Le centre de recherches et d'études sur l'Europe > Schuman Papers and Interviews > Schuman Papers n°785 : Slovakia: civil society opposes its leaders Associate professor at the University Matej Bel de Banská Bystrica professor at the ISM-IAE Versailles-St-Quentin-en-Yvelines Slovakia has been going through a period of profound political change Marked by a complex history influenced by the Pan-Slavic movement and the legacy of the communist period the Slovak political scene is characterised by growing instability a division of society and a rise in populist discourse Successive events have fuelled discontent and protests which are now directed at the Prime Minister Robert Fico The legislative elections October 2023 saw two radically opposed visions of Slovak politics do battle: on the one hand progressive parties (PS – Progressive Slovakia SaS – Freedom and Solidarity and KDH – Christian Democrats) which advocate greater European integration and far-reaching reforms populist and Eurosceptic parties which promote a nationalist identity-based discourse critical of the European Union and NATO (Smer-SD – Social Democrats By tapping into the discontent of part of the electorate Smer-SD managed to rally widespread support particularly in the country's most disadvantaged regions and the presidential election (March-April 2024) and the European elections (June 2024) further accentuated these divisions The campaign was marked by personal attacks and debates reflecting the deep division in Slovak society The war in Ukraine has played a major role in the rhetoric of the government parties which are exploiting the question of migration using fake news related in particular to the war The attack on Prime Minister Robert Fico on 15 May 2024 further exacerbated this situation with hate speech and personal attacks now becoming even more frequent Security measures for politicians have been tightened and debates on freedom of expression and national security have dominated the political agenda.  Since the last legislative elections in October 2023 the country has been led by a very fragile coalition government bringing together political parties with sometimes divergent ideologies - European issues: Slovakia must reconcile its national interests with the requirements of the European Union opposed to military aid to Ukraine and which challenges the pro-European pro-NATO position of the previous government worries European partners and is discrediting Slovakia corruption remains an endemic problem in Slovakia as it continues to erode the confidence of citizens in the institutions and hinders the country's development the government's priority seems to be to ‘whitewash’ these activities and its imprisoned supporters with controversial projects such as the abolition of the anti-corruption prosecutor's office judicial reforms that could weaken the independence of the judiciary and restrictions on the media and certain NGOs This policy is also justified by an emphasis on anti-immigration and anti-minority rhetoric and the denunciation of the ‘liberal elites.’ - The economic crisis: like many other countries Slovakia has been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and now especially by the war in Ukraine The OECD has revised its forecasts for the Slovak economy downwards for 2025 while anticipating faster growth than that forecast in the national budget: an increase in Slovak GDP is forecast at 2.4% and not 2.7% as previously estimated The budget approved for 2025 is based on an estimated economic growth of 2.2% inflation is expected to accelerate from 3.2% to 4.4% The most worrying aspect for citizens is certainly the increase in VAT to 23% and the new tax on banking transactions introduced in January 2024 which particularly impacts small businesses (a ceiling limits the amount of tax for the largest transactions) the government has announced that food taxes are set to decrease long-term unemployment and the precariousness of many households are fuelling social tensions and contributing to the fragmentation of society Although the unemployment rate is now 5.4% it is still higher than that of the other Visegrad Group neighbours (Hungary and is even twice as high as that in the Czech Republic and Poland the rate of people unemployed for more than a year is among the highest in the European Union Social tensions are also being aggravated by budgetary restrictions which belonged to former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš which distils disinformation and partisan articles TV Markíza and especially TA3 are now vectors of government propaganda.  many initiatives have been taken within Slovak civil society to promote democracy such as the movement ‘For a Decent Slovakia’ which was created following the 2018 demonstrations after the assassination of the journalist Ján Kuciak citizens' movements and independent media have played a crucial role in this context by informing citizens and organising awareness campaigns and public debates. The conflict between part of civil society and the Ministry of Culture on issues related to freedom of expression and the protection of cultural heritage has highlighted the tensions between defenders of democratic values and a government accused of wanting to restrict individual freedoms in the media and public spaces The new Minister of Culture Martina Šimkovičová (representative of the National Party) fuelled the opposition by deciding to dismiss the directors of cultural institutions The ministry also decided to modify the national anthem with a new arrangement while retaining the original text and melody This has been to emphasise the importance and significance of the anthem as a national symbol considered that the Prime Minister's meeting with Vladimir Putin was not only unnecessary as the President of Russia has been accused of war crimes by the international community Another form of protest has taken on an unprecedented scale in Slovakia with a proliferation of petitions and open letters addressed to the Prime Minister or the government in protest against the latter or with a sharpening of criticism directed at Fico himself.  former Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and ambassador to the Czech Republic launched a petition at the beginning of November 2024 is addressed to the Prime Minister and as of 30 January 2025 has been signed by more than 6,500 people who denounce the Prime Minister's actions and “his wilful approach which has long discredited the Slovak Republic among allies and cooperating states and destroyed the work of experts in international relations and economic cooperation through ill-considered speeches [...] An appearance on Russian propaganda television whose programmes are also directed against our state has crossed every possible boundary that we could cross by silence or a raised eyebrow It is impossible to endlessly justify his public remarks which are in flagrant contradiction with what he signed up for as Prime Minister of the Slovak Republic No power obtained in free elections can be transformed into an attempt to govern for life at the price of not respecting the rules of a democratic state Our protest is motivated by our interest in the meaningful future of our homeland and the future of the coming generations of the Slovak Republic” the petition “We support psychiatrists and psychologists had collected nearly 1,100 signatures by 30 January 2025 Robert Fico was shot and wounded by a man whose motives remain unclear the Prime Minister posted a 14-minute pre-recorded speech on social media in which he described the assailant as an ‘activist of the Slovak opposition’ a ‘messenger of evil and political hatred’ this hatred was fuelled and got out of control because of a ‘frustrated and failed opposition’ He claimed that the opposition representatives had encouraged ‘violent or hateful excesses’ against his democratically elected government the government decided on measures to increase the security of politicians and other important figures which were generally considered excessive and were validated by parliament.  offers an analysis ‘as citizens and professionals in the field of psychiatry and psychology’ of the Prime Minister's behaviour ‘characterised by an increasingly authoritarian style defamation and attacks on political opponents journalists and ordinary citizens who express their disagreement [...] Your political behaviour and your proclaimed positions polarise society and influence its emotional atmosphere They are generating frustration and discontent among a large part of the Slovak population’ Robert Fico supports people ‘who spread conspiracies slander and lies that are devastating our culture’ and takes initiatives with Russia that challenge ‘who is the final aggressor and who is the victim defending himself’ The petition suggests that ‘the aggressiveness and emotional volatility in [.. his] public appearances became more pronounced after the assassination attempt’ and that the stress suffered by the Prime Minister may ‘be having an impact’ on his behaviour This is not the first time that Slovakia's mental health experts have made their analyses public: in the petition they point out that in 1998 reservations had been addressed to Vladimir Meciar the petitioners ask the Prime Minister to ‘develop [his] capacity for introspection and [to] correct [his] political behaviour including considering leaving high politics’ Moreover, the open letter addressed to the government, launched by academics from all over the country on 23 January 2025, which had gathered nearly 2,500 signatories by 30 January 2025. Entrepreneurs and investors, in turn, published an open letter on 25 January 2025 which calls on the government not to ‘endanger [.. the] economy and the future of Slovakia by disconcerting foreign customers partners and investors with statements about leaving the EU’ and to ‘support the improvement of the education and language skills of Slovak citizens in order to [better be able to.. ] face the challenges of the globalised market and increase our competitiveness’ Finally, 411 NGO’s and citizens’ associations have criticised the government and expressed their indignation at the management of public affairs and foreign policy: ‘We want to strongly oppose government measures that go against the principles of open governance transparency in the exercise of public power citizen participation in the development of legislation as well as discriminatory measures in the field of justice’ The verbal attacks on the civil sector ‘are reminiscent of the old totalitarian regimes (fascist and communist) which took similar steps to establish a non-democratic political order’ even though NGOs ‘are now replacing the dysfunctional state in many areas of activity This is particularly evident in the fields of healthcare environmental protection and sports’ the limitation of funding and the questioning of NGOs can only aggravate ‘further social tensions frustration and the polarisation of society’ These demonstrations and petitions prompted reactions from the government and its supporters. In response to these protests, a petition, published on 27 January 2025, demanded the end of subsidies for NGO’s especially “Peace for Ukraine” but the list of signatories was not made public The aim is to draw the government's attention to ‘the possible presence of foreign forces on Slovak territory’ which calls into question ‘national sovereignty’ ‘democracy’ and ‘political stability’ and therefore to stop funding organisations suspected of being linked to ‘foreign forces’ which obviously recalls measures initiated by Russia that have since been implemented in certain countries It is interesting to note that the petition emphasises that ‘the citizens of the Slovak Republic are exposed to targeted disinformation the aim of which may be to instil fear and destabilise society’ in particular regarding ‘the alleged departure of Slovakia from the EU and NATO’ The current demonstrations are denounced as being organised ‘under the influence of foreign forces’ The context of the cyberattacks that took place in January lends weight to this type of accusation one of the most important electronic services of the State was paralysed by such an attack at the beginning of January 2025: the data was encrypted by hackers and the services were forced to close for several weeks This attack highlights the urgent need to make safe the information systems and networks of state authorities that process citizens’ state institutions and local authorities’ data another cyberattack was attempted on 24 January against the General Health Insurance Company (VšZP) to disrupt the IT infrastructure the attack was effectively contained and did not penetrate the internal systems or threaten the integrity and security of the data of the insured These allegations were immediately rejected by the opposition leaders and the NGOs concerned who consider them to be attempts to intimidate the Slovakian people Fico’s government may gradually isolate itself on the European stage especially regarding its stance on Ukraine and the rule of law The coming months will certainly be decisive in achieving a balance between national sovereignty and the country's international commitments But tensions may worsen further if the government persists with its authoritarian reforms and/or if the economy continues to stagnate Two factors are crucial for the future: the European Union may decide to step up its pressure on the government with proceedings due to breaches of the rule of law protests against the fourth Fico government and his statements have obviously had repercussions: the ruling coalition has now potentially lost its parliamentary majority declared that they would no longer vote in parliament until further notice which means that the government coalition now only has 75 votes thereby losing its absolute majority (76).  