of the Veterinary Commission: Dr Juliana Freitas (BRA)
Member of the Veterinary Commission: Dr Julius Peters (NED)
Overall Chief Steward: Cesar Hirsch (VEN)
Updated 12 May 2023
Eventing Olympic Minimum Eligibility Requirements
Please consult the FEI Regulations for Equestrian Events at the Olympic Games for Paris 2024 (Article 626) published here for the Minimum Eligibility Requirements (MER) applicable for Paris 2024 (the “Olympic Regulations”).
Athlete/Horse combinations will obtain a regular qualifying result as usual if the minimum eligibility requirements are met. However, in accordance with the rule set out in Article 626 of the Olympic Regulations, the approved Olympic Qualification system (see § 5, page 2), we wish to remind NFs that Athlete/Horse combinations will not be eligible to earn a MER for a qualifying result for the Olympic Games if the combination has already started a cross country test within less than 10 days after a short format competition (CCI–S) and within less than 28 days (i.e. 4 weeks) after a long format competition (CCI–L).
For the welfare of the Horse and for risk management reasons, the FEI will monitor all combinations participating, including those not respecting a rest period of 10 days after a short format competition or 28 days after a long format competition. Where possible, National Federations, Athletes, Coaches and Officials will be informed of entries not respecting the above deadlines to ensure that the welfare of the Horse remains paramount. However, and for the avoidance of doubt, it is each National Federation’s responsibility to monitor compliance with the rest period requirements. Should you have any question, please contact the Eventing and Olympic Department.
FRANGIBLE DEVICES
Following much development and discussion, the use of frangible fences is increasing across the whole sport. This is a very positive step for the ongoing safety of both horse and rider. As more Course Designers and Course Builders use these devices, we are aware that there will be new and creative ideas on how they can be used in the field. It is a significant help in understanding of how these devices work.
The most current instruction manuals for the building of frangible fences are always available on the FEI website (Eventing/Risk Management/Deformable & Frangible Devices), we encourage Course Builders to use these in constructing new fences and in adapting existing fences.
Please follow as closely as possible these instructions. When building fences, if you come up with ideas, please take photos of your plans and email them to the Risk Management Steering Group (Stuart@bedeltd.co.uk or davidwvos@gmail.com), this will allow the monitoring and review of these innovations. Please bear in mind that not all innovations may be acceptable.
We are aware of the need for a period in which Course Designers and Course Builders work towards building new frangible fences to enable them to incorporate designs into more traditional type jumps that fit the instruction weights and dimensions.
All new MIM fences should be fitted with a MIM weight plate as from 1st November 2023 latest (available from MIM https://mimclip.mimsafe.com/shop/ at no charge and now supplied with all new kits) at time of building.
Please also refer to the updated version of the FEI Standard for Frangible/Deformable cross county fences (Version 3 - April 2023) available here.
Course Designers and Course Builders need to be aware that the lighter the rail, the less force is required to trigger the device. The use of light timber should be avoided where horses naturally ‘rub’ rails (e.g.: into coffins, high speed fences) and conversely, the heavier the rail / table the more force is required to activate the device. Heavy rails should be avoided where the jumping speed is slower.
As a reminder, there comes a point at which a heavy rail / table, even if suspended on air, could cause a rotation.
All MIM fences must not exceed the maximum specified rail / table weight by more than 25%. This weight includes the dressing (for example heavy pots on top of a table).
It is the responsibility of the event Officials to ensure frangible devices used at events are fitted in accordance with the instructions.
UPDATED MIM ONE PAGERS UPDATE
We know building Cross Country fences is not an exact science in the field, Course Designers and Technical Delegates should ensure that fences built with MIM devices follow the instructions.
The updated MIM ONE PAGE CORRECT FITTING CHECKS are enclosed and available to print out from the FEI website (Eventing / Risk Management / Deformable & Frangible Devices).
These check lists have also been added in the updated Cross Country Guide for Officials (Updated on 20.04.2023) available on the website (Eventing / Rules) and in the FEI Rule App (to display the latest version (Last update on 20 April 2023), you might have to delete the existing XC Guide document from the FEI Rule App library and swipe at the top of the App to refresh the documents), as well as on the Officials Facebook page.
They are available for the following kits:
TD’s, CD’s and GJ should use these check lists during course inspections and check that the Course Builders have fitted the Frangible devices to the correct measurements.
Any frangible device not fitted according to the “MIM One page correct fitting checks” should be altered by the Course Builder / Course Designer by January 2025.
MIM INSTRUCTIONS UPDATE
It is essential to follow the MIM instruction to ensure the correct function.
The following instruction manuals have been updated on the FEI website (Eventing / Risk Management / Deformable & Frangible Devices):
MIM QUESTIONS / ASSISTANCE
Any question about correct fitting of frangible devices are to be addressed to:
RMSG members:
MIM founder:
Note: please be mindful of time zones if using their mobile numbers
A list of Frangible Device Advisors is also available in the MIM FAQs document.
If a frangible device is incorrectly fitted, it would be very helpful if you could take a photo and send it (to the above-mentioned) as it will help to identify what errors are being made and improve the instruction manuals accordingly.
All information relating to Frangible Devices is available on the FEI website under Eventing / Risk Management / Frangible Devices
CROSS COUNTRY GUIDE FOR OFFICIALS UPDATE
The following sections have been updated; the Cross Country Guide for Officials is available on the FEI website (Eventing / Rules) and in the FEI Rule App (to display the latest version (Last update on 20 April 2023), you might have to delete the existing XC Guide document from the FEI Rule App library and swipe at the top of the App to refresh the documents)
Page 21 - Frangible Deformable Devices (art. 547.2.4)
Page 22 - Current thoughts on what device to use
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