Belgium’s road to Olympic gold: equestrian sports
At the last Olympics in Tokyo, Belgium had its most successful Games since 1948, with a total of seven medals. This year's Paris Olympics could be even better, with plenty of Belgian candidates in the running for a medal. Today, Belga English looks at equestrian sports.
Belgium has long been known for its excellence in equestrian sports. As one of the world’s leading countries in horse breeding, it sells horses to the world’s best jockeys. Twenty-five of the 90 horses that participated in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 were bred in Belgium.
While Belgian horses are everywhere in equestrian sports, the success of Belgian teams is lacking in comparison, only taking home one bronze medal in Tokyo. That could change this summer: for the first time in Olympic history, Belgium is sending three teams to Paris, to compete in the eventing, dressage and jumping events.
Medal chances seem highest in the jumping event, where rider and horse have to clear a course of fences as fast as possible. Several Belgians have dominated the prestigious Global Champions Tour this year. With victories in three out of seven events, courtesy of Abdel Saïd, Nicola Philippaerts and Gilles Thomas, they have outperformed every other participating country.
Belgian world champion
Even if the Belgian athletes might not take home a medal, there is a good chance the champion horse will come from Belgium. At the most recent Jumping World Cup in Riyadh, Sweden's Henrik von Eckermann took home the gold medal on Belgian horse King Edward.
The duo also won gold in Tokyo, with King Edward becoming the third horse in history to perform a flawless jumping event at the Olympics. Von Eckermann and King Edward are the favourites to win gold in Paris as well.
In the dressage event, where rider and horse have to perform a set of memorised movements to music, Belgium is on the rise as well. The dressage team qualified for the Olympics thanks to a respectable eighth place at the European Championship in Riesenbeck. While a medal might not be realistic, the team could have a chance at a place in the top eight and an Olympic diploma.
Eventing team makes comeback
Lastly, the Belgian eventing team will return to the Olympics for the first time since 2012, thanks to seventh place at the Eventing World Championship in France. Eventing is also known as the equestrian triathlon, consisting of jumping, dressage and cross-country - a course several kilometres long featuring natural obstacles such as logs and water.
Each of the three events will be held in individual and team formats. The individual and team eventing finals take place on 29 July, the team jumping final on 2 August, the team dressage final on 3 August, the individual dressage final on 4 August and the individual jumping final on 6 August.
All equestrian events will be held on the grounds of the Château de Versailles, near Paris.
#FlandersNewsService | Belgium's Gilles Thomas © PHOTO CLAUDIO BRESCIANI / TT NEWS AGENCY / AFP
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