FH&C

 

 

At first glance the prospect of competing in France seems very complicated, as it is very
different from England. However, I found people very helpful; and once you understand the
system it works really well for you as a rider! To begin with your licence to ride runs from
January to December and must be renewed yearly, then you take out a licence to compete
which also runs yearly.

There are five categories of licence depending on the level of competition you wish to do:
Pro 1 and Pro2, Amateur 3, 4 and 5. The Pro 1 being more expensive to obtain, I have found
the Amateur 3 a good level to have. It allows you to ride to St. George level and above at
certain competitions and also in young horse classes. The Federation seems to run a lot more
competitions at this level.

To gain that  all important first French licence!

Firstly go to your local doctor and ask for a medical certificate to ride a horse. Make sure
he also puts ‘competition’ on the certificate; my first attempt four and a half years ago was
returned as this wasn’t stated. This will cost around €20 and consists of taking blood pressure
and listening to your heart and lungs. You then take your medical certificate to your local
FFE Registered Equestrian Centre and apply for your licence to ride (a paper licence) and
your competition licence (credit card like). It is much simpler if you get ‘British Dressage’ to
write you a letter, stating the level of competition you have done in the UK. This will allow
you to gain a licence at that standard. Other than this you may find that you have to go in at
Level 5 and work your way up which could take some time. The Level 3 licence for
competition and the riding licence is around €116. This also gives you some insurance cover
and reduced entry to certain events.

Registering your horse to compete in France

This is much simpler if you have a full breed passport showing pedigree, injections and
description of your horse. Without such documentation the process can be very difficult.
Firstly call a FFE approved vet - most equestrian vets are. They will take a description of
your horse in written and picture form, check for micro-chip - all horses competing in
France must be chipped. You then send the passport and the vet papers to the ‘Haras
National’ at Pompadour with a cheque for around €110. Here the paperwork will be checked
and put on computer and the horse will be issued with an S.I.R.E. number. This only has to
be done once and when your horse has the S.I.R.E. number he can compete in any discipline
you choose, unlike the UK where you have to join British Dressage, British Show Jumping
Association etc. separately.

Where to find schedules

The Federation publish a ‘Bulletin Official’ which arrives every Monday. For this you pay a
yearly subscription and there are many options. In here you find all schedules for Dressage,
Show Jumping and Eventing. It also has a section for horses for sale and equestrian related
activities. A list of all competitors is given a week prior to the event. Instructions for
location, contact numbers, judges, stabling, facilities and surface for each event is also
available. Armed with this, your licence number and your horses S.I.R.E. number you then
enter over the Internet using your competing account opened with the Federation to pay for
your entries. Any prize money won is paid directly into your competing account.

I hope this proves helpful in your quest to compete here in France. 

Good luck!
 

By Anita Niccolls

The address Anita was referring to is:

Les Haras Nationaux

BP3
Arnac
Pompadour
CEDEX
19231