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“He is more than a horse for us, he is like my brother,” Antoine Ermann tells World of Showjumping about the 10-year-old gelding Floyd des Pres (Vigo Cece x Papillon Rouge). “The journey with Floyd has been a nice story for my family, and also for my co-owner Vincent Goudin who has been with us for a long time. My father bought Floyd when he was a foal, and I started to ride him when he was five – so I have done everything with him.”

With Floyd des Pres, 23-year-old Ermann finished 16^th individually at the 2025 Longines FEI Jumping European Championship in A Coruña, Spain, as the best French combination. At the end of August, the two were part of the winning French team in the CSIO5* 1.60m Henders and Hazel Nations Cup presented by STX Finance at the Brussels Stephex Masters, jumping one of the five double clears in the competition. World of Showjumping caught up with Ermann to learn more about his journey from young riders to the French A-team.

“It was natural for me to become a professional rider,” Antoine, who was born into an equestrian family, tells.

Since 1985, Antoine’s mother Elisabeth and father Jean-Yves have been running L’Elevage de la Lie in Chevagny-les-Chevrières, France, with focus on producing young horses. “I was first put on a horse when I was around three,” Antoine continues. “From the beginning, I really loved the horses and the work around them. It was always my goal to do it professionally.”

From the beginning, I really loved the horses and the work around them

Ranked 693 in the world at this time of the year in 2023, the young French rider has come far in a short time: He currently sits 94th on the world ranking. This November, Antoine can make a mark of three years riding for the Sadran-family’s Ecurie Chev’el. “The stable has around 25-30 horses, and I have eight to ten horses on my list – from a seven-year-old to older horses,” he tells. “For a rider it is important to be in a good system, and I'm lucky to have so many good horses to ride. The Sadran-family wants to help the next generation of riders to reach the top, and I'm really proud and thankful to be in a stable like this. I am lucky; their support has changed my life.”

“My family has helped me a lot as well,” Antoine continues. “It is not easy for them that I am not based at home anymore, and my brother had to take on a lot of work managing the place. I am very thankful for their support, allowing me to follow my dreams. The Sadran-family has become like a second family for me. I'm really lucky to have all these people by my side.”

Antoine competed at the 2025 Europeans in A Coruña, Spain, as the fifth rider for Edouard Couperie’s French team. “We only jumped our first five-star Grand Prix at the end of January,” Ermann explains about his partnership with Floyd des Pres. “At the beginning of the year, it felt too early for us to even imagine making the team for the Europeans. However, Floyd kept jumping great; he jumped the five-star Grand Prix in Fontainebleau in May, and then we went to the Nations Cup in Mannheim where he was double clear – which led to a place on the team in Rome.”

As the fifth rider, I could have my own plan and ride without pressure

“He was double clear in Rome, it was a good performance,” Antoine continues. “We kept going well in La Baule, where we only had a fault at the water in the Grand Prix. After that, I could imagine a chance for the Europeans, but I am young and so is my horse so I did not want to get carried away. I just stuck to my plan, kept my horse fresh. After the Global Champions Tour in Paris, our chef d’equipe Edouard Couperie told me that we could go to the Europeans as the fifth pair. For me, it was the best possible outcome; I think it would have been too early for us to be on the team. As the fifth rider, I could have my own plan and ride without pressure. Being the fifth rider and being on the team are two totally different situations.”

“I didn't ride good enough during the first day, and the second day it felt like I restarted my championship,” Antoine tells about the week at Casas Novas. “I was focused on doing my best all the time, and my horse jumped unbelievable. In the end, it was not enough for the final round, but all together I am happy with our performance. Doing a championship is always special, it's not the same as jumping a normal show. I did many championships when I was a junior, but a senior championship is another level. It is more pressure, but I like it. I will use the experiences from A Coruña for our next championship.”

A senior championship is another level

While competing at a senior championship was new to Antoine, the group of riders he did it with was familiar. In A Coruña, four of the five riders on the French team had a connection to Ecurie Chev’el; while Antoine and Jeanne Sadran both ride for them, Nina Mallevaye has worked for Ecurie Chev’el in the past, and Julien Epaillard has been supported by the Sadran-family and coached Jeanne in the beginning of her career. “We all know each other really well, it was nice,” Antoine tells. “Nina, myself and Jeanne did many Nation Cups together when we were juniors and young riders.”

Since joining Ecurie Chev’el, Antoine has been training with Simon and Marcel Delestre. “I'm lucky to have them, they have so much experience. In A Coruña, Simon was with me every day and he helped me a lot. I cannot imagine a better trainer for me today.”

I learned so much about horses from Jérôme

“When I was really young, my father taught me, and then I trained with Jérôme Ringot for eight years,” Antoine continues. “He is really good with young horses, and he helped me a lot. He is like my second father. From Simon, I have learned how important it is to be confident, to remain calm and to trust yourself and your horse. With Jérôme, it was different because I was not jumping at this level yet. From him, I learned everything about young horses, how to work with them in a correct way, not going too quick, and not pushing them too early – how to be a horseman. I learned so much about horses from Jérôme, and Simon has helped me with the small details.”

Even though the 2025 Europeans were not a huge success for the French team, the future looks bright with many young and talented horse-and-rider combinations climbing up the ranks. Recently, the winning team in Brussels consisted of three U25-riders – Ermann, Jean Sadran and Nina Mallevaey, alongside their veteran Roger Yves Bost. “I think we have a good connection within the team,” Antoine tells about the atmosphere among the French. “The older, more experienced riders can help us younger ones and that is so important. It is something I don’t take for granted, and something that does not happen everywhere; not everyone likes to see young riders on good horses taking a place on a team. In the French team, I think we are lucky, because we all get along great and the old generation supports the young ones.”

Edouard is great because he creates opportunities and often puts younger riders on teams

“I know Edouard really well because he was my chef d’equipe already when I was a young rider,” Antoine says about the French chef d’equipe Edouard Couperie. “For us, Edouard is great because he creates opportunities and often puts younger riders on teams.”

“I don't think too much about that,” Antoine says when asked about the 2026 World Championships in Aachen and the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles glistening on the horizon as possible future goals. “I focus on my horses and their bodies, how they are feeling and that they are in good health. And after that, we will see what happens – my horses come first, and competitions come second.”

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