Horses that run wild during a trot or do all kinds of unnatural tricks during dressage. Equestrian sport is a sport that is labeled as animal cruelty by some, while others enjoy the pure beauty of the interaction between humans and animals. In search of ‘The Beauty of Sport’, reporter Erik-Jan Brinkman is today at the trotting track in Alkmaar.
“She looks like a golden rooster,” says Rob de Vlieger, pointing to the German mare Calamintha. The pikeur is convinced that the animals are well taken care of in the horse world. “If you give a horse shit, it won’t run a step faster either. You know what I find a lot worse? In the Netherlands a lot of people eat them, while we take good care of them.”
Pikeur Tom Kooyman agrees with him, even though he acknowledges that the use of the whip in a final may not come across as pleasant to the public. “But these horses have the most beautiful life of all the animals in the world. They get everything their heart desires and have to run a competition every now and then.”
horse butcher
Sports historian Jurryt van de Vooren endorses the opinion of both pickers. “I can’t imagine that the majority consists of animal executioners who secretly wanted to become horse butchers.”
This was the sixth and final episode of our Beauty of Sport series. To be seen on TV at 5.10 pm and then on repeat every half hour. You can watch the previous episodes below this article.