Three-time Olympic champion Charlotte Dujardin of Britain has withdrawn from the Paris Olympics after a video appeared to show her whipping a horse. In a statement shared on Instagram on July 23, Charlotte, 39, said the video is from four years ago and captures her “making an error of judgement during a coaching session.”
The video has been shown on Good Morning Britain and was also obtained by The Guardian. Per The Guardian, the video shows Charlotte “whipping a horse more than 20 times in one minute” during a coaching session.
The International Federation for Equestrian Sports is currently investigating the allegations against Charlotte. Dutch lawyer Stephan Wensing is representing the person who made the complaint about Charlotte, per The Guardian. Stephan told the outlet that his client hesitated for some time before making a complaint to the FEI because she “was warned against speaking out” and also doubted herself, “thinking this must be normal” since Charlotte “is an Olympic winner.” However, the allegations against Charlotte are serious, and the “client” eventually decided to share the video.
“[Charlotte] took the long whip and she was beating the horse more than 24 times in one minute. It was like an elephant in the circus,” the lawyer told the outlet.
Charlotte has won six Olympic medals as a dressage rider. On Instagram, she wrote that “what happened was completely out of character and does not reflect how I train my horses or coach my pupils, however there is no excuse.”
“I am deeply ashamed and should have set a better example in that moment,” she continued in the statement.
“I am sincerely sorry for my actions and devastated that I have let everyone down, including Team GB, fans and sponsors,” she said.
As a result of the allegations and current investigation, Charlotte has been provisionally suspended by the FEI.
