FEI Jumping Rule 259 Under the Spotlight at IJRC General Assembly in Geneva. Mathy JR, IJRC President

This year, the IJRC General Assembly held in Geneva (December 12) coincided with the election cycle of the Club’s senior leadership. Members present voted to confirm both the President and the Board, thereby renewing the mandate originally assigned two years ago.

As formally announced by Eleonora Ottaviani, Chair of the Assembly and long-standing Director of the Club, the presidency for the next two years will therefore remain with François Mathy JR. He will be supported by a Board composed of Ludger Beerbaum, Emilio Bicocchi, Michael Duffy, Steve Guerdat, Rodrigo Pessoa, Kevin Staut and Richard Vogel as well as a representative for the USA to be elected directly by IJRC American members. At present, Kent Farrington, Tiffany Foster and Lauren Hough serve in this role.

Immediately following his re-election, François Mathy JR addressed the Assembly to thank the riders and the entire IJRC staff, and extend a warm invitation:

“I hope that riders, even those who did not put themselves forward as candidates for the Board, will nevertheless feel encouraged to contribute in the future through the many working panels that form the core mission of the Association, with the shared goal of continuing to improve and strengthen our sport.”

Communications over FEI Jumping Rules Article 259 formed the main debate at the International Jumping Riders Club (IJRC) General Assembly.

For more than a year the IJRC has issued regular updates on its rationale for changes to the art 259. It is frustrated that some national federations had not read the proposals, presented on February 2025, only “waking up” when they got to the FEI General Assembly in Hong Kong last month.

The social media pushback was attributed to many influencers and even professional journalists not reading Art. 259 in its entirety, said IJRC president François Mathy JR. Many failed to notice the separate Jumping Rule (Art 264.4.1) that mandates elimination for spur marks; that under Art. 259 all case of blood anywhere on the horse will now be examined by the official FEI veterinarian, after which decisions are made by the Ground Jury as to whether it can jump again for the remainder of the show; that such decisions are no longer left to a Stewards’ inspection;  and that a one-month suspension and CHF1,000 fine for receiving two of the new Jumping Recorded Warnings is a much more serious sanction to a jumping rider  than elimination, especially if they have penalties and are already out of that class. (See detailed wording of all applicable rules at foot of this press release.)

IJRC director Eleonora Ottaviani emphasised that in European law, consequences must be proportionate, and this had always been central to the IJRC’s discussions, especially for very micro lesions, not bleeding, that are not the rider’s fault.

The IJRC board was asked why riders had not been involved in explaining the rule change to the media. Eleonora Ottaviani explained that IJRC speaks for riders with one voice; it would have been wrong to expose individuals to personal attacks on certain platforms.

Comments were noted from Quentin Simonet, president of the European Equestrian Federation, who described some of the wording of Art. 259 as “unfortunate.”  There were mistakes from all involved in drafting it [which normally includes national federations, stakeholder groups and FEI executive staff], and the spurs rule (Art 263.4.1) was not understood, leading to problems in the press.

“In September there were lots of changes to the wording compared to July. These were very critical points, and we need to do it better,” said Quentin Simonet.  “I also inform everyone that this discussion is not finished. Some national federations are making a strong push for a multi-disciplinary approach.”

Aine Power, FEI Executive Director of Sport & Games, said the FEI board fully supported the rule, and had not expected the negative reaction, because statistics showed that in jumping, incidents involving blood are rare. She said: “We were surprised people could not see that this rule is better for the horse and better for the sport. There are learnings to take forward from this, that people looking in at the sport are not coming from the same place as we are.”

François Mathy JR reminded everyone to check equipment, their own boots and to remember they are all public figures; problems cannot be blamed on others. In taking responsibility, riders could decide not to wear hammer spurs, while allowed under FEI Jumping Rules.

There was a short presentation on plans to increase use of IJRC social media, particularly Instagram, to explain rule changes and other key decisions.

Organiser’s ‘fantasy’ fees

The new tariff of maximum fees organisers can charge riders for services and utilities at CSIs will unfortunately not be implemented for several months, having finally been agreed for April 2026.

Eleonora Ottaviani said the “fantasy” costs that some OCs pass on to riders had been discussed for four years.  Some OCs are still discussing items such as electricity, costs of which vary around the world. 

“We understand the situation is different indoors and outdoors and that times are changing; the riders can give a contribute to but not pay the full bill.”

