Do you also believe that these horses run at a gallop?

Horses launched at up to 55 km/h with their jockey balanced on their backs.

Novices might believe in galloping, but no, these athletes are at a lower gait: the trot.

In the field of horse racing, "a race is dedicated to this pace: it is the French trotters", explains Camille Levesque, vice-champion of the world of mounted trotting.

With more than 1,300 races on the clock, the 30-year-old explains to

the contours of the discipline.

“A mounted trot race lasts three minutes.

At the start, there are 18 starters, maximum, ”announces the expert.

Minimum weight for jockeys

Aside from the pace (two beats at the trot versus three at the canter, but we'll spare you the details), there are other disparities between trotting and cantering races, "such as the differences in distances to be covered, which are more numerous for the gallop while at the trot they extend over 2,100, 2,800 and 2,900 meters in France”, explains the jockey.

If Camille Levesque turned very early on to mounted trotting rather than harnessed, it was above all for the sporting dimension: "Riding a horse is much more physical than driving a sulky [this two-wheeled car used for harness racing].

It requires muscle and breath, because we are in balance all the time.

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It is moreover this last point which has brought together, “over the last ten years”, trotting races and gallop races.

“Before, the harnessed trotters went faster than the mounted ones because we were doing the rising trot [mounting technique where the rider lifts off the saddle in rhythm with the horse], but now we are always in balance [like galloping] which allows the horses to gain speed”, explains the one who has been running since she was 16 years old.

Another point in common with the gallop: the strict control of the weight of the jockeys.

With the difference that at the trot, “there is a minimum weight depending on the age of the horse and therefore the race in which we compete.

For example, you have to be at least 65 kilos for horse races of 5 years and over, explains one of the few women in the world of mounted trotting.

So, I have to put on lead to reach this weight.

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From horses to athlete training

She reminds us that the real athletes are first and foremost the horses "who are trained every day".

And contrary to what one might think, trotters, even those who run mounted, are most of the time trained harnessed “in order to save their backs”.

And they will need it because the racing season, already well under way, is far from over for trainers, jockeys, drivers and horse owners: "My goal is the Prix de Cornulier in January", announces Camille Levesque .

But in the meantime, another major race is attracting everyone's attention: the Prix de Vincennes, which will be held on Sunday 18 December at the racecourse of the same name.

“This is the most beautiful race for 3-year-old horses.

And according to Camille Levesque, we find there “the top level”.

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