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                  Dressage is one of 3 Olympic disciplines of equestrian sports. It is often considered as the parent

                  discipline of the other equestrian disciplines. Indeed, no other discipline can be considered without

                  the horse going through dressage principles and training techniques beforehand. Dressage is an

                  art, as the quest for aesthetic movements plays a dominant role. It is a harmonious discipline,

                  and involves not only the horse’s elegance and natural balance but also a perfect understanding

 of its rider. The rider/horse pair must perform a sequence of compulsory or freestyle movements.

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The movements are carried out in a 60m x 20m arena. Letters are positioned around the arena to indicate where the horse must begin and finish performing the movements and the lead changes.

The jury, made up of two to five judges, evaluates the ease and the fluidity of the rider/horse pair’s movements. Each figure is given a mark ranging from zero (for a movement not performed) to ten (for an excellent performance). The jury also awards overall marks allowing a certain number of features to be judged according to the technical level of the competition, such as the precision of the performance, the horse's gaits, submission, momentum, the rider’s position, etc.

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An artistic mark is awarded for the freestyle to music test. Specifically, it takes the harmony of the test, the choreography, and the music into account. The overall mark is expressed as a percentage.