However, the list has been extensively discussed and analysed together with the organisers, and we are confident that it will not cause any problems for those shows that already operate in a professional and responsible manner.

A separate discussion was still needed in the USA where costs are notably higher.

Eleonora Ottaviani said young riders cannot be asked to spend 6,000-8,000 a month on entry fees.  Riders at 2* and 3* are hardest hit, with lower prize money but increasing costs, not fair to use the maximum cost allowed and the minimum Prize money request. 

Moving on from this, Jessica Kurten, FEI board member and chair of the athletes committee, raised the importance of national circuits where riders could improve their skills and save money before moving up to “international” level.  The national circuit had declined in some countries. In others it is still highly regarded; in Switzerland, for example, most elite riders support it.

It was agreed it would be difficult to find organisers for new or revived national shows when there are already wait lists for the increasing number of CSI 2* and 3* “tours, which are more lucrative to run.   “It’s seen as ‘cool’ to be competing alongside you guys,” said Irene Verheul, secretary general of Equestrian Organisers and director of Jumping Amsterdam. “Everyone wants to compete 2* and 3* - people like to be able to say they are going to an international show.”

Longines ranking points from Nations Cups

A new scale of points related to the percentage of double clear rounds at that event had been well intentioned, but the outcome had been difficult to predict, for instance at Nations Cup where only 50% of teams went through to the second round. From next year the sliding scale will relate to the number of single clears, with differences between HH (5*) and H (all other) events. Where single clear rounds at HH reach 25%, a multiplying factor of 1.2 will be applied, for example.

Appendix

FEI Jumping Rules effective from January 1, 2026, that address blood and other marks on the horse.  These rules are complementary and should be read in entirety.

Art 259.1 Any blood on the Horse caused by tack or equipment or any Athlete induced blood detected during a Competition (from warm-up until completion of any post-Competition controls/testing) will result in the following consequences for the Person Responsible, issued by the President of the Ground Jury:

First Offence – Jumping Recorded Warning

Second Offence – Jumping Recorded Warning

Should the same Person Responsible receive two or more Jumping Recorded Warnings at the same or any other Event within 12 months of the delivery of the first Jumping Recorded Warning, the Person Responsible shall be issued with a fine of CHF 1'000 and be automatically suspended for a period of one month, such suspension to commence on the day after the last day of the Event where the Second Jumping Recorded Warning was issued.

The FEI shall notify the Person Responsible and confirm the date of suspension. For the avoidance of doubt, the delivery of the notification from the FEI after the start date of the suspension shall in no way invalidate or postpone the commencement of the suspension.

259.2 In other cases of blood on the Horse detected during a Competition (for example where a Horse appears to have bitten its tongue or lip or in cases where a Horse is bleeding from the nose), the Officials may authorise the rinsing or wiping of the blood and allow the Athlete/Horse Combination to continue the Competition, provided that the horse is deemed fit to compete in accordance with Article 259.3. The Athlete will not receive a Jumping Recorded Warning if this Article applies.

Art 259.3 In all cases of blood on the Horse under this JRs Art 259, the Horse may only be permitted to continue in a Competition or participate in any subsequent Competition(s) at the Event if the Ground Jury, in consultation with the Veterinary Delegate, has deemed the Horse to be fit to compete.

Art 264.1 Disqualification means that the Athlete and/or Horse is/are disqualified from the Competition at issue or from the entire Event. Disqualification may also be retroactive. The Ground Jury must impose Disqualification in the following cases: 264.2.1 marks indicating excessive use of spurs or of the whip anywhere on the Horse (additional consequences may also apply, see JRs Arts 259.1 and 265.2).

Art 265.1 All forms of cruel, inhumane, or abusive treatment of Horses are strictly prohibited (see also GRs Art 142 and the FEI Code of Conduct for the Welfare of the Horse). Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the following constitute abuse of a Horse. 265.1.2 Excessive use of the whip. Any excessive use of the whip is strictly prohibited. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the following constitute excessive use of the whip: use of a whip to vent an Athlete's temper; use of a whip on a Horse's head; use of a whip more than three times in a row; use of a whip resulting in a Horse's skin being broken; and use of a whip after Elimination. An Athlete identified as misusing or excessively using the whip will be Disqualified and may be fined at the discretion of the Ground Jury.

Watch the full General Assembly video here