Music

You Need To Watch This Olympic “Rave Horse” That Performs Dressage To House Music

Have you ever seen a horse dance to 'Destination Calabria'? Well, you have now.

by Michelle Rennex  30 July 2021
rave horse olympics steffen peters

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If there’s one thing you need to watch today, it’s Rave Horse — a horse that performed a dressage freestyle to a classic house mega-mix at the Olympics.

This week at the Tokyo Games, four-time Olympian Steffen Peters and his horse Suppenkasper (Mopsi) scored 80.968 percent during the dressage Grand Prix Freestyle individual final, which is essentially an event where riders and their horses dance to music while incorporating compulsory tricks and moves.

Just like when it comes to gymnastic floor routines, the music a freestyle is performed to is chosen by the competitor — and it seems that the 56-year-old US rider has a real thing for dance, house, and electronic music.

Despite being the oldest US Olympian to medal since 1952, Peters’ life as a former DJ and his subsequent passion for music is clear in his freestyle song choices that have earned his horse the title “Rave Horse”.

Performing his routine to a seven-minute house mega-mix — featuring Robin Schultz and James Blunt’s ‘OK’, the Haddaway ‘What Is Love?’ club edit, Starley’s ‘Call On Me (Ryan Riback Remix)’, and the Firebeatz remix of Alex Gaudino’s always iconic ‘Destination Calabria’ — a snippet of Peters dressage freestyle has gone viral on TikTok.

While Peters and Mopsi didn’t medal after coming in tenth place, the rider has been praised online for giving everyone an instant shot of nostalgia by reviving the classic feeling of a 2010s house party.

“The horse understood the task and NAILED IT,” one person wrote.

“Never in my life will I understand how this became a real Olympic sport but I WILL defend it with my life,” said another after witnessing the power of Rave Horse.

“At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone did an Olympic routine to WAP,” someone else noted.

But the way that athletes are able to share their taste in music during routines — whether it’s through old house tracks or WAP — is one of Steffen Peters favourite parts of freestyle dressage. In previous freestyle dressage events, Peters and Mopsi have ridden to tracks by David Bowie, Queen, and even Kanye West’s ‘Fade’.

“There’s always a different taste,” Peters told Yahoo Sport. “Sometimes the dramatic music and the quieter, more emotional music is popular.”

“Personally, I like upbeat dance music. If we have a party tonight, that’s the music I’d be dancing to. And that’s what I wanted to bring into the freestyle.”

Now everyone say thank you to Rave Horse for brightening our Friday.

Photo Credit: Leon Neal/Getty Images