convened a round table of the leaders of the parties in the government coalition (Smer-SD Hlas and SNS) and the representatives of the opposition parties (PS KDH) to discuss foreign policy orientations The President intended to take advantage of ‘this opportunity to tell all Slovak citizens that Slovakia's accession to the European Union and NATO is indisputable’ but his closeness to the current Prime Minister was certainly not unrelated to the opposition parties' decision not to participate in this meeting The current political and social crisis is such that part of society is mobilising using old methods (demonstrations) and more recently adopted methods (online petitions) focusing both on a contested ideological line and on the personality and behaviour of a single man But this would not solve all the problems .. [1] In reference to the popular uprising that toppled pro-Russian Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych in 2014 [2] The secret service is currently headed by the son of Tibor Gašpar who has been accused of serious misuses of the police for political purposes when he was President of the Slovak Police between 2012 and 2018 Mr Gašpar was forced to resign following the murder of journalist Jan Kuciak in 2018 which also led to the resignation of Robert Fico after major protests Publishing Director : Pascale Joannin The end of the energy price crisis must not mean.. Hybrid threats: the new horizons for a "Europe of.. with its 200,000 subscribers and its editions in 6 languages ​​(French Subscribe Legal Notice Privacy Policy Cookie Management we will zoom in on a regular basis on one of the most legendary horses in our sport Baloubet du Rouet (by Galoubet A) is the first in the list The stallion broke all records with the Brazilian Rodrigo Pessao by winning the World Cup finals no less than three years in a row In this portrait we take a closer look at the world-famous chestnut stallion!  Baloubet du Rouet was born in 1989 with French breeder Louis Fardin who at that time was one of the best jumping horses in the world "He had an impressive way of jumping," say several sources who had the honor of seeing the stallion jump Galoubet A won the French championship three times under the saddle of Gilles Bertran (in 1977 They also contributed to the gold medal of the French team at the 1982 World Championships was not the only famous descendant of Galoubet Skippy II also scored high in both sport and breeding Baloubet gained his first competition experience with Rémy Bourdais after being bought by Nicole and Diego Pereira Couthino at the age of 4 it was love at first sight," they recounted Bourdais tells "I already felt then that it was going to be an exceptional horse He literally jumped out with his exceptional jumping qualities He was also very easy to handle but once in the competition arena he changed At that moment only one thing counted for him: to leave all the fences in the spoons He had a strong personality and a lot of blood and temperament He was easily distracted so you had to keep him focused" the stallion moved to the Pessoa family's stables "With me and Baloubet it was definitely not love at first sight," laughs Rodrigo Pessoa "When I saw him coming off the truck I thought to myself Baloubet was lanky and seemed to have no control over his body We let him loose jump the first few days but not more because he was so green What was immediately noticeable is that he didn't make the same mistake twice Every day he jumped better and better and he 'didn't hit the same rock twice,'" Pessoa said It seemed like every time he would think all night about what he was doing wrong and the next day he would make it right immediately The stallion was ridden by Nelson Pessoa until he was nine Nelson was already very successful with the stallion for example in 1996 they won the French championship for 7-year-old horses in 1997 they were able to rank in almost every Grand Prix they participated in and in 1998 they were part of the Brazilian team that jumped to fifth place at the World Equestrian Games in Rome "I also felt then that this would be the ideal horse for Rodrigo," Nelson told me When Rodrigo took over the reins of the stallion his success story really began and almost immediately they already won the World Cup final in Helsinki They would repeat that feat the next two years in Gothenburg and Las Vegas An absolute record: no rider would later succeed in taking home the World Cup with the same horse three years in a row They almost did it again: in 2001 they finished in second place The duo also managed to win the Top Ten finals twice: in both 2003 and 2005 they crowned themselves ultimate victors in a competition with the best ten riders in the world They also participated in several Olympic Games and championships Baloubet du Rouet went into sports retirement to devote himself entirely to breeding He is the sire of world-famous horses such as Chaman Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team’s match day roster for the winner-takes-all WXV 1 finale against England has been announced by Head Coach Kevin Rouet as the top two teams in the world prepare to contend for the tournament title on Saturday The third and final game of Canada’s WXV 1 campaign goes on October 12 at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver with kick-off scheduled for 7:00pm local time (10:00pm ET) “Coming into the tournament we wanted to be in this position with two wins after two games using a wider group of players from the squad and a chance to beat England to win WXV,” said Rouet “England have shown why they are the best team in the world but we know that if we are at our best on both offence and defence we are a team that can beat them.”  who scored two tries in Canada’s WXV 1 opener against France and was named Player of the Match comes back into the starting 15 to face England who scored off the bench in their first international cap against France two weeks ago will hit another milestone with their first ever start for Canada's Women's Rugby Team when they take to the field on Saturday Prop McKinley Hunt will start her first game since Canada’s historic Pacific Four Series win in Christchurch in May against the New Zealand Black Ferns after starting on the bench in Canada’s first two matches of WXV 1 Pamphinette Buisa and DeLeaka Menin both rejoin the starting roster after sitting out against Ireland It’s a long way to the Rugby World Cup but this is a great chance to measure ourselves and see the progress the squad has made.”   Tickets for the final matches of WXV 1 can be purchased HERE Tickets are purchased as single day passes with each ticket providing fans access for a full match day This means purchasers can attend multiple games using a single ticket on October 12 Fans will be able to exit and re-enter the stadiums in accordance with regulations Additional questions regarding ticket purchases can be directed to tickets@rugby.ca.  Canada’s game against England will be broadcast on Saturday October 12 on TSN1 / TSN5 and livestreamed on TSN+ at 7:00pm PT/10:00pm ET.   More information on WXV can be found HERE Media accreditation applications are currently being accepted HERE. Questions regarding media accreditation can be directed to media@rugby.ca  Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team Match Day Roster vs England  1 QC) – St-Anne-de-Bellevue / Concordia Univeristy / ASM Romagnat 6 QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Stade Bordelais 8 QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Stade Bordelais 10 ON) – Aurora Barbarians / Leicester Tigers 11 Alexandra Tessier (Sainte-Clotilde-de-Horton QC) – Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue RFC / Exeter Chiefs 13 ON) – Guelph Goats / Castaway Wanderers / Ealing Trailfinders  FINISHERS  16 ON) – Barrhaven Scottish / Stade Villeneuvois LM 19 ON) – Cowichan Piggies / Aurora Barbarians / Ealing Trailfinders 20 AB) – Calgary Irish Rugby Club / Leicester Tigers 21 Canada’s Women’s Rugby 15s Team Head Coach Kevin Rouet has named the 30 players that will be participating in WXV 1 in Vancouver this September and October where teams are either the top three of the Women’s Six Nations: England or the top three of the Pacific Four Series “Our preparation time was short but efficient “All the players have worked very hard for the last couple of weeks to prepare for WXV and we are excited for these next three matches and for the chance to play on home soil here in Vancouver against the best rugby teams in the world,” he added a great athlete and the legend of women’s rugby is Canada’s all-time 68th cap off the recent win against New Zealand in May of this year Of the twenty-three selected players for the WXV I some team members claimed the title in the victorious 2024 Pacific Four Series earlier this year and England will each challenge us in different ways but it’s another opportunity to test ourselves and another step in our journey to the Rugby World Cup next year,” said Rouet Caroline Crossley along with Asia Hogan-Rochester are yet to wear the Canadian national team colors Wood has played five seasons for the University of British Columbia while Hogan-Rochester and Crossley won an Olympic silver medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics with fellow WXV teammates Fancy Bermudez who has 38 caps for the Canadian team and a silver medal at the 2014 Rugby World Cup This will be her first time returning to the squad since the 2021 Rugby World Cup Sara Kaljuvee expects her first call-up since Canada’s 2023 Pacific Four Series match against Australia Canada's first game in the tournament will be against France at BC Place in Vancouver on Sunday Canada has only beaten France in two out of three of their games including the inaugural WXV 1 tournament last year in New Zealand where Fancy Bermudez scored a try in the 66th minute to help Canada defeat France 29-20 This victory secured Canada second place in the final standings JUDY ROTICH The content on this site is for entertainment and educational purposes only Betting and gambling content is intended for individuals 21+ and is based on individual commentators' opinions and not that of Sports Illustrated or its affiliates All picks and predictions are suggestions only and not a guarantee of success or profit If you or someone you know has a gambling problem crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER The legend of the French Riviera was first born in Nice when British aristocrats, notably Queen Victoria, first began wintering there in the 19th century. Then the script flipped in the Roaring Twenties when wealthy Americans started the mode for summering on littoral the French call the Cote d’Azur and the popularity of this stunningly beautiful stretch of coastline from Saint Tropez to Menton on the Italian border has never dimmed since then If the new 88-room Hotel du Couvent—a gorgeous newcomer in an ancient convent—is the talk of town in Nice, there are many other new addresses in a city that’s undergoing a generational changing of the guard. The sunny just-opened 102-room Pam Hôtel has sort of a Venice Beach vibe by interior designer Michael Malapert who crafted the pastel-toned California-inspired décor to appeal to the young types who are checking-in for a week or a weekend of fun in the sun You’ll also spot these stylish types at Onice the restaurant not to miss in Nice right now It’s run by a charming young couple who met in the kitchen of Mauro Colagreco’s Michelin three-star Mirazur including dishes like San Remo shrimp with tomatoes and cherries and a ragout of locally caught squid with zucchini and poutargue the best way to cool off in Nice this summer is to head for Frisson the new ice cream shop cum coffee shop cum art gallery in Le Vieux Nice which is run by two men who previously worked at the famous concept-store boutique Colette in Paris where owner Emmanuel Buschiazzo roasts his own beans and even has oat milk on hand for those who prefer it One of the best ways to spend a day in Nice is to sign up for a cooking class with delightful Canadian chef Rosa Jackson at her culinary school Les Petits Farcis. Jackson has lived in Nice for more than 20 years and learned to cook her adopted city’s delicious cuisine from her neighbors in Le Vieux Nice. Her just published cookbook Nicoise is a perfect house present this summer In Mougins, the pretty perched village just north of Cannes, Le Mas Candille a long-running favorite with vacationing Parisians and celebrities who want to stay out of the constant spotlight in Cannes has just had an edgy makeover by Franco-Mexican interior designer Hugo Toro and it has a new low-key glamour that recalls the Fifties on the Riviera and in Los Angeles—think Mediterranean meets Mission Don’t miss a treatment at the new state-of-the-art Clarins spa here either Meanwhile, Cannes is abuzz over star chef Jean Imbert’s succulent new menu at La Palme d’Or restaurant at the Hotel Martinez so don’t miss the tuna belly with preserved lemon and mint-and-coriander tabouleh Marseille continues to come on strong as such a seriously good food town that it’s actually giving Paris a run for its money these days Catch lunch at the excellent new seafood restaurant Coquille near Le Vieux Port in the heart of the city—don’t miss the fish soup and the grilled squid and then discover one of the under-the-radar nearby port towns the Marseillais escape to on summer weekends Cassis is just a 20-minute train ride from the city and has a magnificent setting overlooking the sea in a half-moon shaped cove planted with vineyards which produce the delicious white wine that shares a name with the town. Check into the charming just renovated Hotel Liautaud overlooking the port and plan a day out exploring the Calanques along this gorgeous coastline on a private boat Otherwise, hop aboard the local train that hugs the coast for the scenic 40-minute ride to Carry-le-Rouet, and check in at the just opened L’Hôtel Bleu which has a sleek modern nautical décor of white and cobalt blue and overlooks the port It also has an excellent seafood restaurant and a seawater spa Both Cassis and Carry-le-Rouet are tres francais and so are perfect for escaping the madding crowds of summer © 2023 Hudson One Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy Baloubet Du Rouet was a stunning performer at the turn of the millennium who dominated the Jumping scene for years with partner Rodrigo Pessoa The champion achieved an unprecedented three-in-a-row in the FEI Jumping World Cup™ and then ensured immortality by riding with Pessoa to