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The article aims at studying the building of careers of horse riders who go in for competition, particularly in jumping, in focusing on the differences between men’s and women’s careers. Although competition are mixed according to regulations, women have hardly ever access to the highest level of competition. Through two biographical surveys we carried out by horse riders of each level, we shall analyse the building of such careers in the specific and competitive market of equestrian sports, where frontiers between amateurs and people who work in horse riding centers for a living are vague. In this perspective, amateur competitors, especially women, meet obstacles, which are likely to prevent them from acceding to the highest level of competition.