September 18, 2026 
The FEI has suspended Saudi Arabian rider Abdullah Alsharbatly for one month after his second Jumping Recorded Warning within 12 months.
Alsharbatly, 43, received his first warning at the CSI5* Spruce Meadows “Continental” tournament in early June and his second in late August at the CSI4* Concurso Hípico Internacional de Gijón. The FEI’s database for Jumping Recorded Warnings did not identify the horse(s) involved in the incidents.
According to the FEI, a rider who receives two or more Jumping Recorded Warnings at the same event or at any event within 12 months receives a fine of CHF 1,000 (about US $1,212) and a one-month suspension. The suspension begins the day after the last event at which the second warning was issued.
Currently ranked world no. 36, Alsharbatly was part of the bronze-medal-winning Saudi Arabian team at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, and won individual silver at the 2010 World Equestrian Games in Lexington. His current top horse, the 13-year-old Selle Français mare, Diriyah—who was formerly campaigned by Janne Friederike Meyer-Zimmermann (GER) and Julien Epaillard (FRA) under the name Dubai du Cedre—helped the Saudi team to an 11th place finish at the 2026 World Championships in August.
Jumping Recorded Warnings are issued under the new Article 259, which went into effect in January 2026 after being approved at the 2025 FEI General Assembly. The rule states:
Any blood on the Horse caused by tack or equipment or any Athlete induced blood detected during a Competition (from warm-up until completion of any post-Competition controls/testing) will result in the following consequences for the Person Responsible, issued by the President of the Ground Jury:
First Offence – Jumping Recorded Warning
Second Offence – Jumping Recorded Warning
Sanctions are triggered by accumulation: two warnings at the same event or within 12 months result in the fine and suspension. Under the new rules, rider-induced blood on the horse during competitions is no longer grounds for immediate disqualification.
The revised Article works to provide greater clarity around the ‘blood rule,’ with the stated aim of enhancing horse welfare and competition safeguards. Among them: the introduction of mandatory fitness-to-compete checks by the Ground Jury in consultation with a Veterinary Delegate for all cases of blood observed on a horse, as well as stricter sanctions for those riders that commit repeat offenses in the same season.
In cases where a horse may have accidentally bitten its tongue or is bleeding from the nose, a fitness-to-compete check will now determine whether that horse-and-rider combination is allowed to continue, instead of the previous method, in which horses were typically allowed to compete if there was no further bleeding. No Jumping Recorded Warnings are issued in these cases.
The rules surrounding mandatory disqualification for excessive spur use remain in effect. In such cases, additional Abuse of Horse provisions and/or disciplinary proceedings/sanctions may also be opened.
The names of all riders who have been issued a Jumping Recorded Warning are also now listed in a public database, in an effort to expand transparency. About 320 individuals are currently named in the database.
As of press time, no public statement has been made by Alsharbatly, who is currently suspended and will be eligible to return to international competition on Oct. 1, 2026.
