To think horses do not belong in the Olympics

[StunningCunt]

They've got this horse prancing sideways with a toff in a top hat on the top, and they are devoting hours of TV coverage because we might get a gold medal in this nonsense?

Why don't they just have a dog show there and be done with it?

Competitive sheep herding?

Motor racing?

I'm not sure they follow the law :( feckers

I think the point was that she rides but she's not a toff, sancerreity

That ^^

I am not sure why you directed that last comment at me - im on your side! I haven't referred to what horses do or do not do naturally. I'll have a look at your pics though and be Think you may have me confused with another poster.

Oh sorry! I must have confused you with another poster yeah lol, that'll teach me to be posting at stupid o'clock in the morning haha!

Its perfectly legal to kill a fox if you pretend it crosses your path whilst you are out on a drag hunt.

Its also legal to hunt foxes with a bird of prey (which is worse than dogs imo).

I think those silly foxes keep randomly crossing her path......its spooky how many times they seem to do that.........

anyway foxes are evil vermin and deserve to be hunted down and killed.

Foxes are beautiful creatures and get fed in my garden.

oh city foxes are OK

usually

Urgh no city foxes are worse!! Flea-bitten baby-attacking scumbags....

Dunno if any of the cynical people are still around but on the off chance they are...tune into modern pentathalon on BBC red button and you'll see how "easy" the fit athletes are finding it.

The modern lent halon is shocking isn't it! I always wonder why they don't put more effort in to actually learn to ride to a decent standard! Poor horses getting socked in the back teeth over every fence because the riders don't understand how to give with their hands.

Er, "lent halon" should of course be "pentathlon". Stupid auto correct

Urgh. I can't bear to watch it. Why they don't have riding lessons I don't understand. Just horrible. Please tell me it's Betterbthan Beijing though...

Beijing was horiffic! Was a bit better this time although one chap had a horse rear up and fall on top of him. It seemed very tense and he couldn't control it.

It was awful to see them riding like that :( really unimpressed.

erm, to the ranters... i was talking about a television programme Made By an ambassador of the sport... so actually i am perfectly at liberty to discuss how things seem.

as to the idea that anyone who disagrees with you should feel 'ashamed' when they see the paralympics, that's just nuts tbh. i admire those riders enormously, as it happens, their sport makes infinitely more sense.

It's the spurs I don't like. They are constantly jabbing away, I think that's why a lot of the horses got a bit upset at the start, one minute they are standing there, the next they're being booted forward by a rider who has apparently forgotten he's wearing spurs.

I'm not overly bothered by the stirrups at that level. It's the wannabes who need ought to be sorted out! I'm sick of seeing people who have no clue what they are doing, riding thin skinned horses with huge bald patches at spur level. This is usually accompanied by bald shoulders, and severe obesity!
It's rife in my area!

Duh! Spurs even!

their sport makes infinitely more sense.

Aitch the training involved in Olympic and Paralympic dressage will really be more or less the same. The horses are still at the top of their sport and train incredibly hard.

I fail to see how, if you think Olympic dressage is cruel to the horses, you could think Para was any better unless you know nothing about dressage . Of course you could be one of the "aww but don't they do well up there on the horse, let's give her a clap" brigade....

a rider who has apparently forgotten he's wearing spurs

Right yes, like you do when you're an Olympic level rider

Pixel if you meant the horses ridden by the pentathletes, I agree with you. Spurs are only meant to be used by someone with extremely fine lower leg control and understanding of the fine aids, and from what I saw few-to-none of the pentathletes met that criteria.

Aitch Dressage and Paralympic dressage are the same sport. The only difference is the latter includes fewer movements. Your logic does not resemble our Earth logic.

Fire

And apologies Pixel if you were referring to the pentathletes. I assumed you were referring to the Olympic riders proper iyswim....