To shine in the park of the Château de Versailles (from August 2 to 6, individuals and teams), places will be very expensive.
Only three French riders and one replacement will be selected in the show jumping events.
Rider or rider since we remember that equestrian sports are entirely mixed.
Around ten riders for three places
Who will represent France this summer at the castle in this very small delegation?
Around ten riders are in a position to be in the trio of holders chosen as part of the “On horseback for Paris” operation for a total of 14 couples since some have several mounts. The replacement will not only do representation since he will be able to enter the track at the last moment in the team competition in the event of a tactical choice.
They are Roger-Yves Bost, François-Xavier Boudant, Grégory Cottard, Simon Delestre, Marc Dilasser, Julien Epaillard, Pénélope Leprévost, Olivier Perreau, Olivier Robert and Kevin Staut.
“From now on and of course the process has already started, everything counts,” confirms DTN Sophie Dubourg.
All the events, all the jumps, and especially all the Grand Prix are closely observed because they can be decisive for the selection.
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The Hermès jump, which is taking place this weekend at the ephemeral Grand Palais in Paris, is already one of those competitions that counts.
Even if it takes place indoors while the Games will of course be outdoors.
It will be the same, in France alone, for the spring of equestrian sports in Fontainebleau at the end of April, at the Jumping de la Baule at the beginning of June and at the Paris Eiffel Jumping at the end of June.
Woe to the one who falls, honor to the one who achieves a flawless performance on bars that go up to 1m60.
“We look at everything, we watch for performance but perhaps even more so for underperformance because that is worrying,” notes the DTN.
Three French people in the world Top 15
To date, France has 3 riders in the world Top 15: Julien Epaillard (4th), Simon Delestre (7th) and Kevin Staut (15th).
On paper, they are the favorites for the final choice.
However, nothing says that they will be on the list.
“If they are so well ranked, it is because they are performing well, they have the level and they are scoring points in the big grands prix which are getting closer to the Games,” notes Sophie Dubourg.
This gives us good weather.
But it's not that obvious.
Some riders like Grégory Cottard, Olivier Perreau or Roger-Yves Bost currently only have one lead horse.
They therefore go out less, score fewer points, are far in the rankings but are just as efficient when we talk about an Olympic selection.
» The ten still have their chance, therefore.
The final veterinary exam, the most dreaded
The list of the lucky 3 + 1 will be revealed on July 5 at the end of the afternoon.
Until then, the 5-star CSI (international jumping competition) calendar will take them all over Europe with a competition almost every weekend and culminating in a World Cup event in Rotterdam (Netherlands). ) ten days before the announcement.
All this before a final test, the most feared: the veterinary examination of the horses which will take place at the end of June, beginning of July.
“A horse doesn't complain, so we can't really always know in advance if it hurts somewhere, if it has a problem, an invisible health problem,” warns Sophie Dubourg.
The slightest glitch likely to disrupt his preparation and his selection will be eliminatory, for his health.
The well-being of horses is a major issue.
Hence the interest for riders in being able to present several companions.
Because the horse's injury is the rider's dread until the moment of mounting the saddle.
In Rio in 2016, Simon Delestre was world number 1.
The day before the Olympic competition, his horse Hermes Ryan des Hayettes was injured in his box.
The rider forfeited.
Philippe Rozier took his place urgently and France won gold, without him.
Read alsoOJ 2024: “So that the Paris Olympic Games are those of the well-being of horses”
The French federation's stated objective is to bring home two medals from equestrian events (obstacles, eventing and dressage).
In show jumping, the competition will just be crazy dense, as usual.
From Germany to the United States, 10 nations including France seem to have the means to win individual and team gold.
It will be decided whether or not a bar falls.
On a detail.