Olympian sues Equestrian Australia over whipping video ban

Former Olympic rider Heath Ryan is taking Equestrian Australia to court after being suspended for more than a year over a confronting video which showed him whipping a horse 42 times. Ryan, who represented Australia in dressage at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, has been provisionally banned from competition since an investigation was launched by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI) into allegations of animal abuse. With a resolution still pending, the veteran Olympian has instigated action of his own, filing proceedings against taxpayer-funded Equestrian Australia in the NSW Supreme Court.

Ryan, who defended his actions after the footage was released in June 2025, is understood to be arguing that EA should not have relinquished responsibility for the investigation to the FEI and that, given the incident occurred in Australia, the sport’s Lausanne-based international governing body has no jurisdiction. The 67-year-old, who made his Olympic debut at the age of 50 and was assistant coach of the Australian team at the Atlanta, Sydney and Athens Games, declined to comment on Thursday but has said previously the vision was recorded secretly without his knowledge. EA chief executive Ben Houston said the national federation would “defend the proceedings vigorously”.

“EA has zero tolerance for any acts of horse cruelty of any kind and because of the seriousness of the allegations levelled against Heath Ryan, Equestrian Australia stands by its decision to provisionally suspend Mr Ryan’s membership pending the outcome of the investigation and determination of FEI.” The clip of Ryan repeatedly striking the horse with a whip was met with shock and outrage last year when it was made public on social media. EA at the time welcomed the FEI taking the lead on an investigation into the alleged welfare violation.

Ryan has accepted that the images depicted were “horrendous” but denied allegations of horse abuse, saying the whipping was a “rescue mission” and that the six-year-old stallion was otherwise headed for the knackery after it attacked a friend who found it untrainable. “The horse grabbed her [by the mouth] and ripped her out of the saddle and savaged her,” Ryan said. “I’d never run into anything like that before.

It would just stop, but it would also turn around and try and grab you like a stallion and rip you out of the saddle. It had done this with its previous owner, who had never hit it. “[The whipping] turned everything around.

Clearly, in hindsight, it wasn’t horse abuse. It was actually saving its life. That’s irrefutable.

It’s just that when you look at it, I understand it. It’s bloody horrendous.” He said the video had been posted by a disgruntled former employee two years after the events, which “transpired sincerely with the horse’s best interests the sole consideration”.

The horse, called Nico, was rehomed and has ridden in Australian equestrian competitions. It is unclear why the Swiss-led investigation has not yet been finalised more than a year after it began. FEI secretary general Sabrina Ibanez said in June last year that “the scenes depicted are profoundly disturbing and stand in stark opposition to the core values of FEI horse welfare”.

She committed to a thorough examination of the facts and to ensure that “any behaviour which puts horse welfare at risk is dealt with firmly and fairly”. An FEI spokesperson told this masthead in April that proceedings were ongoing and there were no new developments to report. A follow-up query 10 days ago was met with no response.

Sydney-born Ryan is a three-time Australian three-day event champion and competed in the individual and team dressage events for Australia at the Beijing Olympics. His younger brother Matt Ryan is a three-time Olympic gold medallist in equestrian. Ryan’s case against Equestrian Australia is listed to be heard in the Supreme Court in Sydney on July 21.

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