Trainer who witnessed horse whipped by Team GB dressage rider in leaked video breaks silence
Warning: This article contains graphic images and video which some readers may find distressing.
A woman who witnessed a horse being whipped by Charlotte Dujardin in footage that has since seen the Team GB rider banned from the Paris Olympics has broken her silence.
The video of an incident which occurred several years ago was recently released and shows the six-time Olympic medal winner whipping a horse while someone else rides it.
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Dujardin withdrew from Team GB and will not compete at the Olympics, while she has also become the subject of an investigation by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI).
She said her actions in the video were 'completely out of character' and she would be co-operating in the investigation.
The Sun reports that they spoke to legal representatives of Alicia Dickinson who said she was present in the barn at the time.
Dickinson has since taken to Instagram to say that it wasn't her who filmed the incident or leaked it to the authorities.
She wrote: "This week's media revelations regarding Charlotte Dujardin have been difficult to process.
"I would like to make it clear: I am not the whistleblower. I did not film the footage. Any online speculation is unfounded. Our business relationship ended after the lesson down in the video.
"I await the outcome of the FEI investigation and will not be commenting further at this moment."
The identity of the whistleblower is currently unknown, but they are being represented by Dutch lawyer Stephan Wensing.
He said his client was 'not celebrating' about releasing the video but felt 'it had to be done'.
Wensing said: "It's not fun to ruin a career. She's not celebrating; she doesn't feel like a hero.
"But she told me this morning this had to be done because she wants to save dressage."
There are also conflicting accounts over when the horse whipping took place.
In her statement Dujardin said 'a video has emerged from four years ago', while Wensing said it was flimed 'two and a half years ago'.
British Dressage chief Jason Brautigam said the revelation of the video had made for 'distressing news', saying it had 'been an extremely upsetting time for everyone involved in the sport'.
He said: "We have all been shocked and appalled by this indefensible conduct. As I have always said, the horse is at the heart of everything we do in British Dressage, and equine welfare must always be paramount above all other considerations."
Brautigam said he did find claims that the video was released to save the sport of dressage 'somewhat disingenuous', claiming it was 'timed to cause maximum damage to our sport'.
"However, what will save dressage is how we all respond to this crisis by demonstrating our love and care for horses."
Joe Harker