Dominique Tardin

FEI Dressage Rider & Trainer • Young Horse Development • Classical Horsemanship

Dominique Tardin is an FEI dressage rider and trainer based in Cape Town, South Africa, known for her ability to develop horses and riders from young horse through Grand Prix using thoughtful, classical training principles. She began her riding career in South Africa, where she built a strong foundation working with non–ready-made and overlooked horses, successfully producing several to FEI Small Tour, National Medium Tour, and Grand Prix level through patience, trust, and correct basics.

At just 16, Dominique relocated to Europe to further her education, training with leading international professionals including Morton Thompson, Tristan Tucker, Dolf and Manuela Keller, and Robert Zandvoort. During this time, she gained valuable experience within elite European sport systems, exposure to major breeding organizations such as the KWPN, and represented Switzerland as a Young Rider, later receiving an invitation to the Swiss Olympic Squad. She also spent time working in Wellington, Florida, training with Juan Matute Senior, further refining her understanding of high-performance dressage and rider development.

Dominique’s training philosophy is rooted in kindness, classical horsemanship, and correct long-term development. She is especially passionate about supporting riders who lack access to elite instruction and helping both horses and riders build confidence, consistency, and true partnership. Through Show Chic, Dominique shares her international experience and practical training insight to help riders understand the process behind developing sound, confident horses - proving that world-class dressage education should be accessible, thoughtful, and built on trust, not pressure.