Olympic gold in 2004 this chestnut Selle Francais later became one of equestrian’s leading sires and some years after his retirement and death he is still a great favourite in the Jumping world While his name is synonymous with the Brazilian flag of his rider Baloubet was of course born and bred in France He was of fine stock with his sire being Galoubet A helped France to Team gold at the 1982 Show Jumping World Championships in Dublin Baloubet was born in 1989 and was raised on Normandy’s St Aubin de Terregatte farm of the celebrated breeder At the age of three he was shown to the Portuguese couple and soon they sent him to their friend Nelson Pessoa Baloubet progressed nicely under Nelson and his reputation was enhanced by victory in a seven-year-old stallion test at Fontainebleau who was already considered one of the world’s top Jumping athletes Soon he and Baloubet would become the sport’s most famous partnership Baloubet and Rodrigo began their career in incredible style in 1998 as they finished ahead of Lars Nieberg and Espirit and Ludger Beerbaum and PS Priamos to win the FEI Jumping World Cup Final™ in Helsinki It was a landmark year for Rodrigo as he also won 1998 FEI World Equestrian Games™ gold with Gandini Lianos he would stick together with Baloubet for the next seven years They defended their World Cup title the following year in Gothenburg this time just ahead of Trevor Coyle and René Tebbel Michael Whitaker and Ludger Beerbaum finished just behind An unprecedented ‘threepeat’ was achieved in Las Vegas in 2000 when the pair were at the top of their game clinching their third World Cup title without adding any penalties and well clear of Markus Fuchs and Mandl they came close to a fourth straight win in 2001 only to be pipped into second place by Fuchs and Tinka’s Boy They also made the podium in 2002 and 2003 In 2002 they were well off the pace at the FEI World Equestrian Games™ in Jerez The pair had also not performed at their best at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney Riding for gold they hit a rail at the first jump and then Baloubet refused to attempt the eighth jump and was eliminated Their most significant triumph came four years later in Athens when they won Individual gold ahead of Chris Kappler and Marco Kutscher while the record books show them as champions they had actually finished second at the end of the competition with original victors Cian O’Connor and Waterford Crystal later disqualified took part in his last ever FEI Jumping World Cup™ Final where he and Rodrigo finished a creditable seventh He formally retired from competition in February 2008 at 19 years old He began a successful breeding career and was named ‘leading sire’ by the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses in 2012 His offspring include Ludger Beerbaum’s Chaman and Jurg Vrieling’s Olympic horse whose offspring include Steve Guerdat’s Bianca He was known to be easy to handle and rather quiet claiming Baloubet never needed explaining anything twice he was also considered a bit of a “coward” by Rodrigo He explained: “The more quality you have in a horse the closer you get to the limit of them being scared and to become a coward.” Baloubet lived with his owners Nicole and Diego Coutinho Pereira in Portugal He passed away of natural causes aged 28 years old in 2017 Rodrigo published a heartfelt tribute to his old friend “You arrived as a wild 5 year old kid but you showed a lot of potential on the very first jump The start was not easy but you were so intelligent that you understood everything very quickly You grew up to become one of the greatest horses in history Tune into the FEI’s YouTube channel to watch this magnificent FEI Icons tribute to this wonderful horse… We continue our series on the equine stars of yesteryear by looking at Dressage superstar Rembrandt.. We continue our series on the stars of yesteryear by looking at double Olympic champion Charisma.. by looking at triple Olympic champion Sam.. by looking at Charlotte Dujardin's superstar.. We begin a new series looking back on the stars of yesteryear by focusing on Milton: the first £1m horse.. who took the USA back to the top of Dressage.. We look at Ian Millar's superstar champion.. We use cookies on this site to enhance your user experience By clicking any link on this page you are giving your consent for us to set cookies The new head coach of Canada's women's rugby team on facing his first challenge ahead of highly anticipated Rugby World Cup 2021 The 35-year-old from Bordeaux has been Canada's new head coach since the beginning of March this year for whom Rouet was assistant coach for the last three years With this appointment, Rouet follows in the footsteps of François Ratier - who has since become the general and technical director of Rugby Québec - who led the Canadians to fifth place in Rugby World Cup 2017 in Ireland. I migrated to Canada 13 years ago and François and I met here in Quebec City," says Kévin Rouet who was introduced to the oval ball by his father That Rouet became a professional rugby coach was by choice He had studied engineering after arriving in Canada as an exchange student and then started a career at a steel bridge design company A bridge is certainly a good metaphor for his life between France and Canada "Rugby has always been my passion and six years ago I decided to leave my job as an engineer I must admit that it was not easy to get started at first," shares Rouet he signed with the Garneau Élans and the Carabins of the University of Montreal and then later with the Rouge et Or of Laval University where he'd already coached a number of internationals Of course, that was until the day he was offered to take on coaching the national team, now ranked third in the World Rugby Women's Ranking powered by Capgemini The task ahead is huge in a country that hasn't played high-level rugby for two years due to the pandemic But to overcome these difficulties, the Union allowed a number of players to cross the Atlantic to play develop and acquire other skills in the French and English championships the gap in play has had its positives and negatives," smiles the new head coach even the players who stayed in Canada were very resilient There is a lot of confidence and we can only go from strength to strength now." The team's next big competition will come quickly with the Pacific Four Series, playing from 6-18 June in New Zealand. A well-placed event in the international calendar, the series comes nearly four months before the start of Rugby World Cup 2021 which will be played from 8 October to 12 November 2022 in New Zealand Some of Canada's key players are tied up with commitments in England and France into the beginning of June which means they'll miss the opening Pacific Four match against the USA on 6 June in Tauranga The players are however expected to be released for the next two matches against the Black Ferns on 12 June in Waitakere and then against the Wallaroos in Whangarei on 18 June who will arrive with his squad in New Zealand on 25 May We want to prove that Canada is still a great rugby nation." Rouet's team will spend several weeks preparing for Rugby World Cup 2021 with three tests scheduled in the three following months: against Italy in July then against Wales in August in Canada and against Fiji in September "This will allow us to validate the first game plans the beginning of the end of the road," says Rouet On the weekend of 21-22 May, Rouet wasn't far from the Ernest-Wallon Stadium in Toulouse which played host to the HSBC Toulouse Sevens as he was finishing a stint with Bordeaux before flying to New Zealand "I wasn't there in recruitment mode," he says "We have a good relationship with the sevens coach; we work together and I know the players very well We have the will to make the sevens and the XV work together so that's an achievement that won't be missed by us but we know we've got three more games to keep building on that." Is the Queensland boss the right man to lead Australia forward And will Joe Schmidt be tempted to stick around for Rugby World Cup 2027 Canada had never beaten New Zealand. The Black Ferns had been unbeaten in 17 meetings since the first Women’s Rugby World Cup on 6 April 1991 Their most recent victory was a crushing 52-21 defeat in Ottawa in July 2023 Canada had struggled to climb out of a black hole after three straight defeats to England But the players rallied around coach Kevin Rouet and turned things around culminating in a 22-19 victory in Christchurch on 19 May 2024 the Black Ferns have replaced their rivals for second place in the World Rugby rankings “A bit stressed… The conditions were good but the pitch was a bit slippery and there were a lot of handling errors from both teams at the start We managed to be in the game at half-time despite a first half that perhaps wasn’t our best But we stayed in it and had a good 25 minutes in the second half We defended a lot in the last 20 minutes but I liked the team What we lacked was the ability to defend against big teams in big sequences.” Do you feel that this historic victory has unlocked a door in the team It was the first time Canada had beaten New Zealand I think we were well prepared for the game We had a pretty solid squad with a lot of experience and that’s good It was important in the big moments.” What has changed in Canada’s game since last year I think we put too much pressure on ourselves to win build momentum so that when it comes down to it We need to be calm and composed and I think we did that There were some good things in terms of match management.” it could not have been much sweeter for Tyson Beukeboom who celebrated becoming Canada’s most-capped female player by helping her country to a historic victory against New Zealand Does this mean that winning wasn’t necessarily the main objective that’s what we told ourselves the day before the game that we shouldn’t be afraid to play against New Zealand because otherwise we wouldn’t be able to It was more about learning to play together growing together and I think that allowed us to play a little more relaxed.” A win like that means you can look forward to the WXV in Canada with confidence… “I love it: we’re going to play England so it’s going to be another great run of matches We’ll probably play one or two warm-up games against some good teams too It’s true that when you come out of a competition and you win it you’ve got a tight group and you’re in a good frame of mind We need to get that spirit back in September It’s created a good synergy within the group.” When you knocked France out of third place in the world rankings did you think you could go higher the following week “I knew if we beat Australia by more than 15 points we’d be third but I hadn’t checked if we could overtake New Zealand I hadn’t been given the information and I only found out after the game New Zealand play Australia soon and I think if they win they’ll be back in the top spot “It’s great for the girls’ morale It’s always great to say you’re ranked second in the world but you know it’s fleeting and you can drop back to third very quickly You’re obviously in a better position when you’re second than when you’re fourth but you know they don’t necessarily last very long.” Fancy Bermudez was a pivotal figure in Canada’s historic 22-19 upset The 21-year-old winger scored two tries in her tenth international as Canada wrapped up their Pacific Four Series title That’s a lot of progress in one year… “Our goal is to compete against the top nations We beat France last year and now we’re up against Australia It was a very good performance because we dominated for 80 minutes What was the mood like in the squad after the game “At the same time as the win, Tyson Beukeboom became the most-capped player (68 caps so there was a little ceremony and little gifts around her and the staff and players went their separate ways but everything closes early in New Zealand Everything closes at midnight and things move very we had a little team activity when everyone was up at ten am I imagine the night was a bit short.” What’s the schedule like leading up to the WXV “It’s going to be a bit like all the teams end of August – beginning of September We were just waiting to find out if we were going to play in WXV 1 or WXV 2; it’s always difficult to organise matches At the moment we’re talking to a number of teams about playing some friendly matches before the competition It could be in Europe or right here in Vancouver Possibly one match in Europe and one against a team coming to Vancouver earlier.” Captain Sophie de Goede recently switched from XV to Sevens in preparation for the Olympics. A bit like Antoine Dupont in France… “We’ve had a bit more movement between Sevens and XV The number nine [Olivia Apps] and the number six [Pamphinette Buisa] are potential Olympians We’ve really been thinking about this transfer for the last two years Even two and a half months before the Olympics we’re moving players between XV and Sevens we’re talking to each other… We have a really good working relationship Sophie has only recently started playing Sevens again She doesn’t have the same role in XV as she does in Sevens at the moment but I think it’s good for her development Canadian women often dream of the Olympics before the World Cup The Women's Rugby World Cup 2025 is coming to England. Click here to buy tickets Join free and tell us what you really think Is the Queensland boss the right man to lead Australia forward Northampton Saints found a way of beating the fabled Jacques Nienaber blitz and inflicting another 'horrific' Champions Cup loss on the Leinster giants Warren Gatland forged a sense of togetherness in his 2013 Lions but faced personal 'vitriol' after leaving out a legend BOTNET CRYPTO RECOVERY is a global leader in cross-border crypto asset recovery With a vast network of partners—including major exchanges and cybersecurity firms across North America and Asia—they can quickly freeze stolen assets across multiple jurisdictions preventing fraudsters from moving funds internationally Their team has deep expertise in the legal and regulatory complexities of cryptocurrency recovery enabling swift action even in offshore and multi-country cases working