Preliminary evaluation of the use value of jumping horses based on their results achieved in Grand Prix competitions

Abstract

The aim of the work was preliminary evaluation of predispositions of Polish racehorses to sports. The tests covered 273 horses taking part in CC class and CC1 class competitions in the finals of the big tour. The probability of achieving the best result in the competitions depending on the horse breed was evaluated using multivariate analysis of variance. With the use of Spearman's rank correlations, the initial correspondence between the horse's rank in breeders' ranking and the ranking based on sport results was defined. It was stated that horses starting in Grand Prix competitions represented only 6.85% of all horses registered in the Polish Equestrian Federation. In the group, foreign breeds were predominant. The proportion of native breeds was marginal. The lack of a significant influence of the race on differentiation of sports results of horses proves that the best specimens were chosen within individual races. The preliminary results revealed lack of rank agreement between the evaluation of the breeding value and sports achievements of an individual. This suggests the necessity of performing broader analyses covering different aspects.