But let's return to the present and the sport: great sport to say! Saturday's event determined the starting order for the fifth stage of the FEI World Driving Championships, following on from Lyon, Maastricht, Stuttgart and Stockholm. In this first round, they were determined to give their all to qualify for the jump-off, which is reserved for the top three. The fastest were France's Benjamin Aillaud and his team of four Lusitanos, the ace of aces in the discipline and defending champion, despite an injury to his left foot hampering Australia's Boyd Exell and Belgium's Dries Degrieck. 

The three qualifiers then restarted in reverse order of their first-round rankings. Which of the Frenchman, the Australian or the Belgian would add their name to the list of winners of this traditional stage of the circuit? Benjamin Aillaud, who seems to literally sing to his horses, was the first to set off. Slightly slower than in the first round (164.19), he crossed the finish line in 165.19. Boyd Exell, already a 13-time winner at Palexpo, completed the course in an impressive 153.06 seconds. Despite his best efforts, Dries Degrieck was unable to better his time of 157.92. The Australian has undoubtedly made Geneva his kingdom – he is the Master in the house! 

This is what they said at the press conference: 

Boyd Exell (AUS): “When I came to Geneva, I was expecting a jump-off with Dries and Bram Chardon. In the end, however, Benjamin managed to qualify. Well done to him. It's difficult to build a course in an arena like this, but today's course was perfect: spectacular and enjoyable for the horses.” 

Dries Degrieck (BEL): “I have a new horse in my team who performed very well, and I'm delighted with this result. The course was fluid and enjoyable. It was as enjoyable to drive as it was for the audience to watch.” 

Benjamin Aillaud (FRA): “The atmosphere here is incredible, and the audience is very knowledgeable. The idea was to drive cleanly for the horses and present something harmonious. When harmony is combined with rhythm, you start to perform. My horses performed in a liberty show, then turned into carriage horses. It's a very moving family adventure!” 

Jérôme Voutaz (SUI), 7th: “I changed one horse from yesterday; I had a good feeling, but I made too many mistakes. I think it's due to a lack of training, but I still have a good feeling. I may need to change two or three things, but it's not that simple for a non-professional.” 

Michael Mayer, course designer: “It's challenging to design a course that's not too long or too difficult, incorporating features like the lake and the hill. I think I've found a good balance. It was great fun today, and the audience was fantastic.”