closely with law enforcement and financial institutions to maximize recovery chances Whether dealing with fake investment schemes BOTNET CRYPTO RECOVERY provides effective solutions to reclaim lost assets When will the coaching staff realise that they need to do something different at this point Yes thats what I see from all the way over hear they’ve believed they haven’t had the players but even that is possible more adding to rather than changing He’s obviously changing things on the field though which is why we all pretty much didn’t expect results from them this year and definitely with the sort of encouraging results that make you believe you’re on the right track Would be a superb outfit if they put that all together with trying to find a better way to manage the unique challenge of having a national representee team as your make up I can only imagine what problems the old Auckland Blues team would have encountered but they might want to look at the Crusaders example While not the same scope the Crusaders star players were key All Blacks who often just meandered through the season and that affected results but were always able to turn it on at the back end when it counted Don't mean SA getting kicked out of Europe altogether I mean SA withdrawing from Europe to get out of a 12 month season when playing in URC seems to be having an impact in the Springboks its entirely possible SA would re-enter a restructured SR or create its own entirely domestic comp then seek international club play on a Champions Cup type basis with its domestic teams having 20 plus scheduled games a season it'll achieve all its financial/popularity/competitiveness goals without having to go for a 12 month season Not good if he can’t play well off the bench lol I have him down as my super sub We’re all just waiting for you to comment on something other than everything Canterbury You are boredom maximus and just can’t see it Hilarious richer countries have been announcing the death of NZ rugby since rugby first became an international sport and NZ started beating the crap out of the Northern hemisphere teams There is so much resentment and hatred and frustration that NZ rugby It'll be there for the next twenty years Biggest issue was the selection they got it totally wrong and the most likely reason for it was over confidence The same arrogance that saw them off the boil emotionally and lacking in the intensity required to combat Northampton’s ferocious start All of which led them to a point where they were unable to execute at the death and capitalise on the clear advantages held at that stage Leinster got exactly what they deserved from that match and it was very amusing to watch Kearney squirming post match I'll repeat what I said Hopefully you'll get the point this time Despite your claim I never mentioned financials I focused purely on the political consequences for SA rugby structures of the Springboks decline in RWC's My focus in relation to that was entirely on the issue of competitiveness has a much better structured domestic season now than it had in SR Domestic teams playing in a round robin comp they are in every year is a domestic comp for competitive/development purposes SA's URC teams have to run significantly bigger squads again a function of having a proper full season for those teams That is something NZ will eventually emulate the URC's popularity/financials are greater in SA because its a full season and its teams are winning [again something I recognised] in the distinctly lower quality URC whereas it spent almost all its time in SR losing in much higher quality but shorter comp The story is radically different in the much higher quality European comps where the SA are getting crushed year after year what will be the political consequences in SA of the Springboks decline in RWC/WR standings Will the financial/popularity advantages of getting a proper domestic season be seen to be damaging the Springboks given the distinctly lower quality of the URC in comparison with SRP My bet is such a blame game is almost certain To give themselves a substantial domestic comp and keep the Springboks in TRC [They have no choice] SA are being forced to play 12 months a year have developed a habit of improvising solutions instead of building durable structures A 12 month season is just another improvisation And as for the fairy story that being in Europe is better prep for RWC/Test rugby than SR SA teams only play Ireland/Wales/Scotland/Italy in the URC And SA teams don't play in Europe long enough to benefit from playing against club teams from England and France And if you think that playing in Ireland/Wales/Scotland on a wet winters day is less challenging than playing in NZ then you're welcome to your short memory I had overlooked George Ford Yep he should have started in between Sam P and Garry R It wasn’t JB’s fault he wasn’t picked😁 Yes they do make a point of exploiting that ‘trough’ after the 6N by picking B teams for most matches I doubt the end of the 6N did much for the confidence of the players either So they might try taking their chances with more first teamers playing consistently in that period they have no problem with warm weather and usually win the EPCR semi Not Jordie’s problem JW he should have been on the paddock from the start When you’re the best you have to prove it Leinster have been the best for at least two of the recent finals they’ve lost but haven’t driven the nail in I’m not sure the leadership is top drawer at these crucial moments Selection suggested that they felt they might get an easier ride vs Saints than they did I do not know why they didn’t start with Jordie Miz - the midfield shoudl have been Prendergast-Jordie-Garry R You want your best players on the field for as long as possible maybe both if they want to use Marcus at 15 They actually did it and spent minutes at the end of the game three points adrift Either that or they were defending a lead on the last play of the game they had scored two good tries from it earlier in the game so they had the variations in their armoury At that moment it just comes down to desire and poise They struggle when they get into tight contests where ‘there is no tomorrow’… I’m not sure if Sam Prendergast should go to Aussie with the Lions either George Ford or Owen Farrell with Marcus Smith as a utility back I suspect England had actually moved past Ireland by the end of the 6N so it will be a true challenge for Andy Farrell to recognize it and pick more Englan players on tour Aussie have been matching up well vs Ireland in recent times Do you think Joe S will adopt a similar plan against the Lions Seems like the Lions will be heavily influenced by Leinster and Ireland Lions to win 3-0 they will overpower the Wallabies and grind them down The Seed World Global Innovation Showdown Results are In! 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Cindy Rouet’s journey into the world of plant breeding began with a spark of curiosity After high school in her birth country of France she embarked on a path to addressing the global challenges of food security It was during this time that Rouet’s fascination with plant breeding and genetics took root where she pursued internships and research projects focused on plant breeding She studied in the Netherlands and then started her research on rose breeding in Canada at Vineland Research and Innovation Centre Despite the distance from her family in France Rouet felt at home in Canada focusing on her work which has the exclusive rights to produce seed from the asparagus hybrids developed by the breeding program at the University of Guelph Rouet’s leadership in the field has become evident as she’s worked hard to modernize the company’s breeding pipeline to address the evolving needs of the industry For the past three years she has helped transition the university’s asparagus breeding program to Fox Seeds the future of asparagus breeding lies in embracing innovation while staying true to the core principle of sustainability Canada’s asparagus industry is a small but growing sector of the country’s vegetable production Canadian farmers sold 9,348 metric tonnes of asparagus in spring 2022 up 7.5% from one year earlier and the second-largest harvest on record Farmers grew over three times more asparagus in 2022 than they did two decades earlier The farm gate value of asparagus was $48.7 million in 2022 almost double the sales from one decade earlier Ontario and Quebec accounted for over 90% of Canada’s total asparagus production in 2022 with Ontario producing 75.6% and Quebec producing 17.4% And quality seed of cutting-edge varieties is needed to do it Canada imported $63.8 million worth of asparagus and exported $18.9 million worth of the vegetable “We are exploring new biotechnologies to improve disease resistance and enhance productivity,” she says “But our ultimate goal remains the same: to develop varieties that meet the challenges of tomorrow.” her vision for the industry is clear: “We must continue to inspire and nurture the next generation of plant scientists,” she asserts “By fostering curiosity and providing opportunities for growth we can ensure a brighter future for agriculture.” By leveraging the resources Fox Seeds has at its disposal “Being so close to the University of Guelph has been incredibly beneficial for us The asparagus breeding program’s strong connection with the university has sparked a lot of interest among Guelph students,” she says “Having been exposed to the program during my time at Guelph I understand the appeal it holds for students seeking a career in plant science This proximity has not only generated interest but also provided us with a pool of technically skilled applicants when filling positions We’ve been fortunate to attract passionate individuals who are enthusiastic about contributing to our mission.” We use cookies to provide you with the best browsing experience, personalize content of our site, analyse its traffic and show you relevant ads. See our privacy policy for more information Powered by WP Full Picture PRO David Will and Cento Du Rouet (Photo: Sportfot) Mill Spring, NC – David Will (GER) and Cento Du Rouet took home top honors in the $35,000 1.45m Horseware® Ireland Speed Stake CSI 5* at the Tryon International Equestrian Center (TIEC) with a fault free round and a speedy time of 53.37 seconds Just a single second separated first and second places as Richie Moloney (IRL) and Slieveanorra crossed through the timers in 54.69 seconds Third place honors were awarded to Laura Kraut (USA) and Andretti S with a time of 55.95 seconds Competition at the 2016 Tryon Fall Series presented by Greenville-Spartanburg Airport District commenced on Thursday alongside two weeks of FEI CSI 3* classes and the highly anticipated FEI CSI 5* a 2007 Oldenburger Springferd gelding (Chintan x Balou du Rouet) set out to secure another victory today although Will was not sure of his plan after walking the course Richie Moloney and Slieveanorra (Photo: Sportfot) “There were a couple of lines that were really long and you could leave out in or that you could add one but then I watched the others go and I made my plan,” Will detailed explaining his strategy regarding the track set by Anthony D’Ambrosio (USA) Will knew that he wanted to win the class today I had a few unlucky rails and then I thought today I wanted to do something good.” who have accumulated top finishes in their two weeks at TIEC Will went on to describeCento Du Rouet’s strengths and how they set them up to be successful specifically in the speed classes Laura Kraut and Andretti S (Photo: Sportfot) Will and Cento Du Rouet have been partners for just a few months competing in Europe throughout the summer before traveling to New York for the Rolex Central Park Horse CSI 3* and then ultimately adding a stop in Mill Spring for both the FEI CSI 3* and FEI CSI 5* events The duo will next travel to Washington International Horse Show (WIHS) “Tryon is fantastic!” Will exclaimed “This place is perfect for the riders and the horses The organization is really good and it is just great for riders to be here.” David Will and Cento Du Rouet in their presentation ceremony The 2016 Tryon Fall Series presented by Greenville-Spartanburg Airport District offers six weeks of hunter and jumper competition, including three weeks of internationally recognized FEI show jumping featuring two FEI CSI 3* weeks and an FEI CSI 5*. For more information on Tryon International Equestrian Center (TIEC) and surrounding amenities please visit www.tryon.com. For full results of the $35,000 1.45m Horseware® Ireland Speed Stake CSI 5* click here Mary O'Neal is our "Go To Girl" Ocala Realtor for buying With twenty years in "The Horse Capital of the World" she's the starting point for all searches Renee and Emily Genther wanted a show safe and easy way to help their horses "want" to hydrate and to help them with muscle recovery post-workout by adding electrolytes to their sugar treats Registered properties of HorsesDaily®Inc. A media and marketing company for the Equine Industry. All content under this copyright is the property of HorsesDaily® Inc. Unless otherwise noted. ©1997 - 2025 horsesdaily.com and dressagedaily.com Enter your email address and we will send you a link to change your password Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team’s Head Coach Kevin Rouet has announced the match day roster for Canada’s second match of WXV 1 against Ireland on October 5 at Willoughby Stadium at the Langley Events Centre with kick-off scheduled for 3:45pm local time in Langley “It was great to start off WXV 1 with a win last week against a top four team in the world [France] but the squad quickly shifted their focus to be ready for what will be a tough game against Ireland this weekend,” said Rouet “Ireland will challenge us but even with a short week to prepare the team has looked sharp throughout training I am excited to see what they will do out on the pitch this Saturday.”  