The US rider was banned for several years. © APA/dpa / Bernd Weißbrod

For animal cruelty: Year-long ban for dressage rider

An unusually long ban in equestrian sports is currently causing a stir. It affects a US dressage rider originally from Colombia.

August 06, 2025

From: apa/dpa

The FEI has imposed an unusually long 15-year ban on US rider Cesar Parra. According to the FEI, the ban is for violations of animal welfare principles. The 62-year-old dressage rider must also pay a fine of the equivalent of €16.000 and court costs of approximately €11.000.

The Colombian-born rider had already been provisionally suspended since February 2, 2024, due to reports of horse abuse received by US Equestrian and investigated by the FEI. According to the FEI, the US federation had received "numerous videos and photos depicting Parra engaging in abusive behavior and training methods with multiple horses."

“Severe mistreatment of horses”

The allegation in the FEI proceedings was that “Parra had repeatedly and intentionally subjected most, if not all, of the horses he owned and trained to recurrent and severe abuse over a period of several years.”

Parra had competed internationally since 1998, initially for his native Colombia, including at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. After changing his nationality in 2008, he competed for the United States, including at the 2011 Pan American Games.