{"id":49847,"date":"2026-06-12T20:25:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T18:25:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sohorse.eu\/?p=49847"},"modified":"2026-06-13T08:08:20","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T06:08:20","slug":"france-remporte-coupe-des-nations-la-baule","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sohorse.eu\/en\/reportages\/2026\/06\/12\/france-remporte-coupe-des-nations-la-baule\/","title":{"rendered":"France puts La Baule back the right way up, while Belgium blows hot and cold"},"content":{"rendered":"

ine years later, France has finally won its Nations Cup in La Baule again. At the end of an afternoon full of twists and turns, Les Bleus finished ahead of Germany and Ireland, carried by a decisive Julien \u00c9paillard with Fringan de Vesquerie and an Antoine Ermann at the top of his game with Floyd des Pr\u00e9s. Inside the Stade Fran\u00e7ois-Andr\u00e9, the crowd roared, and La Baule found its French accent again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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(\u00a9Rolex Series)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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A victory that did not come gift-wrapped<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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At La Baule, Nations Cups rarely have the good manners to follow a straight line. They often begin with certainties, continue with tight faces, and sometimes end with riders discovering that an afternoon can swing on one rail, one time penalty, or one horse deciding to grow very tall at exactly the right moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Friday, for the third leg of the Rolex Series calendar, France did not simply win. It built, resisted, waited for its moment, then jumped at the opportunity when Germany began to leave the door open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Because for a while, the Germans looked comfortably installed in the boss\u2019s armchair. The big, wide, cushioned kind, with a perfect view of victory. Except the second round came along to remind everyone of an old sporting rule: when everything looks under control, that is often when the script starts writing itself. Hinners jumped a double clear with Iron Dames Singclair. So did Thieme with DSP Chakaria. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Then things got complicated for the Mannschaft...<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clear in the first round, Daniel Deusser could not repeat the trick in the second with Otello de Guldenboom. Four points. And there was no point waiting for the European champion and his phenomenon United Touch S to save the day this time. The pair that had won the Aachen Grand Prix a few weeks earlier could do no better than 12 and 4 faults. Some days are just like that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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France, meanwhile, stayed on its feet. And in La Baule, in front of a French crowd that had been waiting for this for nine years, staying on its feet already meant a lot. Winning meant everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u00c9paillard, the man who does not blink<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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In this victory, one name reads like a bank guarantee: Julien \u00c9paillard. Riding Fringan de Vesquerie, the Norman produced the double clear every team dreams of in a Nations Cup. Two clean rounds, two clear answers, twice the same impression: a rider who knew exactly what he had come to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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No need to overplay it. No need to pretend. \u00c9paillard simply laid down two boss-level rounds on the grass of La Baule. In a competition where faults were appearing almost everywhere, that kind of performance is worth more than just a zero on the scoreboard. It gives air to the teammates, confidence to the chef d\u2019\u00e9quipe, and a few extra decibels in the grandstands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fringan de Vesquerie, for his part, answered like a horse who had little interest in joining the debate. Where others hesitate, he jumps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Antoine Ermann, the second act in widescreen<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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And then there was Antoine Ermann. With Floyd des Pr\u00e9s, the French rider had left one small time penalty on the table in the first round. Nothing dramatic, but in a Nations Cup, every detail ends up filed under \u201cthings that might become expensive later\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In the second round, he left no room for suspense. Clear. Clean. Precious. The kind of round that does not necessarily blow up the ranking on its own, but changes the temperature of an afternoon. In a team, there are engines, safety nets, soldiers and momentum-shifters. On Friday, Ermann was a little bit of all of them at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWinning the Nations Cup in La Baule is something very special,\u201d he said afterwards. \u201cDoing it in front of the French crowd makes this moment even more memorable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The sentence is simple, but it says everything. For the French, La Baule is not just another stop. It is a family home with grandstands, a grass arena and a memory that can sometimes become a little heavy. Nine years without a home win starts to weigh. On Friday, Antoine Ermann and Floyd des Pr\u00e9s helped lift that weight from France\u2019s shoulders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Perreau solid, Mallevaey in tougher waters<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Olivier Perreau also played an important role in France\u2019s comeback. With Dorai d\u2019Aiguilly, he had conceded four faults in the first round before setting the record straight on his second appearance. Clear. Job done. The kind of correction that matters in a Nations Cup, because it prevents the day from sliding the wrong way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Nina Mallevaey and Dinastie de Beaufour experienced the opposite scenario, going from clear to four faults. But that is also the law of team competitions: nobody always gets through two rounds without a tremor. For France, the essential part lay elsewhere. When it had to close ranks, Les Bleus found the shoulders to do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that is exactly what made the difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ireland rises again<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Ireland, meanwhile, followed the opposite path to Germany. After a first round that was far from ideal, the Irish straightened things out with three clears in the second round. Very Irish, really: not always immaculate at the start, rarely out of the picture at the finish. They completed the podium with that ability to turn a bad story into a respectable result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Belgium fifth, between regrets and preparation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For Belgium, the day ended in fifth place. A mixed result for the Red Musketeers, capable of good things but too inconsistent to aim for the podium. The first round had started badly with 16 faults for Nicola Philippaerts and Katanga van het Dingeshof, before a better second effort on four faults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The real Belgian satisfaction came from Pieter Devos and Casual DV Z, who delivered the team\u2019s only double clear. \u201cI\u2019m super happy with my mare,\u201d the Belgian rider summed up. \u201cShe jumped two really good rounds. With such a strong team, you always hope for more, but it wasn\u2019t that easy. There were faults everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n