Equestrian Jumping

Equestrian disciplines have been on the Olympic Programme since 1900, when events were contested at the Olympics in Paris. Equestrian events were not held again, however, until 1912, in Stockholm. Since that year, the sport and the discipline of jumping have always been on the Olympic Programme. Through 1948, Olympic equestrian events were limited to military officers and men only, but in 1956 this was changed and equestrian jumping became open to either gender at the Olympics.

Jumping consists of the horse and rider jumping over a series of obstacles, with the goal being to clear the fences cleanly. Each horse and rider start with a perfect score of 0, and penalties are given for failing to clear a fence cleanly or balking at a fence. Time penalties may also be given for taking an excessive amount of time to finish the course.

Jumping events at the Olympics consist of an individual and team competition. Each event comprises several rounds, with a “cut” after each round in which the lower placed competitors, or teams, are eliminated. The horse/rider team with the fewest penalties wins the competition.

Germany, France, the United States, Great Britain, Italy, and Sweden are the top nations in Olympic equestrian jumping. Hans Günter Winkler leads the gold medal count with five, followed by Ludger Beerbaum (four), with both riders representing Germany and West Germany. Winkler also has the most medals overall in Olympic equestrian jumping, with seven, followed by two Italian brothers – Raimondo and Piero D’Inzeo – with six medals each.

Jumping is governed by the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI), which was formed in 1921 by Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Japan, Norway, Sweden, and the United States, and had 136 affiliated national federations as of 2024. The FEI governs several different disciplines of equestrianism, including jumping, eventing, dressage, driving, and vaulting.