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What is equestrian vaulting?
Vaulting is in fact gymnastics on horseback, initially established as a circus act. Its origins come from the years of the Roman empire, when acrobats performed exercises on the back of a cantering horse. Some also consider that vaulting even comes from the Minoan years in Crete, where the sacred sport of tavrokath’apsia -or bull-leaping- was performed by youngsters. Vaulting joined the FEI-recognized equestrian sports in 1983 and the first FEI World Vaulting Championship was organized in 1986, in Bulle, Switzerland. Vaulting is performed by individuals, pairs or teams and there is also therapeutic vaulting, for people with disabilities. Unlike other equestrian disciplines, male and female athletes compete separately. According…