There was magic in the air at Le Mans (FRA) as Team France delivered a dominant performance at the FEI Eventing European Championships for Ponies this week, securing both team and individual gold in front of a jubilant home crowd.
The formidable under-16 French squad produced a masterclass in precision and consistency, finishing on an outstanding final team score of 88.7 penalties—well ahead of Great Britain, who took silver with 117.8 penalties, and Germany, who claimed bronze with 183.4.
In the individual competition, it was France’s Ella Rinaldi and Boston du Verdon, who claimed gold after three faultless phases. Germany’s Milla Staade, aboard Charleen San, secured silver, while Annabel Ridgeway of Great Britain completed the podium with bronze on Akim de l’Arquerie.
The competition began with Germany leading after the Dressage phase, followed by Great Britain in second and France in third. But the leaderboard was completely reshaped during Saturday’s influential Cross-Country phase.
The course, designed by the legendary Pierre Michelet (FRA), with support from Alain Ponceau (FRA), lived up to expectations. Known for building some of the sport’s toughest tracks—including those at the Rio Olympics, FEI World Championships 2014, and Pau CCI5*—Michelet delivered a demanding test at Le Mans.
Combinations at fences 16 and 18 caused significant problems, disrupting medal hopes for several nations.
France, however, handled the pressure with composure. All four team riders completed clear rounds inside the time, leaving them with a team score of 86.7 heading into the final day. In contrast, Team GB suffered from an elimination and a refusal, pushing their score to 117.4. Germany, meanwhile, struggled further, with only one athlete delivering a clear round.
By Sunday morning, France had a comfortable 29.1-penalty lead, and their ponies passed the final horse inspection without incident. With the title within reach, the French athletes still kept their focus. Three of the four athletes delivered double-clear rounds, finishing on their Dressage scores—an exceptional team performance.
Rinaldi and Boston du Verdon led the charge, with Tifaniie Villeton on Babylon Night Graves finishing fourth and Isla Johnston on Diego de St George’s placing fifth. Allister Muriel and Coccinelle de la Rive rounded out the team in sixth after one rail in the final phase. The team added just two penalties to their total after the Dressage—an astonishing result that confirmed France’s gold with style.
Gilles Vericel, Chef d’Équipe of the French team, praised his athletes’ resilience and preparation: “It’s a good outcome, even though we felt a bit of pressure since last year we took the top four spots. What I always say is, it’s not about winning once, it’s about continuing to win. That’s much harder, to do it again. But we weren’t that far off—we got off to a strong start in the dressage and put in some good tests.
“As for the cross-country, it was visibly a tough course, set up by Pierre Michelet and especially by Alain Ponceau —it really wasn’t that easy. We had seasoned riders, preparations were ideal, and we were quite confident. Still, you never know what can happen: once they leave the starting box, you can’t do anything more, but they rode to instructions. After the second French rider finished with a clear round, we instructed the team to play it safe, which is why we asked her to take the option at the penultimate obstacle to secure things, but also to go a little faster, which she did—it all went well.”
“We’re happy because we won double medals, and on top of that, what I find great is that we finished in style for Boston, who was ending his sporting career. As for the future, we need to keep developing young riders—we’re lucky to have riders and ponies with the potential to take over from the current stars, so we’ll see how things go.”
Gilles Vericel
(FRA)
The individual contest kept fans glued to the action. Nine athletes completed the competition on their Dressage scores—a rare and impressive feat at any championship level.
Rinaldi, who was second after Dressage, moved into the lead with a fast, clear Cross-Country round and held her nerve with a perfect Jumping performance. Riding her family’s 14-year-old stallion, Boston du Verdon, she completed on a score of 25.5 penalties.
“My pony, Boston du Verdon, is truly a member of our family—really, he’s incredible. My whole family helped train him: my mother, my sister. Boston is like the boy of the family; he’s the love of our life. Now, he’s going to focus mainly on breeding, though we’ll still participate in a few small shows, just for his enjoyment.”
It was bitter-sweet for Germany’s Milla Staade who led the Dressage phase on her own and her parents nine-year-old mare ‘Charleen San’, with a score of 24.6. They picked up just 1.2 penalties on the Cross-Country phase which despite jumping clear in the Jumping phase, relegated them to second place and the silver.
The championships in Le Mans were a showcase of grit, excellence, and passion—a perfect ending for a legendary pony, and a golden start for the next generation of French Eventing stars.
FULL RESULTS
Image: Ella Rinaldi (FRA) and Boston Du Verdon, winners of the FEI Eventing European Championship for Ponies 2025 © FEI / Libby Law Photography