With the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and Paralympics rapidly approaching, excitement is mounting within the equestrian community. The timetable is available and the squads have been announced for the Olympic Games, while the para dressage squad is due to be announced in July.

Dressage, eventing and showjumping will take centre stage in the gardens of the Palace of Versailles from 26 July-6 August, while the para dressage runs from 3-7 September, and fans will be keen to follow the action, whether they are travelling to France or watching from afar.

The equestrian sport will play out over the 2,000 acres of parkland around the Château de Versailles. An outdoor arena has been created on the Etoile Royale esplanade to the west of the Grand Canal at the heart of the gardens, and the eventing cross-country course will take competitors across the canal and along both sides.

Dates and timings for equestrian sports

All times listed are Central European Summer Time, which is one hour ahead of British Summer Time. Please note this schedule information is preliminary and subject to change until the end of the Games.

Eventing

Eventing will run on consecutive days between 26 and 29 July. It will begin with the first horse inspection on Friday 26 July at 9.30am, and the following day the dressage phase will begin at 9.30am.

The cross-country on Sunday 28 July begins at 10.30am and runs until 3pm. The course is designed by French designer Pierre le Goupil and will be a maximum of 5,800 metres long with a maximum time of 10 minutes.

On Monday 29 July, following the second horse inspection at 8am, both the team and individual medals will be awarded following the final showjumping phase. Riders will showjump to decide the team medals first, starting at 11am. Then, at 3pm, the top 25 will showjump again, this time to decide the individual medals.

The coloured fences will measure up to 1.25m for the team competition and 1.30m for the individual competition.

Dressage

For pure dressage, riders must qualify for the finals through the first two days of Grand Prix competition. The Grand Prix Special will follow, which will decide the team medals, and then the final day of dressage will be the Grand Prix Freestyle, which will decide the individual medalists.

The first horse inspection will be held on Sunday 28 July at 8am. From 11am on Tuesday 30 July the first 30 combinations will compete in the Grand Prix, while the remaining 30 will perform their Grand Prix tests on Wednesday 31 July from 10am.

The top ten ranked teams in the Grand Prix, including those tied for 10th place, will qualify for the FEI Grand Prix Special which will begin at 10am on Saturday 3 August and will decide the team medals. The team medal ceremony is scheduled for 3.30pm on 3 August.

The second dressage horse inspection will take place at 8am on Sunday 4 August. This will be followed by the Grand Prix Freestyle, starting at 10am. This is the individual final competition which is open to 18 combinations qualified from the Grand Prix. The individual medal ceremony is scheduled for 1.30pm on Sunday afternoon.

Jumping

In showjumping, the first horse inspection takes place on 31 July. The team qualifier on Thursday 1 August begins at 11am and is open to 20 teams consisting of three athletes per team with all three scores counting.

The team final, which kicks off on Friday 2 August at 2pm, is open to the 10 best placed teams in Thursday’s competition including those tied for 10th place. Teams that withdraw before the start on Friday will not be replaced, and all teams taking part in the team final re-start with zero penalties.

The contest for the individual medals will take place over two days beginning on Monday 5 August at 2pm with 75 starters from which the top-30 will go through to the individual final on Tuesday 6 August, running in reverse order of classification and all starting again on a zero scoreline.

The final competition will begin at 10am with one round against the clock (with a jump-off in case of a tie on penalties for first place) and will bring the equestrian events at the Games to a close.

Para dressage

The Paralympics kick off with its opening ceremony on 28 August. Para dressage will run from 3-7 September, followed by the closing ceremony on 8 September.

Four combinations will be selected to represent Great Britain. They will all contest the individual and freestyle medals in their respective grades, and three will also compete for team honours.

The final selection for the squad will be made in July, with more details plus the full para dressage schedule to follow.

How to watch

Eurosport holds the TV and multi-platform rights package for the Games in 50 countries across Europe, including the UK. This is where you’ll be able to guarantee coverage of the equestrian events. A subscription costs £6.99 per month during the Games period, but you can cancel at any time.

BBC Sport will offer live and on-demand coverage of some of the Games. This will include two simultaneous livestreams, as well as a daily highlights programme and coverage on Radio 5 Live. Additional content will be available to stream on BBC iPlayer as a catch-up service.

Channel 4 will be broadcasting every televised moment of the Paralympics across up to 18 concurrent streams, across Channel 4, More4, Channel 4 streaming and social channels.

Further reading