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"I believe that if you are good enough, you will always make it. You just need to keep working,” Thibeau Spits told World of Showjumping in 2020, when he was featured in ‘The Next Generation’-series after having been awarded as Belgian Talent of the Year at the end of 2019.

Fast forward five years, and the now 24-year-old has just returned from his first senior championship – the Longines FEI Jumping European Championship 2025 in A Coruña, Spain – where he and Impress-K van’T Kattenheye Z (Indoktro-K van’T Kattenheye Z x Vagabond de La Pomme) won team gold with the Belgian squad. Not touching a pole throughout the five rounds of competition, only picking up a single time penalty, Thibeau placed 9th individually with the stunning stallion that he himself has produced all the way from a 3-year-old to top level.

Thibeau lives close to Mechelen in Belgium, where his family runs a big breeding farm. His older brother Marnick and two sisters Lauranne and Catherine also ride and their father Patrick has competed up to five-star level. It was Patrick who found Impress – by coincidence. “Impress was owned by Niels Bruynseels and his team at the Woodlands-auction,” Thibeau recalls. “When we went there to try horses, my father saw Impress in the field, and said he would only buy horses in the auction if he could also buy that one as well – it was love at first sight.”

It was love at first sight

Impress was just over two years old when the Spits-family bought him. When the stallion was three, and had gotten used to the saddle, Thibeau – who had just finished school and had begun riding full-time – started riding him. “My first impression was that at every jump, you could feel his effort. However, the feeling on the jump was that he jumped a bit away from you, not in the nicest shape you would wish for. He was also quite weak behind, and it was hard to keep him active,” Thibeau tells about the early days with Impress. “However, he could so effortlessly reach the width and that was the most impressive thing about him – in addition to how light-footed he was. Still today, the scope he has is something I've never witnessed before.”

“Back then, I didn't really know what it took for a horse to end up at the highest level, so I was not sure what we had in him,” Thibeau continues. “What I maybe doubted a little bit was his competitiveness. However, if you jump clear, you usually end up being successful, especially over the biggest courses in the world. At major championships, you make a difference by jumping clear rounds – and he's always been really good at that.”

Last year, Thibeau and Impress stepped up to five-star level, competing at eight Global Champions League-legs. In July, they won the CSI5* 1.60m LGCT Grand Prix in Riesenbeck after placing fourth in the CSI5* 1.60m LGCT Grand Prix in Cannes in June. “Without the Globals, it would have been much harder for me to prove myself at a higher level,” Thibeau says.

At the beginning of this year, I did not really have the feeling that I wanted to have

The spot on a GCL team came through Thibeau’s trainer and mentor Niels Bruynseels. “He lives 15 minutes away from us and we have always had a good connection,” Thibeau tells about his mentor. “When I was feeling lost with a horse years ago, I asked Niels for help – and have trained with him ever since. With Niels, it is about keeping everything as easy as possible, and getting a light connection to my horse; he completely turned my riding around. The way he has supported me is something I'm very thankful for, and I have picked up a lot from him, not only in terms of riding. There is so much more that comes into play; it is important to keep learning and asking questions.”

This year, Thibeau and Impress were part of the Belgian team at the Longines League of Nations in Ocala and Rotterdam, as well as jumping on the Nations Cup team in St Gallen. While the two kept recording steady results, Thibeau’s own feeling was not on par. “It was always a goal to do the Europeans,” he explains. “However, at the beginning of this year, I did not really have the feeling that I wanted to have. I did Shanghai and started changing things – and I actually felt completely lost. We had one down in the Grand Prix there, so it was not that bad, but I did not have the right feeling.”

“Then I decided to change our plan a little bit and did one training show, with no pressure. Afterwards, I had two weeks to St Gallen which I knew was an important show for us if we wanted to make the team for the Europeans. In St Gallen, Impress jumped a super double clear in the Nations Cup and was fourth in the Grand Prix."

"I believe that it was a good choice to do one training show in between; that was a turning point for us this season.”

In A Coruña, Thibeau was part of the young Belgian team, competing alongside Gilles Thomas, Pieter Devos and Nicola Philippaerts. “Gilles is one of my best friends, but we've never done a championship together. To get into the team with these guys has been something else for me,” Thibeau says.

To get into the team with these guys has been something else for me

“Going there, I was maybe a little bit worried that the best riders in the world would be judgmental if something was not right,” he continues. “However, we had a really supportive team. In a team setting, you get this special feeling. Nicola jumped first, and he was always there to help me as a third rider. Just having the others there is something that gives a lot of confidence. You have your own feeling, but to have the confirmation from the other riders on the team is something really valuable.”

“I think the first round was the most difficult round for me,” Thibeau tells. “I could have been a bit smoother at the beginning of the course, and I was not really happy about that. In the first round of the Nations Cup, I think we jumped one of the best rounds we have ever jumped, and that gave us a lot of confidence for the rest of the week.”

Team Belgium’s success in A Coruña comes down to loyal supporters – often family – holding on to talented horses, more than once rejecting lucrative offers. “Belgium might have a new era of very good horses, and very good combinations,” Thibeau points out. “I'm very thankful to my family for keeping Impress. Pieter has a similar situation with his family, and Gilles with Ermitage’s ownership. It's very important to have such people behind you. If all the good horses get sold when they are eight and nine, it's impossible to be successful as a team.”

Belgium might have a new era of very good horses

“Impress has never been promoted as a breeding stallion. Hopefully, he can get noticed now which would make it a bit easier to keep him,” Thibeau continues. “The way he is jumping, I hope he will get more attention from the breeders.”

“Currently, my main goal is to create a bigger team of horses around Impress,” Thibeau concludes. “I have horses who can compete at five-star shows, but that perhaps are not quite ready to do the Grand Prixs and championships. In Impress, I have a horse that is well suited for major championships, so those will be our main objectives for the following years – but he needs a supportive team of other horses alongside him. I have a list of 12 horses at the moment, and we are busy working with the younger ones to get them ready to step up.”

18.8.2025 No reproduction of any of the content in this article will be accepted without a written permission, all rights reserved © World of Showjumping.com. If copyright violations occur, a penalty fee will apply.