a group of designated “selectors” based on the recommen- dation of the applicable sport committee (for example, the Dressage Sport Committee recommended to the IDC a designated number of people to serve as team selectors for the U.S. Dressage Team for the 2018 WEG). The differences in reining and show jumping’s selection procedures will be explained briefly in the next section. Will Connell, who is from Great Britain and who led the
British Equestrian Team at both the London 2012 Olympic Games and the 2014 FEI World Equestrian Games, talks at length about team selection. “The first thing to define is ‘what is selection?’ Selection must not be a destination, but merely a pit stop on the way to ensuring the best three/ four/five athlete and horse(s) combinations cross the finish line at the Games, having achieved their ultimate perfor- mance. What do I mean by this? Essentially, selection must not be the primary target. By definition, if an athlete wins a medal at WEG 2018, they will have been selected. However, selection is not the primary target. Maximizing performance at the Games is the primary target.” “Of course, selection must be fair and transparent as much as it can be,” Connell continues. “Athletes and coaches (and in our sport the owners are also essential cogs in the wheel) must know what they need to do to visit that pit stop and stamp their WEG card. There are very few sports left that are purely objective, but many that are a mix of subjectivity and objectivity. My father missed out on an Olympic spot (in sailing as a crewman); he was more talented and more competitive than the person who took his place (results after and before confirmed this). He never fully came to terms with the disappointment in the selec- tion process. We have a responsibility to put in place selec- tion procedures that achieve results and targets, encourage and develop performance, give opportunity, promote ethi- cal sport and require compliance with FEI and USEF rules and regulations from the participants.” The selectors observe eligible horse and rider/driver/
vaulter combinations through the selection period and recommend the selection of team members and alternates to their High Performance Working Group and/or Sport Committee. The selectors will receive input from chefs d’equipe, team vets, doctors and coaches as required and
USEF Director of Sport Will Connell from Great Britain was hired just after the 2014 Alltech FEI World Eques- trian Games and tasked to develop a long-term plan for development and advancement of U.S. equestrian sports. He shared his thoughts going into the WEG this fall, “Heading into the 2018 WEG in Tryon, I feel we are on
the right road, but there is more road in front of us than behind us. Tryon will bring both the advantages and disadvantages of a home Games. We need the equestrian community’s support, but we also need to ensure the athletes have the space and the envi- ronment within which to prepare for WEG and deliver the results we know they are capable of.”
20 March/April 2018
as defined in the selection procedures. Selection for WEG is ultimately approved by the USEF Board of Directors or an ad hoc committee of the Board. Connell stresses that it is very important to review the specific qualification and selection rules and requirements in full for each of the eight international disciplines. These specifics can be found on the USEF and FEI web sites and links will be listed in the next section with short explana- tions of the specs for each sport. “It is essential that all involved with selection for WEG, in any capacity, read the full procedures for each discipline. These can be found on the US Equestrian website. These procedures cannot be paraphrased,” he emphasizes. He explains that, in essence, the selection procedures are
split into two areas. First, sport-specific sections are devel- oped by the team leaders, chefs d’equipe and the High Performance Working Group for each discipline (which is comprised of coaches, selectors, athletes, etc.) and signed off by the discipline’s Sport Committee (which has wide representation of members and includes a minimum of at least twenty percent eligible athletes). The second element of the selection process, the legal requirements and review processes, go through the USEF’s legal department, the IDC and ultimately, to the USEF Board of Directors for approval. This procedure covers the criteria that will be used to make the selection decisions, the timelines, any compul- sory events, the substitution processes and the ‘clean sport’ program for equestrians and horses. “The reining [selection] is almost entirely objective,”
explains Connell, “But most disciplines are a mixture of subjectivity and objectivity. Results and consistency of results are the primary but not the sole criteria for subjec- tive selection, and all involved must read the criteria in detail. Ultimately, we are judged by results on the field of play and that is the very epicenter of elite sport.” “Qualified” does not equal “selected” for a team.
Joanie Morris, USEF managing director for eventing, points out that it is also important to understand the difference between a horse and human athlete pair being “qualified” versus “selected.” She shares that horses and athletes who have met a minimum set of qualification standards set by the FEI are considered qualified for the sport at that level and are issued an “FEI certificate of capability.” Those horses and athletes who have earned that certifi-
cate in a particular sport may be eligible (if they meet all other requirements) to compete in the designated obser- vation and/or selection trials from which horse and rider/ driver/vaulter pairs will be selected for the team and team alternates. The qualification criteria for the 2018 WEG for all eight of the disciplines can be found on the FEI web site at
http://inside.fei.org/system/files/WEG2018_Qualifica- tion%20Criteria_12December2017.pdf. Morris says it is easy for people following the selection
process to be confused as to why some horses don’t end up making the team, even though a particular horse has been winning and in the news. “Sometimes what happens is that people think, ‘Well what about this horse or that horse?’
Courtesy of US Equestrian
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