The Performance Pathway

Not every young rider comes into equestrian sport with their sights set on winning an Olympic or Paralympic medal, so the performance pathway is designed to support you in achieving whatever sporting aspirations you have. At each stage, the primary aim is to support every rider in enjoying sport and developing a sporting habit for life that also promotes both their physical and mental wellbeing. The pathway is therefore divided into three stages, based on the fundamental aims at each point in your sporting journey:

• the journey into the sport
• the journey onto the performance pathway
• the journey onto the podium

At each level of the pathway, British Equestrian works in collaboration with the sporting governing bodies of British Dressage, British Showjumping and British Eventing.

The earlier stages of the pathway are managed by these governing bodies. Each has their own board and committee structures that oversee the delivery of their regional and national programmes, competition structures and coach development.

If you reach the stage where you’re showing the potential to progress to the higher levels of the performance pathway, your discipline’s governing body will work with the World Class Programme to ensure that there’s a process that enables you to transition out of the development stages and into the performance stages of the pathway.

You can find out more about the performance pathway by reading our Youth Development and Performance Pathway Handbook.