Olympic equestrian says whipping ban stems from illegal video recording
Olympian Heath Ryan is suing international horse sport officials as well as Equestrian Australia, alleging he was banned over a horse whipping incident after an unlawful video recording was used against him.
International equestrian Heath Ryan has taken the Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI) to court, alongside Equestrian Australia, over an 18-month ban imposed for alleged horse whipping. The ban, backdated to July last year, stemmed from a video that appeared to show Ryan whipping a six-year-old horse, Nico, more than 40 times.
Ryan's lawyer, Kyle Kutasi, claims the video was unlawfully recorded and out of context, and that Ryan has been treated unfairly. The FEI, based in Switzerland, denounced Ryan's conduct, finding he had brought equestrian sport into disrepute and breached welfare standards. Ryan, who represented Australia in dressage at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, is also seeking to have the FEI included in his lawsuit, arguing the ban stems from a wrongful video recording.
The horse displayed signs of pain, distress, and fear during the incident, prompting FEI to impose the ban. Ryan's reputation has suffered, and some people have stopped bringing horses to him for training or breaking in. The case is set to return to the NSW Supreme Court in December.
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