“It’s a bit like football” … How the transfer window for horses influences the results at the Games

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From our special correspondent in Tokyo,

Officially, the objectives are the same as in Rio. One medal, two while searching well. “We are not favorites, but we were not either in Brazil, said Thierry Touzaint, the national coach. We have a good squad ”. A workforce all the same well plucked by the wounds of his mounts. Astier Nicolas, Thibaut Valette, and the most emblematic rider of all, Kevin Staut, had to give up at the last moment in order not to jeopardize the health of their animal. A particularly annoying package for Staut, who had emerged as a winner in the great game of the pre-Olympic equestrian transfer window.

Horses transferred before January 1

In summary ? Find a capable horse to bring an Olympic medal costs a blind, and in an environment where riders rarely have the means to own their own horses unless, as in F1, they are accompanied by a very powerful patron, everyone knows the date of January 1 . It is the last day to allow a horse to “go” abroad for the Summer Olympics. “It’s a bit like football, clarifies Anne Sainte-Marie, ex-candidate for the presidency of the FFE and federal executive. Nations take out the checkbook to allow their riders to have a chance at a medal ”. 20 million euros for the most expensive, it seems: Japan has further raised prices in history
not to be ridiculous at home. And like in football, France is more of a training stable.

“We are not a Nation that buys horses,” adds Valérie Lemoine, herself the owner of a stable, specializing in both competition and the horse trade. “Most of the French riders that you will see at the Olympics are young horses. that they have brought to this level by dint of work ”. Right before getting stripped? None of the four horses titled in Rio in the eventing are present in Tokyo, for different reasons. Kevin Staut, for example, had to offer a well-deserved retirement to Rêveur de Hurtebise. He then began to search in all directions, even if it meant skinning another rider internally, like a PSG struggling in the winter transfer window.

France, a Nation that trains more than it buys

While Tolède de Mescam began to have some results on the circuit in 2018 under the saddle of Tony Cadet, its owner, almost surprised by the potential of the mount, decided to entrust it to the best French rider in activity, not without controversy. But a horse, however promising, is not enough. It is necessary to ensure a fleet of horses in order to cope with the risks of injuries and certain developmental failures: when you place a bet on a horse at 6 or 7 years old, it happens that the marriage never takes place between the rider. and the beast.

With Viking de la Rousserie, Kevin Staut was already at the engagement stage. Maxime Baldeck, son and grandson of merchants, played the intermediaries with the owner of the 12-year-old Azelan when he started to show interesting dispositions in competition. The Rio Olympic champion took two years to make him a podium contender in Tokyo. And then Hubert Beck, its owner decided to sell it at the beginning of the year. “Some owners say no, imagining that it will be worth even more if a good seat at the Games,” explains Virginie Lemoine. Others think that they will not be offered twice ”, it being understood that this market for the best horses never stops, the Olympic Games not always being the ultimate goal of an owner or a rider. You have to be efficient on the daily circuit.

After having obtained a three-month delay, Staut succeeded in bringing together the necessary investors to keep Viking de la Rousserie, unfortunately injured a few weeks before the Olympics. Simon Delestre is very present in Tokyo. But he won’t ride Chadino, sold to an American couple in December 2019. Virginie Lemoine was backstage. “It is a horse that had made the 2016 Olympics, he was on his 14th birthday. At that age, he would not have been performing very long in big competitions. [Les concours 5 étoiles]. Simon pretty much agreed with me, even though he was one of his top horses. This is the game. The horse has made some big wins on big races, it has made a name for itself, its owners are selling it before it is too late ”.

“We can lose a couple at any time”

Hence the interest of being able to count on a large reservoir, as in France, whose federal framework is considered to be one of the best in the world, and therefore more conducive to the development of horses. “You have to assume that you can lose a couple at any time, but it’s the same for everyone else. In Germany, a very large nation in horse riding, riders found themselves on foot six months before the Games. We will continue to sell horses, it is very structuring for our economy ”. Just the same as the L1, we tell you. It doesn’t stop us from winning a World Cup or a gold medal every now and then.





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