After breaking the all-time Canadian women’s cap record in May with her 68th cap Tyson Beukeboom will hit another significant milestone on Saturday against Ireland with her 70th Former UBC Thunderbird front row Rori Wood from Sooke BC is set to earn her first international cap for Canada when she comes off the bench on Saturday Caroline Crossley has earned her first start having entered Canada’s match against France last weekend in the second half for her first cap Courtney Holtkamp and Alysha Corrigan also move into the starting lineup this weekend are both set to see their first game action of the tournament Rouet added: “We made some adjustments to the team after France because it is important that we continue to build depth in our squad The Rugby World Cup will be a long journey and if we want to accomplish our ultimate goal we will need a squad full of experienced and talented players It will take more than just a group of 23 players.”   Tickets for WXV 1 can be purchased HERE This means purchasers can attend multiple games using a single ticket on October 5 and October 12 Additional questions regarding ticket purchases can be directed to tickets@rugby.ca.  All of Canada’s WXV 1 games will be available on TSN and TSN+. On Saturday October 5, Canada’s game against Ireland will be broadcast on TSN3 and livestreamed on TSN+ at 3:45pm PT/6:45pm ET.   More information on WXV can be found HERE Media accreditation applications are currently being accepted HERE. Questions regarding media accreditation can be directed to media@rugby.ca  Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team Match Day Roster vs Ireland  1 ON) – Barrhaven Scottish / Stade Français Paris    4 ON) – Cowichan Piggies / Aurora Barbarians / Ealing Trailfinders 5 QC) – St-Anne-de-Bellevue / Concordia Univeristy / ASM Romagnat 20 QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Stade Bordelais 21 AB) – Calgary Irish Rugby Club / Leicester Tigers 22 ON) – Guelph Goats / Castaway Wanderers / Ealing Trailfinders   Firkov du Rouet suffered a fracture that could not be operated and had to be put to sleep in the clinic where he had been taken Vorsselmans escaped without serious injuries and could leave the hospital with bruised nerves in the shoulder blade.  Firkov du Rouet was brought up to 1.50m level by Max Routledge before Eric Lamaze took over the reins in the autumn of 2018 Jeroen Dubbeldam began competing the stallion before his partner Annelies Vorsselman became the new rider at the beginning of the year.  Our thoughts go out to all those close to Firkov du Rouet © 2025 World of Showjumping - All rights reserved Powered by Artionet - Generated with IceCube2.Net Head for the Côte Bleue where the new year is always filled with joy January announces sunny French Bank Holidays in Sausset-les-Pins and Carry le Rouet Keen foodies and tourists whose curiosity has been piqued arrive in droves to enjoy a lunch on the harbour Ready to sample fresh sea-urchins fished the same morning to the Cap Rousset calanque when a group of fishermen presented the mayor of the time This was followed by a day of festivities which was to mark the beginning of the great story of Carry-le-Rouet and the sea-urchin the municipality launched “ La Journée de l’Oursin” (sea-urchin day) but love knows no limits and the Oursinades became the perfect opportunity to create a new tradition regulars and newcomers mingle and clink glasses together in an atmosphere filled with fun and good humour not forgetting the unmistakable market where regional products artisan jewellery and souvenirs will find their way into your baskets Voir cette publication sur Instagram  Une publication partagée par Marédoc (@maredoc.since1989) Une publication partagée par @les_bergeries_corses_figari tradesmen and restaurateurs hurry to greet the famished who have come to eat their “sea chestnuts” sea-urchins and shellfish are prepared and white wine is chilled The town is ready to greet the epicureans from near and far who have come for a feast the Oursinade is often rhythmed by patience but no worry you’ll always find something as you stroll among the stalls: sea-urchins Opinions differ among the regulars: “And how do you like your sea-urchins?” Some will say: “In the shell with a squeeze of lemon juice and good bread” while others will whisper “in pasta there’s nothing better!” Whether you’re sitting down at a table everywhere is perfect to eat the orange urchin flesh There’s something to suit all tastes and this contagious simplicity makes these moments so unforgettable the Oursinades are a great popular festival to savour copiously our wine/sea urchin pairing for the best possible Oursinade Choose a wine from Provence it will go subtly with your shellfish with its iodized but well-balanced character The sea-urchin’s  success is so huge because the sea-urchin is rare and protected Careful fishing which takes into account the reproduction of this shellfish has helped to protect it Sea-urchin fishing is regulated in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur and is based on different criteria: size professional and amateur fishermen can pull on their fishing gear and bring the famous sea hedgehog to the surface from November 1st to April 15th it has time to reproduce in preparation for the beginning-of-the-year Oursinades here’s a little vocabulary to help you mingle with the natives who are pretty proud of where they come from you can see what look like orange tongues: varying in size these orange fleshy parts are known as gonads and they are the sea-urchin’s reproductive glands make sure their spines are firm and straight you can show off on Carry-le-Rouet’s harbour Une publication partagée par Kim Boscolo (@lagirellealapeche) Une publication partagée par Office de Tourisme – Carry-le-Rouet (@carrylerouet_tourisme) Carry-le-Rouet can be enjoyed at any time of year the village has built up a solid reputation as a family resort whether you’re a fan of farniente or sporting challenges hike through rocky landscapes… It’s all possible here Yet Carry-le-Rouet has managed to preserve its fishing village character The construction of the Marseille-Miramas railway between 1911 and 1915 followed by the inauguration of the line in 1945 made a major contribution to its development A trip on the Côte Bleue train is a must for anyone who wants to capture the spirit of Carry-le-Rouet The first 3 Sundays in February in Carry-le-Rouet The last 3 Sundays in Junuary in Sausset-les-Pins from the Gare Saint Charles railway station the most ecological and there’s no need to worry about traffic jams He trained as an engineer but is now a full-time rugby coach Kevin Rouet took over as Canada coach in March 2022 (Jeremy Lethbridge) Who is Kevin Rouet: Ten things you should know about the Canada coach Having made the switch from engineer to rugby coach in his late 20s, Kevin Rouet took charge of Canada just sevens months out from the 2022 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand Kevin Rouet was primarily a scrum-half in his playing days but he also turned out at fly-half and centre Rouet played at amateur level in France until he was 22 He studied mechanical engineering in France and then did a project management degree at the University of Quebec The Frenchman never planned to become a full-time coach He was working as an engineer when he made the switch in his late 20s He has coached the women’s teams at Laval University He joined the Canada set-up as an assistant coach under Sandro Fiorino three years ago He took over as head coach last March aged just 35 when Rugby Canada cut its academy programme Interim Rugby Canada CEO Jamie Levchuk said at the time: “Sandro did have a dual role here at Rugby Canada and the majority of his role was attached to the academy in Ontario and that was going to be discontinuing “And then there was also obviously continual evaluation of the team and it was just felt that a change was the best option for the team “It was difficult timing but with Kevin having experience with the team 9. Rouet wants his Canada team to be like Canada the country “We want to be the best structured and unstructured team in the World Cup,” he says His back-room team for RWC 2022 included Duncan McNaughton who worked with Exeter’s women’s team last term sevens coach Jack Hanratty and former Canada wing Maria Gallo Download the digital edition of Rugby World straight to your tablet or subscribe to the print edition to get the magazine delivered to your door so who better to front a new look than England’s man… Fifteen-year-old showjumper Ella Spencer showed tremendous form to collect a brace of Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) tickets for the pony Foxhunter and pony newcomers finals at the recent summer pony premier show (29-30 June) at Chard Equestrian in Somerset Ella finished runner-up and third respectively in the two classes with the talented seven-year-old Rouet Rouge This son of Balou Du Rouet had an unusual start under saddle and also of him being ridden with no bridle,” said Ella’s mother television presenter and racing journalist Emma Spencer “He wasn’t broken until he was five and he is quirky but he’s come on a lot in a very short space of time.” Emma first spotted Rouet Rouge on a sports pony website and went to see him “I said that I loved him as he just had so much jump “In the end I sent some videos to Ella’s trainer Peter Moloney who said he’d go and try him – he told me to buy him and said he’d sort the rideability out he just has his own little ways you have to embrace!” You can read the full report from Chard’s summer pony premier show in next week’s Horse & Hound magazine The match day roster for Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team’s first game of WXV 1 in Vancouver has been selected by Head Coach Kevin Rouet Canada will face France at BC Place on September 29 with kick-off scheduled for 3:45pm local time in Vancouver (6:45pm ET) to begin their 2024 WXV 1 campaign "The team is looking forward to getting WXV 1 started on home soil here in Vancouver,” said Rouet “Our journey and preparation for Rugby World Cup starts now and we are looking forward to seeing a strong performance from the team against France on Sunday and the players have been working hard to prepare for the tournament Everyone is excited to be back on the pitch.” Named to Canada’s match day roster against France are 20 players who were selected for Canada’s historic win over the New Zealand Black Ferns at the 2024 Pacific Four Series this past May in Christchurch Asia Hogan-Rochester and Caroline Crossley are in line to earn their first caps after recently winning a silver medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics with Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team alongside fellow teammates Fancy Bermudez who were also named to the match day roster Starting in the centers for Canada is Shoshanah Seumanutafa from White Rock BC who played her rugby growing up at the Pacific Academy and UBC Thunderbirds where she three Canada West championships This means purchasers can attend multiple games using a single ticket on September 29 Additional questions regarding ticket purchases can be directed to tickets@rugby.ca All of Canada’s WXV 1 matches will be available on TSN and TSN+ Canada’s game against France will be broadcast on TSN2 and livestreamed on TSN+ at 3:45pm PT/6:45pm ET More information on WXV can be found HERE Media accreditation applications are currently being accepted HERE. Questions regarding media accreditation can be directed to media@rugby.ca Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team Match Day Roster vs France ON) – Cowichan Piggies / Aurora Barbarians / Ealing Trailfinders QC) – St-Anne-de-Bellevue / Concordia Univeristy / ASM QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Stade Bordelais QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Stade Bordelais ON) – Aurora Barbarians / Leicester Tigers QC) – Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue RFC / Exeter Chiefs AB) – Nor’Westers Athletic Association / Westshore RFC / Saracens ON) – Guelph Goats / Castaway Wanderers / Ealing Trailfinders ON) – Barrhaven Scottish / Stade Français Paris    The roster for Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team’s rematch with England on September 30 has been named by Head Coach Kevin Rouet Following a 50-24 loss to England on September 23 in Exeter Canada will kick off against the Red Roses once more on Saturday at 7:00 a.m the Premier 15s home of the Saracens and Sophie de Goede Krissy Scurfield will earn her first cap for Canada on the wing The former Maple Leaf Academy player and RBC Training Ground athlete debuted for Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team in Dubai in 2021 at the age of 18 and was named to the 2022 Langford Sevens HSBC Dream Team she has competed at the Commonwealth Games and Rugby World Cup Sevens and recently played a significant role in Canada’s Paris 2024 qualification campaign Other changes to Canada’s roster from last week see Olivia DeMerchant Sara Svoboda and Taylor Perry move into the starting 15 “There are a number of improvements we are looking to make and details that we want to refine going into this second match against England,” said Kevin Rouet this tour has been a valuable opportunity to prepare for WXV and the team is looking forward to another good Following this tour, Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team heads to New Zealand for WXV Returning this weekend is the NFP Forward & Back Game Changers contest Fans will have the opportunity to vote virtually for the players (one forward and one back) who they think were changers for Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team against England with a chance to win a $100 Amazon gift card and a signed jersey Details on how to participate will be announced on Rugby Canada’s social media channels the new stand-alone digital streaming service from Canada’s Sports Leader TSN+ is home to an extensive slate of live sports coverage from around the world Fans outside of Canada can watch live on England Rugby’s YouTube and Facebook channels Tickets are on sale on the England Rugby website CANADA’S WOMEN’S RUGBY TEAM MATCH DAY ROSTER vs ENGLAND  ON) – Cowichan RFC / Ealing Trailfinders 5 ON) – Brantford Harlequins / Belleville Bulldogs / Loughborough Lightning 8 ON) – Aurora Barbarians / University of Ottawa 11 AB) – NorWester Athletic Associations / Westshore RFC 14 AB) – Westshore RFC / Worcester Warriors 15 QC) – St-Anne-de-Bellevue / ASM Romagnat 20 Florence Symonds (Hong Kong) – University of British Columbia  Our colleague and friend François Rouet passed away on June 13 2018 at the age of 53 following a long illness The Institut Pasteur International Network wishes to pay tribute to this passionate scientist and public health man who has dedicated his career to improving the care of patients in the most disadvantaged countries François performs his national service in Cameroon at the Organization for Coordination and Cooperation for the fight against the Great Endemics in Central Africa (OCEAC) from 1992 to 1994 he returned to Guadeloupe for 5 years as a Hospital Practitioner at the French Blood Establishment inPointe-à-Pitre University Hospital he became director of the Center for Diagnosis and Research on AIDS at the University Hospital of Treichville in Côte d'Ivoire his action will be decisive in the reorganization of this center He promoted participation in virology research programs as evidenced by numerous articles published in the framework of PAC-CI He was one of the first to test and validate the viral load monitoring of HIV-infected patients using Biocentric PCR techniques he left Côte d'Ivoire and became a Hospital Practitioner in the virology laboratory of CHU Necker Enfants Malades in Paris he became director of the virology laboratory at the Muraz Center in Bobo Dioulasso he develops PCR techniques and participates in major research projects including the ANRS-funded Kesho-Bora trial on the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV he defended his virology thesis in Paris on the diversity of HIV he joined the International Center for Medical Research of Franceville (CIRMF) in Gabon where he directed the retrovirology unit until 2013 François joined the Institut Pasteur International Network becoming Head of the HIV / Hepatitis Unit at the Institut Pasteur du Cambodge He then became heavily involved in research on the genetic variability of HIV viruses as well as hepatitis B C and E in connection with local epidemiology His remarkable work has allowed to trace the history of the 2014 iatrogenic HIV and hepatitis C epidemic in Roka François was appreciated by his colleagues and partners from different horizons as much for his great professional skills as for his extreme kindness and his attention to others The entire Institut Pasteur International Network community sends its most sincere condolences to his family and loved ones has selected the roster for Canada’s opening match of the World Rugby Pacific Four Series against the USA California) – Head Coach of Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team Australia and the reigning Rugby World Cup champions kicks off with the tournament’s opening match between Canada and USA at Dignity Health Sports Park in Los Angeles Canada has won eight straight matches against their rivals from the United States including a 50-17 victory to begin last year’s Pacific Four Series Edmonton’s Sara Cline is set to start her first international match for Canada at hook after coming off the bench to earn her first two caps for Canada in 2023 Tyson Beukeboom starts at lock and will earn her 66th cap for Canada putting her just one behind Canada’s all-time women’s cap leader Captain Sophie de Goede moves from her regular position at number 8 to the flank with Gabrielle Senft set to start at the back of the forward pack Pamphinette Buisa and Sabrina Poulin both will start the match recently representing Canada at the HSBC SVNS Series in Hong Kong earlier in April “After bringing the squad back together for the first time since the fall last week coaches and staff are excited to begin the tournament with a match against the USA,” said Rouet “All of our players have been playing at a high level in Canada and around the world since our last game together They are eager to get back on the field on Sunday as we look to continue to build momentum for the next two matches with a strong showing against our long-time rivals.” Cassandra Tuffnail has been replaced by Mya Brubacher on Canada’s 30-player squad More information on the Pacific Four Series, including the full schedule and results, can be found on the official website for World Rugby Canada vs USA will be streamed live on TSN+ on Sunday with an encore broadcast on TSN2 at 7:00 p.m TSN+ is the stand-alone digital streaming service from Canada’s Sports Leader, and is home to an extensive slate of live sports coverage from around the world, including Rugby Canada matches. For more information on TSN+, including subscription options, visit TSN.ca/TSN+ CANADA’S WOMEN’S RUGBY TEAM PACIFIC FOUR SERIES MATCH DAY ROSTER vs USA ON) – Cowichan RFC / Ealing Trailfinders   SK) – Castaway Wanderers / Stade Bordelais  QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Stade Bordelais  ON) – Aurora Barbarians / Leicester Tigers  Alexandra Tessier (Sainte-Clotilde-de-Horton QC) – Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue RFC / Exeter Chiefs  ON) – Barrhaven Scottish / Stade Français Paris AB) – Calgary Irish Rugby Club / Leicester Tigers ON) – Guelph RFC /Castaway Wanderers / Ealing Trailfinders   AB) – NorWester Athletic Associations / Westshore RFC BC) – Rugby Canada is pleased to announce that Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team Head Coach has signed a contract extension that will keep Rouet at the helm of the program until the end of the 2025 Rugby World Cup cycle Rouet spent three years as the assistant coach of Canada’s senior women’s program before being named head coach in March of 2022 In the short period of time leading up to the 2021 Rugby World Cup that was played in 2022 Rouet helped push Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team up to third in the World Rugby rankings winning four out of five matches in preparation for the World Cup in New Zealand Canada defeated the United States and Australia in the 2022 Pacific Four Series before recording wins over Italy and Wales that summer on home soil before departing for New Zealand “We are pleased to agree terms with Kevin to be the head coach of Canada’s national team through the RWC 2025,” said Rugby Canada CEO our team inspired the nation at the RWC last autumn and they’ve picked up where they left off with excellent wins over South Africa and then USA in the PAC 4 Kevin remains actively engaged with our players or engaging with their clubs and university programs across Canada  He has also provided coaching support to our Canada 7s teams  He has a genuine desire to see our Canadian players develop and improve across all our programs.”  Canada won four-straight matches to begin last year’s Rugby World Cup including wins over Japan Canada’s overall performance in New Zealand was highlighted by a thrilling semi-final match against the top-ranked team in the world coming into the tournament and an appearance in the bronze medal game against France “I am very proud of what the team has been able to accomplish recently and look forward to having the opportunity to work with this group of world-class players and staff as we begin another World Cup journey together,” said Rouet we have so much to be proud of over the past year and have a lot to be excited about when it comes to the bright future ahead There is work to be done and areas in which we can improve but I am excited and honored to apart of this team of incredible people as we build towards 2025.” While an assistant coach of Canada’s Women’s 15s program Kevin was also the Head Coach of the Laval University Women’s 15s team in Quebec from 2017 to 2022 The Rouge et Or won their first national title in 2019 since their inception in 2005 Rouet also served as the Head Coach of the Quebec Senior Women’s 15s Team from 2016 to 2019 guiding the program to national championships in 2016 Kevin was the Head Coach of Club de Rugby de Quebec from 2010-2020 where the club won a total of six senior women provincial titles Rouet also served as an assistant coach with Stade Bordelais in France during the 2021-2022 season Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team defeated the United States by a score of 50-17 in their first game of the 2023 Pacific Four Series The team will be back in action this July in Canada for the third and fourth rounds of the competition with matches against New Zealand and Australia Dates and location will be announced on Monday April 17 Metrics details which range from ordinary earthquakes to slow slip events to aseismic fault creep Slow slip and associated tremor are common to many subduction zones and occur down-dip from the neighbouring locked zone where megaquakes take place identified tremor occurs in discrete bursts Here we show that the Cascadia subduction zone is apparently continuously broadcasting a low-amplitude tremor-like signal that precisely informs of the fault displacement rate throughout the slow slip cycle Using a method based on machine learning previously developed in the laboratory we analysed large amounts of raw seismic data from Vancouver Island to separate this signal from the background seismic noise We posit that this provides indirect real-time access to fault physics on the down-dip portion of the megathrust and thus may prove useful in determining if and how a slow slip may couple to or evolve into a major earthquake Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout We are currently unable to make the python script associated with this paper available but we aim to make it available in the near future Please contact bertrandrl@lanl.gov for details Nonvolcanic deep tremor associated with subduction in southwest Japan Episodic tremor and slip on the Cascadia subduction zone: the chatter of silent slip Seismic and aseismic slip on the Central Peru megathrust Seismic and geodetic constraints on Cascadia slow slip Space–time correlation of slip and tremor during the 2009 Cascadia slow slip event Spatial–temporal patterns of seismic tremors in northern Cascadia Northern Cascadia episodic tremor and slip: a decade of tremor observations from 1997 to 2007 Automated detection and location of Cascadia tremor Deformation cycles of subduction earthquakes in a viscoelastic earth Holocene earthquake records from the Cascadia subduction zone and northern San Andreas fault based on precise dating of offshore turbidites Slow slip hidden in the noise: the intermittence of tectonic release Short-time scale correlation between slow slip and tremor in Cascadia The Mechanics of Earthquakes and Faulting (Cambridge Univ Connecting slow earthquakes to huge earthquakes Time and size of a giant earthquake in Cascadia inferred from Japanese tsunami records of January 1700 Moment release rate of Cascadia tremor constrained by GPS Episodic slow slip events in the Japan subduction zone before the 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake Preceding seismic activity and slow slip events in the source area of the 2011 Mw 9.0 Tohoku-Oki earthquake: a review Propagation of slow slip leading up to the 2011 Mw 9.0 Tohoku-Oki Earthquake Triggering of the 2014 Mw 7.3 Papanoa earthquake by a slow slip event in Guerrero Intense foreshocks and a slow slip event preceded the 2014 Iquique Mw 8.1 earthquake The 2006 slow slip event and nonvolcanic tremor in the Mexican subduction zone Estimating fault friction from seismic signals in the laboratory Hulbert, C. et al. Laboratory earthquake prediction illuminates connections between the spectrum of fault slip modes. Nat. Geosci. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0272-8 (2018) and analysis conducted by the US Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program Young tracks of hotspots and current plate velocities The fate of the Juan de Fuca plate: implications for a Yellowstone plume head Cascadia tremor spectra: low corner frequencies and earthquake-like high-frequency falloff Processing seismic ambient noise data to obtain reliable broad-band surface wave dispersion measurements Determination of slow slip episodes and strain accumulation along the Cascadia margin Machine learning predicts laboratory earthquakes Correlation and variable importance in random forests Classification and Regression Trees (CRC Press Efficient global optimization of expensive black-box functions Download references This work was funded by Institutional Support (LDRD) at Los Alamos and the DOE Office of Basic Research Frank for his extensive review of our work and his suggestions Kolaj from the CNSN for their data and help These authors contributed equally: Bertrand Rouet-Leduc All the authors devised the original study conducted the machine-learning work and all the authors contributed to writing the manuscript The authors declare no competing interests Publisher’s note: Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations Further information on machine learning and GPS displacement and Supplementary Figures 1–6 Download citation DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0274-6 Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: a shareable link is not currently available for this article Communications Earth & Environment (2025) Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science The 28-year-old Selle Francais stallion Baloubet du Rouet (Galoubet A x Starter) has passed away from natural causes Baloubet du Rouet was one of the most dominant and pioneering athletes in show jumping throughout his career in retirement through his influence as a breeding stallion who with Baloubet won Olympic individual gold at Athens 2004 the stallion was known for his age-defying athleticism and his larger than life personality though his international dominance extended well beyond his reign as a competitor As an influential and successful breeding stallion he was titled as the leading sire of jumping horses by the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses in 2012 He was a force of nature and [was] always a very healthy horse It’s nice that he lived a really nice life Born in 1989 on the farm of French breeder Louis Fardin Baloubet first caught the eye of Portugal’s Nicole and Diogo Pereira Coutinho who would later introduce their young chestnut prospect to fellow friend and show jumper Nelson Pessoa of Brazil Baloubet was developed through the young horse circuit in France winning the World Championships as a six-year-old and the French Championships in the seven-year-old division In his transition to the international circuit Nelson piloted the nine-year-old to a finalist position in the 1998 World Equestrian Games in Rome It was after the WEG that Baloubet was passed down to Nelson’s son who solidified the stallion’s legacy with multiple titles and championship wins over the course of their partnership they acquired a Bronze medal at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney as well as the previously mentioned indiviual gold in Athens they secured back to back wins in the Helsinki 1998 and Las Vegas 2000 FEI World Cup Jumping Finals the only horse to win three consecutive World Cup Finals with the same rider Baloubet participated in 263 international competitions retiring with an impressive 65 winning titles to his name and was retired to Portugal after his final competition in 2006 In his final public appearance at the 2013 Longines Global Champions Tour of Cascais in Estroil his sired stallion Chaman (Baloubet Du Rouet x I Love You) the then 14-year-old Dutch Warmblood ridden by Germany’s Ludger Beerbaum was honored as Baloubet’s most successful offspring We extend our sympathies to the Pessoa family and to Baloubet’s owners Sources: La Grande Blottìere, New Normandy Farm has selected the roster that will face Australia in Canada’s second match of the 2024 Pacific Four Series Canada and the Wallaroos will meet at Allianz Stadium in Sydney Australia on Saturday May 11 at 12:00am PT / 3:00am ET (5:00pm local time) defeating the Australians 45-7 at TD Place Stadium in Ottawa in the 2023 rendition of the Pacific Four Series “The team is excited for the opportunity to test themselves against another one of the top teams in the world and build off of our strong performance against the USA last week” said Rouet “Facing Australia on their home field in Sydney poses some unique challenges but the team has prepared well this week and will be ready to go on Saturday.”   