The Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) has approved significant amendments to the dressage rules, effective January 1, 2026, focusing on enhancing horse welfare, refining judging criteria, and clarifying competition procedures. A key change is a stricter blood rule requiring judges to stop and check any horse suspected of fresh blood from the moment they enter the arena space until the test concludes, with confirmed blood resulting in elimination. This rule extends scrutiny to blood around the horse’s mouth and spur area, reflecting a firmer stance compared to the more moderate show jumping blood rule. Additional updates include allowing judges to eliminate horses for dangerous behavior lasting less than 20 seconds, permitting video monitoring of warm-up arenas for welfare, and enabling the use of snaffle bridles up to the three-star level.
Other clarifications involve renaming the collective mark “General Impression” to “Harmony,” removing spurs from compulsory equipment, and tightening rules on unauthorized assistance and penalty deductions. Several proposals, such as harmonizing bleeding rules across disciplines and raising the minimum age for Grand Prix horses, were deferred for the comprehensive 2026 rule revision. The FEI aims to continue reviewing and streamlining dressage rules with input from stakeholders to ensure transparency, welfare, and consistency across Olympic equestrian disciplines.
