FEI vs. Helmet Cams

No more Henny Helmet Cam??

Twitter has been a bit ablaze this morning, as fear spread that there will be no Henny Cam at Badminton.  Fortunately, our very own Twitter Queen, Samantha, has done some work to give us an answer.

You may read the entire Twitter exchange [here], but to save you the clicking, I’ll summarize the end result:

The FEI has stated in their rulebook (Chapter IV, Article 140; page 38):

The use of cameras on Athletes or equipment (such as on Protective Headgear, head covering or carriage) shall not be permitted, unless otherwise specifically agreed by the FEI. An Athlete’s decision to wear a camera while competing shall always be voluntary and at the Athlete’s own risk.

So, technically, helmet cams “shall not be permitted” at FEI events.  However, you can get around this with special permission.  Elisa Wallace signed a personal injury waiver and was allowed to wear her helmet cam in the CIC* at Red Hills.  The FEI says they will offer further clarification on this issue when that is available. 

Thus, we can all breathe a sigh of relief and know that Helmet Cams at FEI events may not be going away permanently forever.  It appears the FEI’s issue with helmet cams is a rider-safety issue (err, liability issue). 

I do wonder, though, if the helmet cam videos could be seen as an infringement on media rights for large, publicized events like Badminton and the Olympics.  It would be a real shame for media corporations to override the use of a personal helmet cam video and Youtube!

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