The French Endurance team put its title back into play this Saturday, June 21, 2025 at the European Championships Fei Seniors in Castiglione del Lago, in Italy. After a particularly demanding race of 160 km, marked by a high level of competition and summer weather conditions, France Paul brilliantly won the individual silver medal. Déconoir for the French team who sees the victory escape him in the team championship.
Twenty-one nations, some of which are part of the world elite like Spain and Germany, were at the start of the European championships yesterday. The Blues went therefore faced a competition noted for this major deadline of the year.
Two watchwords punctuated this Saturday: tactics and team cohesion. The Blues set off at daybreak on the first loop, 39 km long and presenting more elevation than the rest of the route. This first challenge has defeated almost a dozen couples but the French team came to the end with it brilliantly. The five musketeers ran this step at an average speed exceeding 18.5 km/h and passed the first veterinary control of the horses successfully, some horses even recovering in less than 2 minutes like D’Arohz Rouge du Val, which had found a heart rate of 53 BPM in 1’41 only.
The French clan has thus unrolled a perfect race to the fourth loop despite a soil made very hard by the lack of rain in recent weeks and the heat, remaining in the head groups alongside the Spanish riders. While his teammates passed the fourth veterinary control without incident, Julien Lafaure wanted to abandon, noting that his horse Fazay Cabirat was irregular. With this horse that he saw the birth, the thirty-three-year-old rider was nevertheless forced to present it to the veterinary control and was eliminated.
Still in the running for gold in the last loop, France bowed upon arrival
France Paul, then fourth, followed by Mélody Théolissat and Julia Mountain, sixth and seventh and then Philippe Tomas, ninth therefore set off on the penultimate buckle in the middle of the afternoon, in an increasingly intense heat. Feeling their horses in shape, the Blues kept the appearance at 18.4 km/h. Nothing seemed to be able to stop them and after a control which turned out to be a formality, they were able to quickly go on the last part of the course, 20km long, while other competitors had to represent their horses a second time.
Always displaying a recovery below two minutes, the French mare Paul allowed her to take the lead, followed closely by two Spanish and Belgian rids, and his three teammates. In accordance with the strategy established with the national coach, the French team increased the pace to the final sprint. With a speed of 21.4 km/h on this sixth loop, France Paul crossed the finish line in second position, a little preceded in the sprint by the Dutch Marijke Visser. Mélody Théolissat and Kais of Jalima have passed the finish line in fourth position. Philippe Tomas and his original and faithful Biwaka de Chalendrat followed in fifth place. The horses of France and Philippe have both successfully passed the final veterinary control, a real test of these championships. The duo, already multimédated at European and world level, has signed a superb rise and took fourth place. The rider was also awarded the prize of fairplay. Unfortunately, Kais de Jalima with a heart rate slightly above the authorized limit (68 BPM for 64 bpm), he unfortunately did not pass this last step and was eliminated. The hope was still allowed and the gold still at hand, but the dreams of the French team medal ended with the elimination of Julia Mountain and Chiara de Berders, who presented an irregularity despite the fact that the rider slowed down the pace to ensure the end of the race.
The French team’s strategy, turned towards collective performance, unfortunately did not bear fruit yesterday. However, France Paul signed a very good performance for its very first international championship with the French team.
