Is it true about Charlotte Dujardin withdrawing from the Olympics?

[Freakwave897]

Or is it fake news?

It’s so disappointing if true…

I am a huge fan and can’t quite believe what I am hearing.

Hopefully they've also ruined the future of Dressage at the Olympics.
Ridiculous people who think dressing up and abusing animals is sport. No one apart from a tiny minority have any respect for them.

I don't think it was malicious beyond wanting to get maximum publicity for the idea that doing this is wrong

Agreed. It was effective. Not malicious. The only things that's malicious is how Dujardin treated this horse, and probably many others.

I also really feel for the kid riding it. I imagine the horse is the child’s pride and joy. So chuffed to have a lesson with CD sponsored by someone which turns into this horror show.

Isn't it odd how whistleblowing is so often portrayed as malicious? Poor unfairly treated abusers. 😬

I've seen the video clip now and honestly believe she should be banned from owning or working with horses for life. She whips the poor horse repeatedly and laughs.

As for why it was released now, the motives are clearly and obviously malicious : To destroy Britain’s chances at the Olympics and to destroy Charlotte’s career. Well, hats off to them, because they have succeeded
She has destroyed her own career and actually the fact that it was released before the games started means we have been able to put in the reserve combo . If they had wanted to affect the olympics they would have waited until the event started .

The girl riding the unfortunate animal by the sounds of it had a complicit mother- the one giggling like a schoolyard bully.

They were all complicit.

The cruelty video, along with it's utter utter disrespect for a horses' wellbeing should have been made public YEARS beforehand.

CDJ commenting about people not knowing how to hit horses hard enough? Unreal.

To be fair, that poster also wrote, immediately above your quoted piece,

“She must never represent Britain again. I hope all her sponsors dump her, I hope she is kicked out of the sport, I hope her pupils desert her and I hope her business goes bust.”

No one is defending her here.

Who knows what the motives were for releasing it now?

Let’s hope top of the list is horse welfare.

No doubt the owner trusted Dujardin's expertise and the fact that she knew what was doing when it came to horses. But even if you think (wrongly) that excessive use of the whip is okay, it's the horse's behaviour that's the clincher.

All riders have ridden horses that kick and buck a bit before, when they're in a lazy or ornary mood and don't want to respond to command. But the way this animal was bucking and shying in fear would have made me as a rider extremely nervous. I'd have HAD to remonstrate. Of course, that would likely have made a young rider fear looking incompetent in front of the 'expert' too.

If nothing else, the horse's reaction showed how wrong and shocking Dujardin's methods were. I've never seen a horse 'trained' in this way, or showing fear like this with a rider on their backs. Ever.

Wow I had no idea @oakleaffy. So is it just the sponsor that was horrified enough to raise it? Shocked.

How awful to think a young girl thinks this is ok.

People are speculating about malice simply because the Olympics starts in two days.

That doesn’t mean that anyone is defending this horrible abuse.

No one knows why it was timed for now but horse welfare, maximum impact, and Olympic competition are all possible.

Either way, abuse is abuse. We don’t need to fall out on here when everyone on this thread is in agreement that CD’s actions are abhorrent.

I approve of the timing actually, maximum exposure. If anything opens the way to proper action in this country it will be this.

Absolutely. I wonder how common this sort of behaviour is.

The latest update from the lawyer of the whistleblower is that they released the video to ‘save dressage’.

i haven’t heard much else, that was just on the radio.

As I said earlier, I don’t much care why, but maybe this could be the beginning of people pushing back on animal abuse within the industry?

The 19 yr old whistle-blower did what nobody else would.He/she didn't,t prolong the suffering of these poor horses by not releasing the video earlier.
The people all around Charlotte, her team mates included prolonged the suffering of these horses.They all knew she was using abusive tactics, yet not one of them videoed her.That in itself raises so many questions if they all love horses as much as they claIm.

The GB Dressage Team should be with drawn from the Paris Olympics to allow a full investigation into their practices.

This is so true. It’s always whistleblowers who suffer the consequences. I know you said @Freakwave897 that no one here is defending her actions, but on news pieces and interviews today it feels as though the interviews have been in three parts; the abuse, the future of the sport and the whistleblower, when the focus should be the abuse, why abuse is continuing and how they stop abuse. That’s what is. Othering me, it’s like it’s part of the issue when I think most of us here recognise it’s the whole issue.

I agree.
It's one person's fault that we are down one Olympian. Well, maybe one person and a board that turns a blind eye to this "training" until someone provides undeniable proof they can't brush off.
She CHOSE to behave that way, and we all know it's not a one off and it wasn't an "error of judgement". Hopefully, this timing will bring maximum attention to an issue that NEEDS maximum attention.

Fucking bitch. Hope she loses everything and rots in hell.

Funny! I have never heard animal cruelty called 'an error of judgement before!' Hmmmm.

What a load of old tripe. She is an animal abuser. End of. Her career will be ruined now, and her reputation destroyed.

I saw her interviewed on the TV a few days ago, and she seemed really nice.

Isn't that odd? Covered the real 'her' up quite well.

Also, the animal abuser apologists need to have a long hard look in the mirror. Give your head a wobble! How DARE you excuse this behaviour from this woman?! Sad thing is that I believe it goes on a lot more than people think.

Bit like Strictly. Who knew what was going on behind the scenes eh?! Truth always comes out!

Here’s the latest update on that:
www.bbc.com/sport/equestrian/articles/cw0y240r78qo.amp

I must admit, as a rider, watching it again, I can’t work out quite what she is trying to achieve by whipping that poor horse.

I don’t do high level dressage but I was taught to build impulsion through the use of my body, without touching the horse. And if a horse is “nappy”, encouraging a horse forward prevents it from bucking. But CD seems to be causing bucking and kicking out. It’s bizarre.

Can any competitive dressage riders shed any light please?

It is said that “how you ride is who you are” and sadly that is all too true and says a lot about CD.

As a former fan, I am not only really angry about the cruelty, which is bad enough in itself, but I am also upset about the deception that she has perpetuated. When I think about the hundreds of articles about her in equestrian magazines, many read by children, with her held up to be an example of “best practice” it really makes my blood boil.

I hope you are not saying anyone is defending her on here AndForAFortnightThereWeWereForever

Every poster has condemned the abuse.

I wrote the op as the news was breaking yesterday when I genuinely could not believe what I was hearing or reading. The thread has moved on since then and since the video was released this morning. No one is doubting her guilt now that’s for sure. What she has done is indefensible.

I’d like to hear from her business partner and fellow Olympian Carl Hester. His silence today, as someone so close to her training and competition prep, is rather deafening. He has also led the PR drive against abuse in the sport which I hope wasn’t just talk. Now is the time for him to speak up.

It reminds me of what happened to me at a dressage clinic with a very well known rider with my five year old. I’m a fairly straight talker so it happened twice as in once far too firm for my liking and me thinking wtf, quickly followed by another - as hard as a schooling whip could be used. This was late nineties.

My DD says I’d often get cancelled in today’s world 😱, rest assured I didn’t mince my words and this person did not get the chance to do it again. Perhaps it is endemic.

There’s an element of shock when you’re on board and this sort of thing happens.

I can’t imagine what she thought she’d achieve that was positive.

The video is infinitely worse than I possibly imagined.
I was imagining a couple of smacks with a crop behind the girth for “ misbehaving “ at worst- not wholesale lashing of a horses legs and tender belly and probably genital area - very sensitive areas in horses.

It seemed like anger on CDJ’s part, lashing him because she COULD.

Just pointless bullying hardly conducive to making a horse enjoy his work.