Alexandra Tessier is set to earn her 50th cap on Saturday against Australia to become just the eighth woman in Canadian rugby history to achieve this milestone Tyson Beukeboom is in line to tie Gillian Florence as Canada’s all-time women’s caps leader with 67 There are only a few changes to the Canadian lineup from the game against the USA as Sarah-Maude Lachance draws in and will start at fullback for her first international match of 2024 Lachance wore the number 15 jersey last fall in Canada’s victory over France at WXV McKinley Hunt and Fancy Bermudez will also start the match for Canada after coming off the bench against the USA Prop Brittany Kassil could see her first game action of the year Canada vs Australia will be streamed live on TSN+ on Saturday May 11 at 12:00am PT /3:00am ET with an encore broadcast on TSN1 on Saturday May 11 at 10:00am PT/1:00 pm ET TSN+ is the stand-alone digital streaming service from Canada’s Sports Leader and is home to an extensive slate of live sports coverage from around the world, including Rugby Canada matches. For more information on TSN+, including subscription options, visit TSN.ca/TSN+ CANADA’S WOMEN’S RUGBY TEAM PACIFIC FOUR SERIES MATCH DAY ROSTER vs AUSTRALIA  AB) – Leprechaun Tigers / Western Force  3 ON) – Cowichan RFC / Ealing Trailfinders   5 QC) – St-Anne-de-Bellevue / ASM Romagnat  6 BC) – Castaway Wanderers RFC / Saracens  8 SK) – Castaway Wanderers / Stade Bordelais  9 ON) – Aurora Barbarians / Leicester Tigers  11 QC) – Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue RFC / Exeter Chiefs  13 AB) – NorWesters Athletic Associations / Westshore RFC 14 QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Stade Bordelais   ON) – Barrhaven Scottish / Stade Français Paris 19 QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Stade Bordelais  22 ON) – Guelph RFC / Castaway Wanderers / Ealing Trailfinders 23 BC) – University of British Columbia / Chiefs Manawa   Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team will face Japan in their opening game of Rugby World Cup 2021 playing in 2022 this Saturday at Northland Events Centre in Whangarei New Zealand) – Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team will face Japan in their opening game of Rugby World Cup 2021 playing in 2022 this Saturday at Northland Events Centre in Whangarei With Canada’s ‘Journey to the Rugby World Cup’ now complete head coach Kevin Rouet has confirmed his first roster of the tournament with number eight Sophie De Goede captaining the team at her first World Cup De Goede is one of 15 players in Canada’s game day roster competing at their first Rugby World Cup with the experienced trio of Tyson Beukeboom Karen Paquin and Elissa Alarie named in the starting team for what is their third appearance on rugby’s greatest stage The opening game of Pool Play will also be Canada’s 150th women’s test match a historic occasion for the team which has featured at every Rugby World Cup Canada Women’s 15s head coach Kevin Rouet said: “Selection has been incredibly difficult because of the work the squad has done in preparation for the World Cup but we are happy with the first roster that will represent the squad against Japan.” “We have put a lot of focus on our own game and what we want to achieve and we are excited for the challenge that Japan will bring.” Saturday’s game against Japan will be shown live on TSN 1 CANADA’S WOMEN’S RUGBY TEAM MATCH DAY ROSTER vs JAPAN QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Les Lionnes du Stade Bordelais8 Ngalula Fuamba (Notre Dame de-l'ile-Perrot SK) – Castaway Wanderers / Exeter Chiefs / Regina Rogues22 ON) – Guelph Redcoats / Castaway Wanderers  Rugby Canada is the national governing body of the sport of Rugby Union in Canada They administer and operate Men’s and Women’s Senior and Junior National programs in both rugby 15s and 7s as well as govern the Club and community game for more than 30,000 registered participants from coast to coast in conjunction with ten Provincial Union members Rugby Canada is headquartered at the Al Charron National Training Centre in Langford residing on the unceded territories of the Coast Salish and Lekwungen/Songhees peoples programs and events are delivered nationwide including the internationally recognized HSBC Canada Sevens annual tournaments As of yet no findings of the review have been made public Fiorino remains contracted to Rugby Canada through the end of the month when his 11-year stay with the organization will officially come to a close He had also been at the helm of a national development academy program based in Ontario that has now been cut due to reduced funding who served as Defense Coach under Fiorino since 2018 During that time he has also been Head Coach of the Laval University and Québec Provincial Women’s teams and Backs Coach for French club Stade Bordelais The change comes just seven months out from the Rugby World Cup which will take place in New Zealand starting in October Fiorino is not the only coach who has departed the team with Jack Hanratty’s interim appointment as Head Coach of the Senior Women’s Sevens team extended last month Hanratty had also been an Assistant Coach for the Women’s XVs team Rouet’s initial contract will run through this year’s World Cup and he will have to determine his support staff for the tournament by next month Domestic selection camps are already underway and Rouet will meet with overseas players this week Meanwhile the search for a new Rugby Canada CEO continues with Jamie Levchuk currently filling the position in an interim capacity Allen Vansen departed the organization at the end of January after six years in charge Levchuk has worked for Rugby Canada since 2018 and was previously Managing Director of the World Sevens Series events in Langford and Vancouver Tags Two of the best teams in Major League Rugby will meet at Fort Quincy on … Balou du Rouet occupied rank seven on this year's WBFSH sire rankings Himself a son of Rodrigo Pessoa's legendary Baloubet du Rouet Balou du Rouet had a lot of success in Germany where he won the finals of the Bundeschampionship - achieving the highest mark of 9,2 - as well as recodring several victories Balou du Rouet's dam Georgia also produced the licensed stallion Cornet's Balou It's time to look at how far the apples fell from the tree in the case of Balou du Rouet Head Coach Kevin Rouet has named the roster for Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team’s upcoming tour to Spain the team’s first competition following Canada’s fourth place performance at the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand last fall BC) – Head Coach Kevin Rouet has named the roster for Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team’s upcoming tour to Spain The team will first play a test match against South Africa on Saturday March 25 at 4:00 p.m This will be the first time Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team has played South Africa in 10 years Canada will face the USA in the first match of the 2023 Pacific Four Series at 5:00 p.m Canada currently holds a seven game winning streak against the USA dating back to July 2019 and last played the Americans in October at the Rugby World Cup in pool play and the quarter finals a new three-tier annual global women’s international 15s competition with the top three teams from the Pacific Four Series qualifying for the top WXV tier and the bottom team headed for tier 2 Nineteen players on the roster return from Canada’s Rugby World Cup squad including World Rugby 2022 Women’s 15s Dream Team of the Year players Sophie de Goede and Emily Tuttosi and second most capped player in Canadian women's rugby history Tyson Beukeboom (56) There are seven possible debutants on the roster: Audrey Champagne Robinson and Williams are four of several U Sports players selected for the tour while Phillips and Tuffnail play in the UK who has earned her first selection to Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team following a strong performance at HSBC Canada Sevens is joining the roster from Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team along with Pamphinette Buisa and Renee Gonzalez "We are excited to be starting a new Rugby World Cup cycle and opening the 2023 season with these games against South Africa and the United States,” said Head Coach Kevin Rouet “Our players and staff are eager to regroup and build upon our great performance from the fall in New Zealand Along with the 19 players returning from our 2021 Rugby World Cup roster are some newer faces who have made an impact on Canada’s Women’s Sevens Team I am greatly looking forward to working with this group in Spain and taking our first steps towards qualification for WXV.”  Both matches will be played at Estadio Nacional de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid More information on the Pacific Four Series, includes scores and results, can be found on the official website at world.rugby/tournaments/pacific-four-series Broadcast details for the Pacific Four Series will be announced shortly CANADA’S WOMEN’S RUGBY TEAM ROSTER Alexandra Tessier (Sainte-Clotilde-de-Horton QC) – Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue RFC  Alexandria Ellis (Ottawa ON) – Barrhaven Scottish / Saracens  Audrey Champagne (Quebec City QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Université Laval Brittany Kassil (Guelph ON) – Guelph Redcoats RFC Cassandra Tuffnail (Heidelberg ON) - Fergus Highland RFC / Richmond FC / Brunel University London Courtney Holtkamp (Rimbey AB) – Red Deer Titans Rugby DaLeaka Menin (Vulcan AB) – Exeter Chiefs  Emily Tuttosi (Souris MB) – Calgary Hornets / Exeter Chiefs  Emma Taylor (Scotsburn NS) – Halifax RFC Fabiola Forteza (Quebec City QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Stade Bordelais Fancy Bermudez (Edmonton AB) – NorWester Athletic Association / Westshore RFC Gillian Boag (Calgary AB) – Capilano RFC  Holly Phillips (Canmore AB) - Calgary Irish / Bristol Bears Julia Schell (Uxbridge ON) – Guelph Redcoats / Castaway Wanderers  Justine Blatt-Janmaat (Wolfville NS) - Westshore RFC / University of Victoria Justine Pelletier (Rivière-du-Loup QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Stade Bordelais Laetitia Royer (Loretteville QC) – St-Anne-de-Bellevue / ASM Romagnat Mahalia Robinson (Fulford QC) – TMRRFC / Concordia Université Marie-Pier Fauteux (Sherbrooke QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Université Laval Maya Montiel (Dieppe NB) – University of Ottawa / Saracens Paige Farries (Red Deer AB) – Westshore RFC / Worcester Warriors  Pamphinette Buisa (Gatineau QC) – Ottawa Irish Renee Gonzalez (Scarborough ON) – Westshore RFC / University of Victoria Sabrina Poulin (St-Georges QC) – TMRRFC / Eibar Rugby Taldea Sara Kaljuvee (Ajax ON) – Toronto Scottish / Westshore RFC Sara Svoboda (Belleville ON) – Brantford Harlequins / Belleville Bulldogs / Loughborough Lightning Sarah-Maude Lachance (Victoriaville QC) – Club de rugby de Québec / Lons Section Paloise Sophie de Goede (Victoria BC) – Castaway Wanderers RFC Tyson Beukeboom (Uxbridge BC) – Westshore RFC / University of Victoria   UNAVAILABLE FOR SELECTION Alysha Corrigan Brianna Miller Chloe Daniels Elissa Alarie Gabi Senft Karen Paquin Maddy Grant McKinley Hunt Mikiela Nelson  Olivia DeMerchant Taylor Perry Veronica Harrigan We were told to arrive early at Carry-le-Rouet for the annual Oursinade because we were able to nab a spot at one of the tables that line the port of this pretty town One wonders how anyone could have imagined that this prickly black ball found in the Mediterranean (and elsewhere) would be edible Once cut open—carefully— the green sludge is removed the creamy roe slithers down the throat and tastes of the briny sea And how does a sea urchin go down first thing in the morning Carry-le-Rouet is situated in a picturesque bay on the aptly-named Côte Bleue All manner of sailboats and fishing vessels bob in the marina that the fishermen of the town decided to give the mayor that would have amounted to rather a lot of sea urchins and it has now grown so popular that this year it is being held