The vocabulary behind every number on the platform — scoring, qualification, and the trust model that decides what counts.
Scoring
- Rolling index
- The national performance number — a rider's score contribution and placing bonuses folded into one figure over a rolling four-month window. A score counts in full inside the window and drops out when it leaves, so it tracks current form rather than a season total.
- Deviation vs box
- How far a judge's mark on a movement sits from the consensus of the rest of the panel (the "box"). Positive means more generous, negative means harder; it is the raw signal behind judge calibration. Measured only on multi-judge panels — with a single judge there is no box to compare against.
- Coefficient
- Multiplier applied to specific diagnostic movements. A coefficient-2 movement counts double, so an 8 there is worth 16 toward the test total. Coefficients vary by test level.
Qualification
- MER
- Minimum Eligibility Requirement — the score threshold a rider/horse pair must meet to qualify for a championship at a given level.
- Selection window
- The date range whose results count toward a given championship or ranking. Rides outside the window are shown for context but excluded from the qualification math.
- Nomination
- A declared intent to be considered for a championship or team, distinct from having met the MER. The planner tracks nomination status separately from eligibility so neither is mistaken for the other.
Judging & trust
- Provenance
- Where a result came from and whether it counts. Inclusion is binary: official federation records and human-reviewed uploads count in full; self-reported records are staged for verification and stay out of ranked metrics until an official record corroborates them; ambiguous or off-scale results are excluded. No partial credit, no hidden weighting.
- Calibration
- A judge's tendency to score above or below the panel consensus, built from deviation-vs-box across many rides — never a single test — and surfaced by level.
- Ground Jury
- The panel of judges at a competition. The C-position judge serves as President of the Ground Jury. Panel agreement is what the deviation and calibration metrics are measured against.
Full dressage glossary
DPI uses the same terminology as the USEF, USDF, and FEI rulebooks. Where definitions diverge between federations, we note the difference inline.
Foundational concepts
- Movement
- The scored unit on a dressage scoresheet. Each test is a sequence of movements (e.g. medium trot, half-pass left). Not to be confused with "exercise" or "element".
- Directive
- The judging criteria printed next to each movement — what the judge is evaluating (e.g. "regularity, suppleness, bend").
- Collective marks
- Holistic scores given at the end of a test. USEF national tests award marks for Gaits, Impulsion, Submission, Rider Position/Seat, and Rider Aids. From 2026, FEI tests consolidate these into a single "Harmony" mark.
- Coefficient
- Multiplier applied to specific diagnostic movements. A coefficient-2 movement counts double, so an 8 there is worth 16 toward the test total. Coefficients vary by test level.
- Training Scale (Skala der Ausbildung)
- The German training pyramid: Rhythm → Suppleness → Contact → Impulsion → Straightness → Collection. Used by judges as a mental framework when scoring.
Competition structure
- Small Tour
- Prix St. Georges + Intermediate I — the introductory FEI level grouping.
- Big Tour
- Grand Prix + Grand Prix Special + Grand Prix Freestyle (Kür) — the championship FEI level grouping.
- Kür
- German for "freestyle" — a choreographed test ridden to music. Used interchangeably with "freestyle" in English.
- CDI
- Concours de Dressage International — an internationally sanctioned competition. Rated by stars: CDI3*, CDI4*, CDI5* in increasing prestige.
- Ground Jury
- The panel of judges at a competition. The C-position judge serves as President of the Ground Jury.
- Scribe
- Records judge scores and comments during the test. Scribes are not judges — they capture what the judge dictates.
Judge positions
- C
- Center of the short side opposite the entry. President of the Ground Jury sits at C.
- E, B
- Midpoints of the long sides, opposite each other.
- H, M
- Flanking the C judge on the same short side.
- F, K
- At the entry-end short side. Only present on 7-judge panels.
Qualification and advancement
- MER
- Minimum Eligibility Requirement — the score threshold a rider/horse pair must meet to qualify for a championship at a given level.
- GAIG
- Great American Insurance Group / USDF Regional Championships — the national qualifying ladder for adult amateur and open dressage.
- Error of course
- Wrong movement or sequence ridden. Penalised separately from "error of test" (a procedural test-rule violation).
- Festival of Champions
- The U.S. national championship event run by USEF/USDF for high-performance dressage levels.
Federations
- USEF
- United States Equestrian Federation — the U.S. national governing body for equestrian sport.
- USDF
- United States Dressage Federation — the affiliated educational and membership organization specifically for dressage.
- FEI
- Fédération Équestre Internationale — the international governing body for equestrian sport.
Looking for how scores get computed? Read the methodology page.