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The Medium Tour: Intermediate A, B and Intermediate II

By the Dressage Wiki Editorial Board · Updated 9 July 2026

The Medium Tour is the FEI’s middle bracket of international dressage, consisting of Intermediate A, Intermediate B and Intermediaire II (Intermediate II). Its stated purpose is to ease the step from the Small Tour (Prix St Georges and Intermediate I) to the Big Tour (the Grand Prix tests), assisting the progressive development of horses toward Grand Prix with particular emphasis on the correct training and execution of the piaffe. Horses must be at least eight years old, the same minimum as for Grand Prix itself.

Where the Medium Tour sits

The FEI ladder runs Small Tour, Medium Tour, Big Tour. The Small Tour contains no piaffe or passage; the Grand Prix demands long, repeated sequences of both. The Medium Tour exists to bridge exactly that gap: all three of its tests contain piaffe, passage, one-time tempi changes and full canter pirouettes, but in shorter and less demanding sequences than the Grand Prix. A horse can therefore confirm the Grand Prix vocabulary in competition without yet sustaining the Grand Prix’s full physical demand.

Intermediate II is the oldest of the three tests, sitting directly below Grand Prix since long before the other two existed. Intermediate A and B were added later to split the considerable step from Intermediate I to Intermediate II: the current Intermediate A test dates from the 2015 edition and Intermediate B from the 2020 edition, with both, like Intermediate II, updated for 2026.

The three tests

Intermediate A is the entry point. It introduces piaffe and passage in competition in their shortest prescribed sequences, together with one-time tempi changes and full pirouettes, at a degree of collection above Intermediate I but clearly below Intermediate II.

Intermediate B sits between A and II, asking for more of the same movements: longer piaffe and passage tours, more demanding transitions and a higher overall standard of collection and impulsion. The pair of tests lets a horse’s Grand Prix readiness be gauged in two graded steps rather than one.

Intermediaire II is the final preparation for Grand Prix. It contains most of the Grand Prix’s content, including one-time tempi changes, piaffe–passage transitions and the canter zig-zag, in a shorter sequence, and the quality standard applied by the judges is effectively the Grand Prix standard. The test also has a second life in youth sport: it is the first test of the FEI Under-25 division, whose riders compete at Intermediate II and the U25 Grand Prix on horses at least eight years old.

Naming: Intermediate or Intermédiaire

Both spellings are current. The FEI’s English-language materials use Intermediate; the French Intermédiaire (often shortened to Inter I, Inter II) survives in national circuits and in everyday usage, and the Dutch federation lists the classes as Intermédiaire in its regulations. The tests are identical regardless of spelling, and sale adverts use the forms interchangeably.

How CDIs schedule the Medium Tour

Under the FEI’s scheduling rules, a competition offering the Medium Tour schedules a minimum of two and a maximum of three of its tests, each at most once and in progressive order of difficulty, with the first competition open to all entered horses. An Intermediate A/B Freestyle may also be scheduled for horses competing in the set tests; whether it is mandatory is at the organiser’s discretion, stated in the schedule, and a minimum qualification score applies. In the CDI star system, the Medium Tour typically appears from CDI2* upward, sitting alongside or between the Small Tour and Big Tour classes on a show’s schedule.

In practice the Medium Tour draws smaller fields than either neighbouring tour. Combinations secure in the Small Tour but not yet ready for Grand Prix often prefer to stay and win in the Small Tour; combinations ready for Grand Prix go there, where the championships and the prize money are. The Medium Tour’s fields are consequently dominated by horses in transition, usually aged eight to eleven, being produced deliberately toward the Big Tour.

Scoring and progression thresholds

The Medium Tour is scored like every FEI test: each movement marked 0–10 with half marks, coefficients on selected movements and a collective mark, the total expressed as a percentage. The 60% threshold does the tour’s gatekeeping in the national systems that mirror it; under the Dutch regulations, for example, a single score of 60% at Intermediate I opens the Intermediaire A, B and II classes, and a 60% at Intermediaire II opens the Grand Prix tests. Promotion out of the bracket is nowhere compulsory: the decision to attempt Grand Prix belongs to the trainer, not the rulebook.

The Medium Tour in a horse’s career

The bracket has a recognisable place in how Grand Prix horses are made. A typical trajectory runs: small tour at eight or nine, a season in the Medium Tour confirming piaffe, passage and the one-tempis under competition conditions, then the first Grand Prix starts at ten or eleven. National federations mirror the structure inside their own circuits: the Dutch Zware Tour, for example, includes the Intermediaire A/B and Intermediaire II tests, ridden as national classes under KNHS rules, so a horse can complete the entire transition without leaving its home country.

In the market, a horse advertised at “Inter II” or “medium tour” occupies a precise and valuable position: the Grand Prix movements are installed and shown in competition, but the record does not yet prove they can be sustained through the full Grand Prix test. Such horses trade on their probability of confirming Grand Prix, a distinction that drives the price bands documented in the cost section.

Sources

Frequently asked questions

What is Intermediaire II in dressage? Intermediaire II is the most advanced Medium Tour test, sitting directly below Grand Prix. It contains most Grand Prix movements, including piaffe, passage and one-time tempi changes, in a shorter sequence, and serves as the final competitive preparation for Grand Prix. It is also the entry test of the FEI Under-25 division.

What is the difference between Intermediate A and Intermediate B? Both introduce the Grand Prix movements in reduced sequences; Intermediate B is the more demanding of the two, with longer tours and a higher standard of collection. Together they split the step from Intermediate I to Intermediaire II into two graded stages.

How old must a horse be for the Medium Tour? At least eight years old under FEI rules, counted from 1 January of the year of birth — the same minimum that applies to the Grand Prix tests.

Why do relatively few combinations compete in the Medium Tour? The bracket is transitional by design. Combinations settled at their ceiling remain in the Small Tour; those ready for the top level move to the Grand Prix classes, where championships and prize money concentrate. Medium Tour fields therefore consist largely of horses being produced toward Grand Prix.