Para Dressage
Para dressage is a sport for riders with permanent physical impairments who compete in dressage, the highest form of horse training for athletes with disabilities. The sport is designed to provide a structured, competitive environment for riders with even severe disabilities. Riders are judged on the quality and accuracy of their riding, their horse’s behavior, and artistic finesse.
Para dressage was originally a leisure activity and a means of therapy, with participants benefiting from interacting with horses. The first competitions were held in the 1970s, and dressage has been a regular fixture of the Paralympic Games since 1996. All events are mixed, with all riders competing together across the five classes.
Riders are classified according to their functional ability, with five grades of competition ranging from Grade 1, which is for athletes whose impairment has the greatest impact on their ability to ride, through to Grade 5, for athletes whose impairment has the least impact.
Para dressage is built into what some people call ballet for horses and riders, and riders are held to the same high standards as the able-bodied riders.
Unicorn Therapeutic Riding has been named as a USEF Para Dressage Centers of Excellence (COE).
Para Dressage Rider Clinic December 7, 2024|
Unicorn Riding, Pennington, NJ
Join us for a 1-day USEF rider clinic designed for athletes. Dressage coaches are encouraged to attend. Participants will ride a 45- minute private mounted sessions, either as a coach or athlete.
Borrowed horses will be offered at this clinic on a limited, first come basis. Email Erin@unicornriding.com to inquire.
Space is limited. Auditors are welcome.
For more information: email Erin@unicornriding.com
REGISTRATION Is through your USEF membership portal. Sign in, click on athlete dashboard, online applications, 2024 Para Equestrian.
Deadline: November 29, 2024.
- 1-Day Tuition, Athlete
- Riding Session – $50 / 1 day
- Stabling $30/night payable to Unicorn Riding upon arrival
- Box lunch included
- National Classification Opportunity may be available.
USEF National Classification request form may be found HERE
FACULTY
Shannon Dueck
Shannon’s complete bio may be found HERE
Shannon has had access to great trainers – from the very beginning with Klaus Albin and Dietrich Von Hopfgarten in Langley,B.C. with her event horses. In her adult life she has had extensive help from Bert Rutten of the Netherlands, Lars Peterson of Denmark, Kathy Connelly, Robert Dover and Steffen Peters of the USA, Hubertus Schmidt and Wolfram Wittig of Germany, and most recently, Carl Hester of Great Britain.
She now works at home in Loxahatchee with help from Scott Hassler, and will be taking horses to train with Carl Hester in the UK in 2024 with an eye to competing in the Paris 2024 Olympics. Shannon loves teaching almost as much as riding!
She has been teaching since her early days in Pony Club, and has formal education in teaching methodology. As the Team Trainer for the Colombian National Dressage Team she led them to the Bolivarian and Pan American Games. She coached Paralympian Lauren Barwick at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. She teaches and trains privately in Wellington Florida and in clinics throughout North America, and has been a headliner at The Equine Affair in California and Alberta.
Shannon tries to teach not only the technical aspects of dressage training but also the subtle ability to feel and communicate clearly and compassionately with the horses.