United States Eventing Association

The Benefits of Riding with an ICP Certified Instructor

Educated trainers are essential in successfully developing horses and riders to excel in the sport of three-day eventing. A program that is dedicated to exactly that, and is the only national program of its kind, is the USEA Instructors’ Certification Program (ICP).

Since 2002, ICP educates all levels of eventing instructors to confirm their knowledge base, both theoretical and practical, upon which they will continue to build throughout their teaching lifetime. ICP’s vision is to promote excellence in horse training, instructing, and coaching for the sport of eventing at all levels.

In riding with an ICP certified instructor, it is guaranteed that the instructor is experienced in eventing and is certified on a national level. Read on below to see more benefits in riding and training with an ICP certified instructor.

Benefits of riding with an ICP Certified Instructor:

• ICP instructors have verified experience teaching and training multiple students in the sport of eventing.
• ICP instructors are assessed through the highest principles of horsemanship. Certification is awarded to those instructors who promote and produce the highest standard of skill, horsemanship, horse management, safety, and horse welfare.
• ICP instructors are required to attend ICP workshops and study the ICP Standards Booklet and ICP Workbook.
• Once ICP certified, instructors are required to submit ICP Continuing Education credits.
• All current ICP instructors have professional liability insurance.
• All current ICP instructors are CPR and First Aid Certified.
• All current ICP instructors are Safe Sport Trained
• All current ICP instructors submit Nationwide Criminal Background Checks
• All current ICP instructors have signed a professional Code of Conduct
• All current ICP instructors have completed the Concussion Protocol Training by the CDC
• Any USEA Interscholastic Eventing League (IEL) team who is associated with an ICP instructor, their team registration fee will always be waived ($75 annual renewal fee).
• The ICP sets standards, monitors results, and continually and proactively upgrades standards of educating riders, horse training, instruction, and coaching for the sport of eventing.

Want to ride with an ICP Certified Instructor? Click here for the full directory.

Interested in becoming an ICP Certified Instructor yourself? Click here to read the benefits of becoming an ICP Certified Instructor.

To register with USEA’s Instructors’ Certification Program, ask questions, and obtain further information about ICP, contact Nancy Knight at [email protected] or (703) 669-9997.

About the USEA Instructors’ Certification Program

Instructors are essential to the training of riders and horses for safe and educated participation in the sport of eventing. The USEA Instructors’ Certification Program (ICP) was initiated in 2002 to educate all levels of eventing instructor with essential training principles upon which those instructors can continue to build throughout their teaching careers. ICP offers educational workshops and assessments by which both regular instructors, Level I through Level IV, Young Event Horse (YEH) instructors, and Young Event Horse professional horse trainers can become ICP certified. Additional information about ICP’s goals, benefits, workshops, and assessments as well as names and contact information for current ICP-certified instructors, YEH instructors, and YEH professional horse trainers are available is available on the USEA website. Click here to learn more about the Instructors’ Certification Program.