Olympics 2021: Get up to Speed With the Showjumping

If you’ve been following our blogs, you’ll know that we’ve previously provided all the times and what to expect from the eventing and dressage competitions. Well, this week marks the last week for the Olympics so that means there is just one equestrian competition to go – the show jumping. We’re here to provide all the details, as well as a timetable of the sessions.

What is showjumping?

Show jumping is the ultimate test between horse and rider and involves them making their way around a course of obstacles which they have to jump over. These obstacles involve show jumps, water and are made more complex with double or triple jumps, tight turns, and fillers (Colourful decorations next to or part of a jump). The aim of jumping is for the horse and rider to go clear, which basically means they cannot knock any fences down, have any refusals, and complete the course of jumps in the time allowed.

If the horse and rider do end up having some poles down or refusals, these are added up as penalties. The official term for the penalties is faults, and the faults are added up in fours. For example, if a rider had one fence down and a refusal, they would finish their round with 8 faults. If a rider falls from their horse they are automatically eliminated from the competition.

What to expect from jumping at the Olympics?

Showjumping at such an elite level such as the Olympics is scored as both a team and individual event. In the team category, the scores for each nation are tallied and the country with the fasted time and fewest penalty wins. At the 2021 Olympics, each team will have three horses and riders competing for medals with the jumps being built up to a huge 1.6 metres.

How to watch the showjumping?

The showjumping this year will take place over four days, starting with the individual sessions followed by the team sessions towards the end of the week. All of the sessions can be streamed from the Eurosport Player on Discovery+ which is available as a three day trial and then for £4.99 a month. The individual and team finals will be shown on the BBC or red button service which is great news for us. Equally, if you’re happy to just catch up on the highlights, the BBC will show this every evening. 

All of the times you need have been pulled together into a timetable below: