SHOW jumping judges, have you ever wondered who they are, how they got there and what their job actually entails?

Leinster region judges’ representative Orla Griffin helped dispel some of the mystery surrounding the whole process of becoming a judge. For starters, you do have to be a member of the Showjumping Ireland to become a jumping judge.

“I grew up in Blackrock, Co Dublin, and I began riding when I was six years old,” she said. “After school I went and did my BHS instructors exams. Teaching didn’t really appeal to me so I began a career grooming. This would see me travel all over the world working for top international riders including Willie Melligar, Thomas Fruhmann and Gerd Wiltfang.

“After seven years away, I returned to Ireland and I got married. I had three children, Adrian, Barry and Clodagh. They all rode competitively as children and both Adrian and Barry have gone on to make a career in horses; Adrian in Kentucky and Barry here at home in Co Laois where he produces young horses.

“As the children grew older and were going their own way, I knew I wanted to stay involved in the sport and I felt that judging and stewarding would allow me to do so. In order to consider becoming a judge, you must first have a background which allows you to understand the techniques of the jumping horse – to be able to analyse the performance of the horse over the different types of obstacle and make a reasonable interpretation of the course.

“There are four categories of Judge, Deputy, National and Senior National as well as four possible categories of International Judge: FEI Grade 1, 2, 3 and 4.

“It normally takes about six years to progress from deputy to senior national. The first step as a deputy is to contact a senior judge in advance and ask if you could sit in and observe at a show.

“Then a deputy must complete at least 10 days at four different venues, where tasks throughout the first year of training will probably consist of one or more of the following: marking, completing tickets, back-up watch, or calling.

“During the second year, the Deputy Judge will be expected to move on to learning the operation of the automatic timing equipment etc. There are exams and seminars at each stage of progression and you must reach a certain grade to pass. In the case of the senior national it’s 80%. The days required increase as you move along and you have a log book in which you record your progress and it has to be signed off by the senior judge at each show.”

High satisfaction rating

Orla added: “Some of the things that I really enjoy about being a judge are feeling part of the team, being involved at a show, watching the horses and seeing how they progress through the grades.

“It’s hard to pick a favourite show. I do love Tattersalls and Barnadown and the guys who run Warrington are always great to work with. It is very enjoyable but there is also the serious side. As the sport becomes more and more professional, so must we.

“It can be hard work. There is a lot of responsibility and concentration involved. It is up to those in the judges’ box to ensure that the competition is fair and that the rules are upheld all the time.

“Judges don’t get paid. They can get their expenses covered, up to €75 a day. At some of the busy shows, the hours can be long and it is a challenge to remain focused and maintain concentration.

“There is a shortage of younger people coming into judging and there is no doubt that we need some new people to start training up.

“Most people in all of the regions are very welcoming to newcomers; but unfortunately there will always be a few that are negative and don’t like to feel that their position could be under threat.

“I have seen a couple of amateur riders that have expressed an interest recently in preparation for when they have finished competing but still want to be involved so that’s encouraging.”

Improvement needed

Orla continued: “The bottom line is that it is up to the shows to improve conditions for judges. The judges’ box needs to be prepared and comfortable; we have to sit in there for a long time so we need seats that are suitable.

“We need to be looked after with regard to food and drinks; breaks for us may be few and far between so show organisers need to be concise on that. Some shows are really brilliant and look after us really well but sometimes there can be a lot of room for improvement.

“Quite surprisingly, the €75 payment of expenses is only a fairly recent thing. In the past it may have been just a bottle of wine and €20, and maybe sometimes not even the €20.

“Times are changing and shows need to be aware of that; as I mentioned earlier, the sport is becoming more professional all the time and show organisers need to keep up.

“We do have an issue with a lack of new younger people coming through the judging ranks and that is worrying.

“It is something I would recommend. I have travelled the world as a steward and been to some amazing shows and championships.

“I’ve served as an FEI Steward in the Dublin Horse Show, and before the current crisis, I was due to travel to Spruce Meadows later this year to do six weeks there.

“I have enjoyed many many weekends at national shows over the years. You get to watch all the riders and their horses, normally with the best view in the house.

“You get to preview the track set by the course builder and then see how the riders deal with the challenges and watch the whole competition unfold.

“I especially love the young horse classes, and look forward to watching the progression of each youngster as they learn more and more.

“If anyone aged over 16 has an interest in finding out more about become a judge, they can go to the shows section on the SJI website.

“The contact details for the senior judge representative of each region is also there and they are only too happy to assist with getting new people involved,” concluded Orla Griffin.