Jump in style
Developing your horse’s style, focus and braveness will make your jumping rounds look – and feel – effortless. Alex Hua Tian shares the exercise that’ll get you there
In this feature. . .
Create a cool, calm learning environment
Ever wondered how top horses make showjumping look so effortlessly smooth, when to you it often feels anything but? It’s not magic and it certainly isn’t luck – it’s all down to training your horse correctly.
The two main qualities a horse needs to refine his style come from listening to his rider so that he always reacts positively to their aids, and honing the ability to think independently, which gives him the confidence to process and tackle questions without needing his hand holding every step of the way. Sound complicated? With just a related distance, a forward rhythm and a helper on the ground, getting started couldn’t be easier.
Our expert
As told to Bethany Searby. Photos: Jon Stroud
Alex Hua Tian is an Olympic eventer who was first to represent China in the sport at the Beijing Games. Career milestones include bronze at the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games and riding in China’s first ever Olympic eventing team at Tokyo 2020.
Our model
Hamlet is a nine-year-old gelding by Chello III VDL and owned by Vivian Gu. With a win at Intermediate and a top 10 CCI3* finish under his belt, Alex hopes he’ll step up to Advanced in the future.