in dressage, show jumping, and eventing. They are also used for endurance riding, western riding and combined driving. Approximately 1,000 Finnhorses are used in riding schools and in riding therapy, as they are usually easy going and pleasant to ride. They are also popular as pleasure horses. Draft work Agricultural and forestry work were the traditional uses of the Finnhorse. The Finnhorse was never bred to be a particularly large or heavy draught horse, as it was the only horse breed of the country, and versatility was desired as the Finnhorse was also used as the primary steed of the cavalry. The climate and conditions of Finland necessitated that the breed be durable and hardy. As a result, the Finnhorse remained small but tough, and could pull heavy loads in difficult terrain and even in chest-deep snow. Relative to its size, the Finnhorse is among the most powerful workhorses in the world with the best animals able to pull as much as 200 percent of their own weight. There are few draft-type Finnhorse family lines left, and only an estimated two or three hundred animals are known to be used as actual workhorses in the 21st century. However, interest in traditional uses and methods has been increasing, and workhorse competitions are regularly held which usually include horse pulling or ploughing contests. Harness Finnhorses have historically been used for harness racing, with organised harness races having been held since 1817. Prior to that, racing from church back home had been a traditional recreation among farmers, and harness racing remained a farmer's hobby up to the end of the 1950s. By that time, the number of horses kept in Finland was plummeting and racing lost popularity. After 1959 the Finnhorse was no longer the only horse breed that was allowed to race in Finland; the importing of faster, light trotter breeds and the introduction of Parimutuel betting brought professionalism and new life to the harness racing sport. Increased interest in betting led to growth in racing, which in turn helped establish harness racing as the main use for the Finnhorse during the next decades. Finnhorses also successfully compete in combined driving, and are the breed most often used for the sport in Finland, especially at regional and national levels; the Finnhorse Jehun Viima, driven by Heidi Sinda, was a member of the Finnish singles driving team that finished 2nd at the 2002