The entire conference (academic part and practical day) was hosted by the French Institute for Horse and Riding (Ifce) within the French National Riding School. The Ifce is the French public operator which aims at promoting the professionalization of the French horse industry. The French National Riding School of Saumur is home to the well-known 'Cadre Noir de Saumur' and is the custodian of the French tradition of horse riding, recognised as intangible heritage by UNESCO.

The theme “Understanding horses to improve training and performance” means that all the scientific results which have already been published, need to be applied by as many riders as possible, to improve the performance of the horses through looking after both their health and their welfare. Because the performance results from both the horse and its rider, the proceedings focused one session on the health and safety of both athletes. Other sessions focused on the various means available to improve training efficiency and performance by a better understanding of how the horses learn or by taking into account the individual temperament and the cognitive abilities of each horse. As a technical institute, it is also very important for us to deal with the communication of equitation science to practitioners.

M. Jean-Marc Lapierre,
Director of the French National Riding School

With the collaboration of the local organizing committee:
Marion Cressent, Laetitia Marnay, Marion Renault, Céline Saillet and Alice Victor With additional help from: Sophie Biau, Françoise Clément, Laurent Coiffard, Nathalie Mull, Jean-Michel Pinel and Patrick Teisserenc.