Horses didn’t do a lot of jumping until fences began appearing in previously open fields as a result of the adoption of a series of laws creating property rights and boundaries.
The sport of show jumping developed from challenges created by this new obstacle, and fences started showing up in sport arenas during 19th century equestrian competitions in Europe (known at the time as ‘Lepping’ or ‘horse leaping’). An early form of show jumping competition was included at the 1900 Paris Olympic Games. The sport was then included in its current format at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, and has continued to evolve and gain in popularity as a spectator sport.
Courage, Control and Technique
Grand Prix is the highest level of show jumping competition, and one of the most exciting sports to watch. Held under International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI) jumping rules, the horse must jump a course of 10 to 16 obstacles, with heights up to 1.6 meters (5’3”) spread out up to 2 meters (6’7”).
A horse must have courage to jump fences as well as athletic ability and skillful technique to handle the sharp turns and bursts of speed necessary to navigate difficult show jumping courses. Different breeds of horses have been successful show jumpers, and while most are tall (over 16 hands, 145cm/57in), there’s no correlation between size and athletic ability, and tall horses don’t necessarily have an advantage in jumping competitions. In fact, pony-sized horses may sometimes compete in open competition with adult riders. The most famous example is Stroller (1950-1986), a cross-bred who was only 14.1 hands, but won 61 international competitions and an individual silver medal in the 1968 Summer Olympics, jumping one of the only two clear rounds in the individual competition.
WATCH LIVE & FREE On2In2™
2019 Grand Prix competitions at Hunter Farms North, New Jersey USA are LIVE — Sundays, July 21, July 28, and August 4, 12-2pm EDT.
Programming Notes:
If you miss a Grand Prix live stream broadcast, you can watch video recordings of the competition. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button located on the media players below.
Sometimes it happens — scheduling changes, breaks in competition, or technical interruptions in the live broadcast. Please check back for live action updates, and take a look at the Live Stream Program Guide for more On2In2™ streaming info.
If you missed the live stream broadcast of the 2019 Liftmaster Grand Prix, there’s still time to watch video recordings of the competition. Just click/tap the “Watch Again” button or select from the video posts located on the media player below ↓
We’d love to hear from you! If you’d like to comment on this post, join the conversation, or share your inspiration, and you have not yet registered as an On2In2™ playmaker, please sign up via the ‘Engage page’. Don’t worry, it’s pretty quick and easy.
Feature photo is courtesy of Pixabay/Pexels CC0
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.