Dressage History at the Olympic Games

A very condensed history!  ;-)

Romy

 

Gimpel and Hermann von Oppein-Bronikowski won a gold medal in team dressage at the 1936 Berlin Olympics

At the 1952 Helsinki Games, Denmark's Lis Hartel became the first woman to win a medal in equestrian dressage.

Olympic Games

Equestrian- Dressage History

Horse ballet for officers

Dressage was born out of military training, and in the early years of Olympic competition, only officers were allowed to compete in the event.

Despite its formal, ballet-like appearance and emphasis on proper form and aesthetics, dressage actually has its roots in military training. The lives of soldiers dating back as far as ancient Greece depended on how quickly and nimbly their horses reacted in battle, and it was vital that the animals be impeccably trained.

For officers and gentlemen

The first known dressage or equitation manual was compiled by the Greek writer Xenophon in around 400 BC. Many of the movements developed then and refined through the ages are still part of modern-day dressage.

Dressage first appeared at the Olympic Games in 1912 and for many years only commissioned military officers were eligible to compete. In fact, in 1948 the Swedish team was disqualified and stripped of its gold medal because officials discovered that team member Gehnall Persson was a non-commissioned officer. The rules were changed soon after this, and Persson returned to claim the gold in 1952 and 1956.

In 1952, women won the right to compete in Olympic dressage. That year, Denmark’s Lis Hartel became the first female medallist, capturing the silver at Helsinki. Hartel’s win was doubly remarkable, as she had been paralyzed by polio in 1944 at the age of 23. After three years of rehabilitation, she regained most of her power of movement. Although Hartel remained paralyzed below the knees, by 1947 she was able to compete again.

At the medal ceremonies at the 1952 Games, the gold medallist, Swedish rider Henri Saint Cyr, graciously helped Hartel onto the podium. In 1956, she won silver again at Stockholm – again behind Saint Cyr .