Sports Involving Horses

Here is a comprehensive list of sports in which competitors ride on the back of a horse, are pulled along by a horse, or have the involvement of horses in some way. From traditional Olympic disciplines to regional specialties, horse sports represent thousands of years of human-equine partnership.

Team Sports On Horseback

Team sports on horseback combine the athletic abilities of both horse and rider with the strategic elements of team play. These fast-paced competitions require excellent horsemanship, ball-handling skills, and tactical awareness.

• Arena Polo — a minified version of polo that is played on horseback on a field much smaller in size and enclosed by walls on all sides.
• Beach Polo — polo on horseback though played on a sand field with sideboards so the ball is always in play.
• Buzkashi — a Central Asian sport like polo in which riders on horses attempt to drag a goat carcass toward the goal. There is a variant known as kokpar which is quite similar.
• Cowboy Polo — similar to regular Polo, though riders compete with western saddles, usually in a smaller arena and with an inflatable rubber medicine ball.
• Horseball — The sport is like a combination of polo, rugby and basketball, played on horseback where a ball is carried and shot through a high net to score.
• Horse Soccer — a variation of Pushball, a team sport where an inflated ball is driven through a goal while riding a horse.
• Jereed — a traditional Turkish team equestrian sport in which the objective is to throw blunt wooden javelins at players of the opposing team.
• Pato — a cross between polo and basketball played on horseback. It is the national sport of Argentina.
• Polo (Horse Polo) — a team sport played on horseback in which the objective is to hit a ball into a goal using a long-handled mallet.
• Snow Polo — a variation of Polo on horseback that is played on compacted snow on flat ground or a frozen lake.
• Cricket on Horseback — a short-lived sport where players attempted to play cricket while riding a horse.

Equestrian (Horse Riding) Sports

Equestrian sports showcase the precision, grace, and athleticism possible through the human-horse partnership. These Olympic disciplines are among the few sports where men and women compete equally against each other at the highest levels.

• Dressage — riders and horses perform from memory a series of predetermined events.
• Eventing — riders compete in three types of races, dressage, cross-country and show jumping, in a single competition.
• Show Jumping — riders on horseback attempt to jump cleanly through sets of obstacles within a specific time.
• Cross-Country Equestrian — horse riders are required to jump over 30 to 40 obstacles within a fixed time, incurring penalties for exceeding the allocated time or if a horse refuses to clear an obstacle.
• Endurance Riding — an equestrian discipline where riders and horses compete in races over very long distances.
• Equestrian Vaulting — a gymnastics and dance discipline performed on horseback.
• Reining — equestrian riders guide their horses through a precise pattern of spins, circles and stops.
• Western Pleasure — a horse show competition in which horses are evaluated for their manners and composure.
• TREC — a French equestrian sport in which the objective is to test both the horse and the rider in competitions consisting of three separate events.
• Gymkhana — a multi-game equestrian event that is performed to display the talents of the horses and their riders.

Equestrian show jumping demonstrates the athletic partnership between horse and rider

Horse Racing Sports

Horse racing is one of the oldest organized sports, with evidence of competitive horse racing dating back to ancient civilizations. Modern racing encompasses multiple disciplines, from flat racing to steeplechase, and remains one of the most popular spectator sports worldwide.

• Horse Racing (General) — equestrian sport that involves jockeys riding horses or being pulled along by horses.
• Thoroughbred Racing — horse racing sport that involves the racing of thoroughbred horses.
• Steeplechase — a horse racing sport in which competitors on horsebacks race on a long-distance course that has several types of obstacles.

Horse Pulling Sports

These traditional sports showcase the power and endurance of draft horses, with competitions testing both the animals' strength and the drivers' skill in guiding them through various challenges.

• Carriage Driving — sports in which horses or ponies are hitched to a wagon, carriage, cart or sleigh by means of a harness.
• Harness Racing — horses trot or pace while pulling a driver in a sulky.
• Combined Driving — a driver on a carriage pulled by horses takes part in three events: dressage, marathon and cones.
• Pleasure Driving — a horse and carriage sport judged on a horse's manners, performance, quality and conformation.
• Chuckwagon Racing — a chuckwagon is pulled by four thoroughbred horses around a track.
• Scurry Driving — ponies pull a carriage with two riders around a track.
• Skijøring — being pulled either by a dog, a horse or a motor-operated vehicle while on skis.
• Horse Pulling — one or two horses harnessed to a weighted sled pull for the greatest distance.
• Chariot Racing — horses pull along a driver riding a chariot (extinct sport).

Puszta horse show demonstrating traditional Hungarian riding skills

Rodeo Type Sports on Horseback

Originating from the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, rodeo sports have evolved into exciting competitive events that test the skills cowboys and cowgirls developed during ranch work. These events remain popular throughout North and South America.

• Barrel Racing — a rodeo event where participants and horses complete a clover-leaf pattern around barrels.
• Chilean Rodeo — two riders on horseback try to stop a calf.
• Cutting — an American western style sport of the equestrian discipline in which the objective for a rider on a horseback is to separate a few cows from its herd and prevent it from returning.
• Campdrafting — a sport from Australia where a rider on horseback attempts to cut out a cattle from its herd and drive it into a pen.
• Roping — a rodeo event where calves or cows are caught by throwing around it a rope with a loop as quickly as possible.
• Tent Pegging — the objective for a horse rider is to pierce, pick-up and carry a target, with a lance or a sword, as they gallop towards the target.
• Team Penning — the objective for each three-rider team on horseback is to separate three specific cattle from a herd.
• Toros Coleados — involves chasing down a bull while riding on horseback (also called Bull-Tailing).

Other Sports on Horseback

Beyond the major categories, numerous specialized horse sports exist, ranging from mounted shooting competitions to historical reenactments. These activities demonstrate the versatility of equestrian sports and their deep cultural connections across different societies.

• Cowboy Mounted Shooting — involves shooting at targets while riding a horse.
• Horseback Archery — shooting arrows at targets while riding a horse (not common)
• Equestrian Fencing — sword fighting on horseback (extinct)
• Mounted Orienteering — participants navigate from start to end through control points, usually on horseback.
• Jousting — competitors on horsebacks with long lances try to knock each other down (historical sport)
• Quintain — competitors on horsebacks with long lances try to hit a stationary object hanging from a pole (historical sport)
• Horseback Boxing — competitors fight each other while riding on the back of a horse. (unusual historical sport)

Other Horse Related Sports

Some sports involve horses indirectly or simulate equestrian activities without actual horses, yet still maintain connections to equestrian traditions and culture.

• Horseshoes — players toss horseshoes at stakes in the ground.
• Hobby Horsing — participants simulate traditional equestrian events while riding a simple object resembling a horse's head mounted on a stick.