ITALIAN EQUESTRIAN HORSES, A LONG ESTABLISHED TRADITION

The equestrian horse sector inherent above all to Masaf's sphere of interest is certainly a vital one, as shown by the data on the number of horses born, which in 2024 totalled 1951, i.e. almost the same number as the number registered by trotting racehorse breeders. A tradition that has remained constant over time and that provides a numerically important pool of horses for competitive activity, if we consider that a total of 2483 horses participated in the various Masaf circuits during the year that has just ended and that also produced results in the international arena, such as the one recorded by the mare Zuly BHB at the FEI WBFSH World Young Horses Championships held in Lanaken, Belgium, from 17 to 22 September. The mare, bred by Ilenia Baesso, and skilfully ridden by rider Diego Pagano of the Girasole Team, won silver in the 5-year-old category. This is an all-Italian pairing that gave the saddle breeding a prestigious result, by memory never obtained before.

To complete the discourse on the importance of the movement, it is impossible not to mention the number of equines registered in the various studbooks, which stands at 28,689. Among these we count different and special breeds in respect of Biodiversity, the protection, promotion and valorisation of which is one of the main objectives of the Ministry. And this for several reasons. First and foremost, the preservation of a genetic heritage, which is the expression of natural selection and therefore has an intrinsic value in itself from a biological point of view.

Among other things, Italy, compared to many other European countries, still preserves a considerable number of indigenous breeds, in some cases with low numbers but still important for the continuation of the breed with specific projects, many of which are recognised and protected by the FAO, and this is an extra incentive to pursue this type of activity as well.

However, the Ministerial activity on the subject of saddle horses certainly does not end with these steps. One aspect that is certainly interesting and of primary importance is that of guaranteeing respect for the welfare of foals that participate in the breeding circuit organised by Masaf, but also those in other disciplines. A respect that is implemented, for example, through doping controls and compliance with the rules protecting horses, both during competitions and at breeding and training centres. Not only prevention and the fight against doping, of course, but also attention to the proper competitive and technical growth of horses and protection aimed at avoiding trauma due to exaggerated competitive activity. Physical trauma in a young horse can also affect the mental aspect and therefore all strategies and safeguards must be put in place to ensure that the horse arrives at adulthood with a good mental balance. As with children, the training phases determine what the foal's future mental attitude will be. A foal without trauma is a guarantee for the rider who will ride it when it becomes an adult. The protection of the foal is consequently the protection of the rider.

On this also depends the public's affection, which may diminish if a lack of respect for the animal is detected; by protecting animals and people, we make an investment in securing equestrian disciplines in the future. Also in Masaf's sights is the activity of horses at the end of their careers. The aim is to increasingly succeed in the future in guaranteeing a second life for horse athletes. They can be used in various fields, not the least of which is the training/discovery of the very young, who can learn to interact respectfully and correctly with the horse from the ground and then gradually become familiar with it in the saddle. To this end, discussions are under way, in some cases already well underway, with Fise, Fitetrec-Ante, Asi and other sports promotion bodies.

With these premises, the decision to resume a technical round table for work and comparison seems more than necessary. The Directorate General's intention to resume a process of evolution and modernisation of the various regulations concerning the Italian saddle horse, especially in that part concerning breeding and selection. To this end, it was necessary to rekindle a discussion that had come to a standstill several months ago and to reopen a debate that is very close to the hearts of the representatives of Italian saddle horse associations.

An important technical round table was therefore held on Wednesday 5 February, convened by the DIPP III manager and attended by representatives of the Central Saddle Horse Technical Commission.

During the discussion, much was said about breeding and the relaunch of the breed's selective process and, to this end, the first proposals to be put on the table were enunciated in order to arrive at a new exhaustive definition of the subject. The aim is to make a proposal concrete in the form of a project.

According to the intentions of the participants at the ‘table’, this new selection project would implement the one introduced in 2019, which was based on genetic qualities and sporting results without, however, analysing the subjects with on-station tests. The introduction of this selection system would bring the selection of Italian Sella breeders in line with the standards of the major European studbooks and would allow Italian breeders to be distributed on the European market as well, giving prestige to Italian breeding as well as creating new commercial opportunities.

What emerged is that we need a concrete selection plan that is entirely ‘Made in Italy’, taking as an example also from abroad, such as Belgium, which in the last 10/15 years has made an important qualitative leap that has already been taken as an example by many in Europe, aimed at enhancing the best Italian Sella stallions to be sent to breeding so as to consolidate the undoubted genetic progress made in recent times.

Among the various proposals that were presented and will be summarised in the next few meetings, the following should be noted

- the need to plan the Genealogical Book events well in advance so that they can be organised in the best possible way, also by increasing the already effective collaboration between the Genealogical Book and the breeders' association;

- the request to organise the participation of the Italian Sella Genealogical Book at international breeding events in order to spread the knowledge of the Italian Sella Genealogical Book and its products at a European level, thus also creating their international marketing.

Over and above the various topics, it is worth noting the great satisfaction expressed by all the participants for taking part in a meeting at which the foundations were undoubtedly laid for this project to be realised starting with foals born in the year 2023.