For this new meeting of the Games, we give the floor to the French course manager Grégory Bodo. For the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, it is up to him, in collaboration with Santiago Valera Ullastres, to imagine the route but also the obstacles that will adorn the Versailles track.
You will officiate as ringmaster for the show jumping events at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with Spaniard Santiago Varela Ullastres. How did you feel when you were told that you would be playing this role?
It was of course an immense happiness. Deep down I obviously hoped for it, but you should never sell the bear’s skin before having killed it, because you can quickly come back down to earth. Of course I was preparing for it because it is work carried out in advance. You are not named without knowing it. There is an application file to submit. The FFE, GL events and the riders’ club brought me to the forefront to say that I had the potential, the skills and the knowledge to aspire to build the courses for the Games. But that doesn’t mean you’re the best candidate.
I was not the only one in the running. There are a good number of older colleagues who are experienced and who have already officiated at major championships. There have been twists and turns. The appointment lasted more than a year. At the end, I wasn’t even too calm anymore.
“ Fighting to make these Games the most beautiful that have ever existed »
When did the announcement come?
In December 2022, the 6th exactly. I take it as a pride and an honor. I know where I come from, I know how to remain modest and thank all the people and organizations who allowed me to have the chance to be one of the starters for the Olympic Games. Whatever anyone says, whether for an athlete or an official, there is nothing that can be measured as noble, beautiful and laudatory as the Olympic Games. The sporting resonance is stronger than in other championships because we are not among ourselves. It probably only happens to you once in your life. What’s more, at home.
What dimension do you want, on your scale, to give to these Games?
My desire is to fight for the most beautiful Games that have ever existed for our sport. Already, with a backdrop as idyllic as that of the park of the Palace of Versailles and the history that reigns there, we could not dream of better. Then, I hope to make this desire a reality through the work that you will discover as you go along the courses: the obstacles, the decoration, the theme. I absolutely want all the elements that we will bring together to make these the most beautiful Games visually but also in terms of respect for the animal.
The Games must focus on this as a priority, even if an accident can always happen and there is no such thing as zero risk. I also want to make well-being an integral part of these Games, to show that horses can also enjoy this sport. They are athletes, not submissive animals.
“The pressure will probably come a few days before the event”
Do the Olympics bring more pressure, or do you approach it like a “normal” competition?
It will never be a normal competition, that’s obvious. I think the pressure will increase when we get there. There will be a lump in your stomach, excitement too and the fact that you want everything to go as smoothly as possible and that you can’t wait for it to start. It will probably come a few days before the event. Being in a pair with Santiago allows you to be a little more relaxed. We share responsibilities and there are more ideas in two heads than in one. Santiago has experience, this will be his second Olympics. We are used to working together since our first time in 2017. So for now, there is no real pressure.
The Versailles site is a unique site that has been built especially for the Games. How do we plan for a site still under construction?
I saw it on several occasions and at different times, that is to say when there was a progress report on the work. It’s much easier to plan ahead. We know how it was originally and we see what the metamorphosis was over a few months. We know roughly where to position all the elements. Of course, this is not the final result. But we have information such as the size of the track, the positioning of the obstacles… For us it is more than enough. Afterwards, you will have to fine-tune it on site.
“Everything is imagined and thought out by the track managers”
What is the course validation process?
With Santiago, we have carte blanche as long as we remain within the regulatory framework obviously. What makes the beauty of our activity in this sport is the freedom and room for maneuver which allow us to be the sole decision-makers in terms of the route, choice of theme, obstacles and what they will represent. , the colors, the decoration, where we will install them etc. When the courses are completed, we submit them to the technical delegate who has been appointed by the FEI and who is a bit like its representative. In general, unless I’m mistaken, the technical delegate pretty much follows what the course manager submits.
So you and Santiago are also in charge of designing all the obstacles?
Exactly. The themes, designs and everything that follows are made by the track leaders. Of course, the organizer, which here is the Olympic Organizing Committee (COJO), must approve everything. The money also comes from this corporation, so they are also decision-makers. They have a right to review and can say that they do not want this or that thing on the Games track because it is not in the DNA of the Paris Games. There have been changes, very few, but there have been some. All of this at the start was wanted, thought out, imagined by the track managers.
“The obstacle park should arrive in France at the end of June/beginning of July”
Between your appointment on December 6, 2022, and now. What were the stages of developing the courses?
What you need to know is that the appointment came late. Normally, we know the course leader two years before the Games. The postponement of the Tokyo Games has shifted everything. We were expecting it around March 2022 and we got it in December. We started working on the obstacles at the beginning of 2023 and the COJO validated the boards for all the obstacles in October 2023. Production of the obstacles began at the end of 2023. The park should arrive around the end of June /early July in France.
After the Games, what will become of this obstacle park?
Like any big event, organizers will rush to buy a few obstacles. We could thus find them in Aachen, Calgary, Geneva, on American sites… Part of the park will sell without any problem. The other part will return to the manufacturer, who may own certain obstacles. Then he can sell it to whomever it may concern or rent it.
Find all our news on Paris 2024 in our dedicated section.
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