British dressage star Charlotte Dujardin suspended for alleged horse abuse

PARIS — Days before the opening ceremony, the Paris Olympics are experiencing their first scandal in a strange form: A British dressage star withdrew from the Games shortly before the international governing body for equestrian sports provisionally suspended her for “conduct contrary to the principles of horse welfare” shown on video.

Charlotte Dujardin, who has won six Olympic medals, is the most successful British Olympic medallist in history. She announced the release of a video in which she made an “error of judgment during a training session” four years ago. The Times of London reported that the video showed Dujardin whipping a horse in the legs.

“What happened is completely out of character and does not reflect how I train my horses or my students,” Dujardin wrote. “However, there is no excuse. I am deeply ashamed and should have set a better example at that time.”

The International Equestrian Federation (FEI) received a video Monday showing Dujardin abusing horses, the FEI said in a statement. The federation gave Dujardin 17 hours Tuesday to respond to the video. Dujardin admitted it was her and released her statement before any distress was publicly revealed. She is banned from competition until the FEI completes an investigation, which would exclude her from what would have been her fourth Olympics.

“We are deeply disappointed by this case, especially in the run-up to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games,” said FEI President Ingmar De Vos. “However, it is our responsibility and it is crucial that we tackle any cases of abuse, as the welfare of equines cannot be compromised.”

What happened remained unclear for several hours Tuesday night. Dujardin provided no details about the content of the video. Shortly after his statement was released, a British press officer said the Olympic governing body did not know what the video showed.

Dujardin, 39, came to prominence in England when she won two gold medals at the 2012 London Olympics on her horse Valegro. Her hometown of Enfield has installed a golden postbox in her honour. She won two bronze medals in Tokyo on another horse, Gio, after retiring Valegro at the age of 14.

Animal abuse allegations have marred other Olympic equestrian events. At the Tokyo Games, a video showed German modern pentathlon coach Kim Raisner beating a horse. Dujardin is not even the first dressage competitor to lose an Olympic spot this month: Carina Cassoe Kruth was removed from the Danish dressage team earlier this month after an old video surfaced of her mistreating a horse, according to the trade publication Horse Sport.