Paris 2024 Olympic Cross-Country Preview: Course Insights and Top Contenders
As the equestrian world turns its attention to the Château de Versailles for the Paris 2024 Olympics, the cross-country course designed by Pierre Le Goupil is generating considerable discussion. Initial impressions suggest a course that may not be as challenging as many anticipated.
Course Design and Impact
Le Goupil's design, set in the historic grounds of Versailles, presents a unique challenge. The course has been described as less twisty and more open than expected, with several good galloping stretches. This layout could favour horses with strong stamina and speed rather than those excelling in technical, tight turns. Key features include:
- A 5,300-meter track with less terrain than typical championship courses
- Significant tree coverage, providing shade and potentially cooler conditions
- Two notable water complexes, including a challenging second water jump
The optimum time is 9 minutes and 2 seconds, but early assessments suggest it might be more achievable than initially thought. This could reduce the influence of time penalties on the final standings, placing greater emphasis on accuracy and show jumping performance.
Le Goupil has incorporated additional combinations to slow riders down, indicating an effort to balance speed with technical challenges. This approach aims to test the best without overly punishing less experienced combinations.
Who to Watch?
These four combinations are among the top 10 most-reliable XC jumpers in the field and they're also among the 10 fastest:
- Lordships Graffalo (Ros Canter, GB): Known for fast cross-country rounds - 97% Top Speed Percentage or 'TSP' (the % of opponents a horse has outpaced on its fastest days) and 100% XCJ clear rate in the last 10 FEI runs.
- HSH Blake (Caroline Pamukcu, USA): An up-and-coming combination that could surprise on a course that might favour bold, forward riding (95% TSP).
- Colorado Blue (Austin O'Connor, IRE): Based on TSP, the fastest XC horse in the field (98%).
- Dao de l'Ocean (Felix Vogg, SUI): Comes into the Olympics with 100% XCJ clear rate in the last 10 FEI runs and 94% TSP.
Conclusion
The cross-country phase at Paris 2024 promises to be a fascinating test of horse and rider combinations. While the course may not present the extreme technical challenges some expected, it will require a delicate balance of speed, accuracy, and strategic riding. As always in eventing, the cross-country phase will set the stage for a thrilling conclusion in the show jumping arena.