A petition to remove one sport from the Olympics has reached more than 28,000 signatures.
The 2024 Paris Olympic Games are in full swing with different sports happening left, right and centre.
However, prior to the Games, there was controversy surrounding the equestrian.
Team GB’s Charlotte Dujardin withdrew from the Olympics after a video emerged of her mistreating a horse.
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A statement from Dujardin read: “What happened was completely out of character and does not reflect how I train my horses or coach my pupils, however there is no excuse.
“I am deeply ashamed and should have set a better example in that moment.”
After Dujardin’s incident, Brazil’s Carlos Porro was reportedly given a yellow warning card for potentially causing "unnecessary discomfort" to his horse during the Olympics.
As reported by Yahoo! News, the International Federation for Equestrian Sports ‘received photos and evidence of Parro hyper-flexing a horse's neck, a prohibited move known as "Rollkur" that can compromise the animal's breathing’.
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As a result of the controversies surrounding the sport, there has been a petition set up on Change.org to remove horses from the Olympics.
So far, the petition has gathered 28,951 signatures and the goal is to reach 35,000.
For the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, horses will no longer be part of the modern pentathlon.
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CEO of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority, Lisa Lazarus said: “If you are involved in a horse sport, be it polo, be it dressage, be it show jumping, be it horse racing, the priority has to be the welfare of the horse.
“If that isn't the priority and if it isn’t kind of clear to the public and to regulators that the horse is being prioritised and its welfare is being prioritised, the sport will be in jeopardy.”
Topics: Olympics
Marcus Chan