61 L’Année Hippique Can you compare Paris with Athens 2004 when you jumped with Parco? Ludo: In the twenty years since my last Olympics in 2004, absolute top sport has made a huge evolution. We still jump horses over high and wide obstacles, but the material, the horses, the galloping pace, the sport has evolved enormously. It was high at Versailles, but it had to be. The quality of the top horses, of the top riders and the management of the top combinations is at an incredibly high level. About to leave for Fontainebleau, what are you aiming for as you step into the car? Ludo: I always try to buy a horse with the intention of earning from it. We have to make a living, and the business is based on that. I look for horses which one of the boys can ride and train further. Some horses go to our stable riders Jenny or Stijn if they are too small for the boys. I buy horses I think I can sell. Or horses that I think are good enough for top sport. That is also why there are so many horses here and why we are expanding the infrastructure. An evolution that undoubtedly has its consequences. Also for the business? Ludo: The horses I have to search for today for my children are different from the ones I looked for fifteen years ago. The boys need incredibly sharp and careful horses. Otherwise, you can no longer compete in top sport. But these are not the horses that amateurs jumping at a slightly lower level are looking for. Difficult balance seems to me? Ludo: Very difficult! Because on the one hand I have to look for top horses for my boys and on the other hand I must be able to sell regularly. For the business, you need good and simple horses. For top sport, they have to be top careful. There are more amateur riders in the market today for those good and simple horses than for those absolute top horses. And amateur riders also want to ride high classes and reach the finish line safely. Preferably clear. So difficult and challenging. 1 Ludo Philippaerts. 2 One of the many paddocks where the horses can relax. 3 Anthony and Thibault Philippaerts. 4 Nicola Philippaerts. 3 4
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