“Without our horses, we are nothing,” says Ludo Philippaerts. “But it’s not only the horses that deserve the spotlight. The grooms, the veterinarians, the people in administration, in short, the entire team. We are all horse people!”
Philippaerts emphasized this recently in an interview. Emilie Conter shares that same vision:
“Our dreams can never be too big,” said Conter in Lanaken. “But as a rider, you can’t make your dreams come true without a strong team and without good horses. I’m grateful every day to ride such amazing horses, especially Portobella van de Fruitkorf!”
Jessica Springsteen agrees, after recently taking victory on American soil:
“Horses do something magical to you. They are there for us day and night and receive the best care from an incredible team. Every day we should be thankful for the privilege of being surrounded by our horses and our fantastic team.”
Animal welfare: a mandatory item on the agenda
Both within national federations, such as in Germany, but also in Flanders, as well as within the FEI and the IJRC, animal welfare remains a top priority on the agenda. “Still, as an association of passionate people, we must never forget that our driving force is the horse itself. We must assume that horse welfare is in our DNA,” said François Mathy Jr. recently. “However, it is the responsibility of policymakers to ensure that this is closely monitored...”