on all four Sundays of the month throngs of people descend on this tiny town where stand after stand offers heaving buckets of the delicacy This gives us the chance to meet a ton of people including a large family from Avignon with a newborn baby some lovebirds from further down the coast and even a couple who have driven 500 miles from La Rochelle We finally relinquish our coveted spot and stroll by the masses of people camped out on the rocks with their platters of sea urchins and bottles of white wine Then we take a leisurely stroll on the coastal walk to soak in the sunshine and all that blue there’s not a single oursin to be had Join our newsletter to get exclusives on where our correspondents travel Meet the French Hmong adapting ancient healing techniques for the modern world Why does the place with the world’s best café culture have no coffee culture These 10 bits of local wisdom will help get you started The WonderBag is a slow-cooker designed to reduce cooking time It also lightens the load for women in countries where open-fire cooking and hours of unpaid labor daily falls to them the legendary Baloubet du Rouet (Galoubet A x Starter) has passed away the stallion has made his way into the history books as one of the most successful horses of all times The pair was crowned Olympic Champions in Athens in 2004 as well as going to the top of the World Cup Final three times – in 1998 The two also won team bronze at the Olympic Games in Sydney in 2000 Baloubet du Rouet is also known as one of the leading sires in the world and is father to top showjumpers like VDL Bubalu Bella Baloubet as well as Balou du Rouet – the latter a very successful sire himself Pessoa writes: “You arrived as a wild 5 year old kid but you showed a lot of potential on the very first jump Source: Baloubet du Rouet.com and Rodrigo Pessoa's Instagram page // Picture © Ken Braddick/dressage-news.com held in conjunction with the 11th Oldenburg Special Edition at 4:00 pm in the Oldenburg Horse Center Vechta will present an exclusive selection of exquisite show jumping foals with top international pedigrees and much more Aramis by Aganix du Seigneur Z - Balou du Rouet - Larimar Many of Aganix du Seigneur’s offspring are already making a name for themselves in international show jumping such as Agana van het Gerendal Z with Lillie Keenan Granddam Tessa XVIII is sister to the CCI5* successful Olympian Vitali/Tim Price From line 3317: The licensed Dominator Z/1.60 m victorious with Christian Ahlmann The 1.60 m stars Hardrock Z and Catoki produce the sporty stallion prospect Harley His brother Celantus by Cellestial is licensed and successful up to 1.45 m under Niclas Aromaa Dam Heidewitzka is the sister of the licensed Z7 Cordanos V by Catoki/1.60 m successful with Michael Pender From the renowned Heida line: The 1.60 m successful Lady Lordana OLD/Hendrik Sosath and Lobster/Sören Pedersen as well as the successful jumping sires: Diamant de Plaisir and Cador Zara by Zinedine - For Pleasure - Baloubet du Rouet Sire Zinedine jumped at the top level under Ludger Beerbaum and is also responsible for the European Championship silver medal winner Zineday under the saddle of Philipp Weishaupt Granddam Tinkabell is the sister of the 1.60 m successful Evli Nandele by Cassini I with Mikael Forsten From the dam line 108a: The licensed and 1.50 m successful stallions Cillarney by Chintan with Wilma Hellström and Con Chiverino by Concetto with Marc Boes Explore the whole collection at: www.oldenburger-auction.com For the first time, you have the chance to follow the vet check of the foals live on Friday, June 21st at 4:00 pm at www.clipmyhorse.tv or www.oldenburger-pferde.com you have the opportunity to see your favorite one last time during the foal presentation which will be held live at 1:00 pm at the Oldenburg Horse Center Vechta You can also look forward to a phenomenal stallion show which will take place at the beginning of the auction at 3:30 pm we will happily conclude the evening with our midsummer festival Auction and managing director Oldenburger Pferde-Vermarktungs GmbH: Tel. +49(0)172-7267334 or support@horse24.com In a no-holds-barred interview with Midi-Olympique who has twice now been denied a World Cup shot by player irregularities could not contain his fury at what he sees as rank incompetence by his union Saying that he and several team-mates were now carrying the can twice for maladministration by the Spanish federation, Rouet also scarcely contained his dismay at the actions of Gavin van den Berg, who supposedly forged his passport to satisfy residency eligibility criteria – how complicit the federation was in this is not yet clear “We are dejected and very upset,” said Rouet “For many of us, it’s happened twice in a row. We qualified on the ground The bodies at the top have not done their job because it is something that we do not control and it is we who suffer the consequences We will call each other in the coming hours but I think they will be in the same state of mind as me “For many of those who experienced it four years ago it was also their last chance to participate in a World Cup I am also worried about future generations.” we can say “it’s a little amateurish the leaders were warned of what might happen We see that they have not learned from their mistakes Asked whether he had had contact with Van den Berg Spanish rugby’s image was tarnished by 2019 already or similar has happened four years later will leave an indelible stain on the game in the country just at a tie when rugby is on the up in many developing countries Rouet’s warning for future generations carried a lot of weight Will people want to go play for the Spanish team it was very hard to be released each time by the club gained a little respect from the leaders and clubs we still go back as clowns now with this story “Our administrators must also put themselves in our shoes We have just spent two difficult months waiting for the decision We are very angry with the Spanish leaders who are responsible for this Rouet’s chances of a World Cup are now all but gone His understandable anger may yet crystallise into something resembling a run at administration; certainly he is unequivocal: heads must roll at the federation at the level of the leaders who deal with this,” he said There are very beautiful generations to come and potential in this youth but I think this marks the end of my adventure with the Spanish team I have no regrets about doing this for many years The showjumping world has said goodbye to one its biggest talents, following the news that Baloubet du Rouet has died at the age of 28 The Selle Francais son of Galoubet A x Starter was bred in France by Louis Fardin and originally produced through young horse classes in France by Nelson Pessoa, with whom he also competed at the 1998 World Equestrian Games (WEG) in Rome, finishing 11th. But it was at the end of that year that his son Rodrigo took the reins and the pair were launched into the spotlight They scored a hat-trick of World Cup victories reigning from 1998-2000 — the only horse-rider combination to achieve such a feat — and narrowly missing out on a fourth by finishing second in 2001 Baloubet du Rouet competed in 263 top level competitions finishing in the first five in 68% of them and winning 24% of them Brazil's Rodrigo Pessoa on his way to clinching the individual Olympic gold medal in Athens with Baloubet du Rouet in 2004 He also took an Olympic team bronze medal in Sydney in 2000 “He arrived as a wild five year old kid but showed a lot of potential on the very first jump," said Rodrigo about the horse with whom he found Olympic glory "The start was not easy but he was so intelligent that he understood everything very quickly He grew up to become one of the greatest horses in history" Baloubet du Rouet and Rodrigo Pessoa on their way to winning the fifth FEI World Top 10 final in Geneva in 2005 Baloubet du Rouet in action in the Aachen grand prix in 2006 Among the grand prix trophies with his name on it are Bordeaux Baloubet du Rouet retired from the ring in 2006 at the phenomenal age of 17 but has gone on to be one of the most influential and successful sires in the world named the leading sire of jumping horses by the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFSH) in 2012 and 2013 Baloubet du Rouet's genius lives on through the likes of Ludger Beerbaum’s Chaman and Jur Vrieling's VDL Bubalu skill and elegance made him the best,” says Rodrigo Since 2010 Baloubet de Rouet had lived with his owners Nicole and Diego Coutinho Pereira in Portugal This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page After a successful first live auction early this year, the Zangersheide team is now preparing everything for their next live foal auction at Peelbergen The foal auction will take place on Friday August 19th at 19h00 and buyers will have the possibility to place their bids online as well Zangersheide selected a lot of 13 high-class foals by prominent showjumping stallions such as Baloubet du Rouet Each and every one of the athletic foals originates from rock-solid dam lines, and whether you are looking to invest in a future Grand Prix horse, a stallion prospect, or an exclusive and exceptionally bred filly for sport and breeding, you will find them in the phenomenal auction collection at www.zangersheide.auction ⁣Let’s have a closer look at a few of the many highlights in the star-studded collection: Eliv De Nyze Z (Emerald x Heartbreaker) is a once in a lifetime filly Her sire Emerald already produced numerous top showjumpers but her dam Urmina is certainly as special Not only did she jump at CSI 1m45 level herself who competed at CSI 1m60 level with Andrew Ramsay and Calvino De Nyze Z who competed at CSI 1m60 level under the saddle of Frank Schuttert C-Hunter and many other 1m60 Grand Prix show jumpers Chalisco Blue HRC Z (Chacco Blue x Baloubet Du Rouet) doesn’t only represent the exclusive genes of WBFSH world number 1 Gut Neuenhof’s Bacarole namely jumped at CSI 1m55 level herself under the saddle of Henrik von Eckermann Also her half brother Levantado AS competed at CSI 1m50 level with Jens Baackmann Heaven De Will Z (Heartbreaker x Vigo d’Arsouilles) will surely bring lots of riders in heaven His sire Heartbreaker needs no introduction but the same can actually be said about his dam Funky Music Funky Music competed at CSI 1m60 level herself under the saddle of Ann Carton-Grootjans but what’s even more special is that she already produced two 1m60 showjumpers herself Bretling du Paradis Z can be seen under the saddle of Rik Hemeryck while son El Torreo De Muze already won the World Cup in Rabat!  Olly vh Zand Z (Orak d’Hamwyck x Rubens du Ri d’Asse) combines the blood of the young and promising stallion Orak D’Hamwyck with the proven genes of dam Anais Anais De Muze Anais Anais De Muze already competed at CSI 1m50 level herself but on top of that this Olly vh Zand Z is a half brother to the 1m60 jumping Evita van ‘t Zoggehof (Lorenzo de Luca) That makes this colt related to numerous 1m60 showjumpers such as Mylord Carthago Chanel AEG Z (Chacco Blue x Tornedo) carries exceptional blood on both sides Her sire Chacco Blue is WBFSH world number one while her dam Josephine vd Bisschop jumped at CSI 1m45 level herself with Jeanne Sadran That means that the 3rd dam of this filly is none other than Usha van ‘t Roosakker Baloubet’s Pearl Z (Baloubet du Rouet x Emerald) is a very exclusive colt His sire Baloubet du Rouet was one of the best sport stallions for decades and also the dam of this colt What’s even more special is that she is a sister to no less than 3 CSI 1m60 showjumpers! who competes under the saddle of Fredrik Jönsson.  It is thus no surprise that Zangersheide.Auction is extremely proud of this Zangersheide Live Foal Auction collection The foals are strictly selected by the trusted team of Zangersheide Auction and will certainly compete in the top sport in the future All horses in the collection have been carefully examined by veterinarians and as a service to the clients they are insured for the sale price until weaning The auction takes place live on 19 August 2022 at Peelbergen Equestrian Center, but bidding is as well possible online via www.zangersheide.auction.  Register & bid: www.zangersheide.auction The Plaid Horse is a print and digital publishing company We provide exceptional coverage for the hunter/jumper/breeding disciplines at reasonable rates. We support equestrian competitors and suppliers to the industry through horse show and event coverage We’re always looking for photography, personal narratives and coverage within the hunter/jumper world. If you have a story you’d love to share, e-mail us a pitch at news@theplaidhorse.com Sign up for The TPH Newsletter and receive fresh inspiration from the hunter jumper world I would like to receive emails from The Plaid Horse Magazine The Plaid Horse is a print and digital publishing company providing exceptional coverage for the hunter/jumper/breeding disciplines at reasonable rates Contact us: news@theplaidhorse.com Yves Delorme’s new artistic director strikes a balance Laurence Rouet succeeds 30-year vet Evelyne Julienne Paris – Yves Delorme’s recently appointed creative director is carefully but diligently curating a new era for the 171-year-old brand that winks to its tradition but looks to its future succeeding former creative director Evelyne Julienne who had been with the company for more than 30 years Rouet’s debut collection for Yves Delorme rolled out earlier this year for the spring/summer season Already underway with her work for the fall/winter 2016 collection Rouet is keeping in mind Yves Delorme’s global perspective on design and the amount of sales points worldwide.” Signup for your daily digest of industry news and trends Some of the forms and images on this page may not work correctly with this enabled Please disable your ad blocker for this page Find the ad blocker icon installed on your browser This icon is usually located on the upper right side of your screen You may have more than one ad blocker installed Click the icon and disable the ad blocker for this website either by following prompts or clicking your browser’s “refresh” or “reload” button Home Textiles Today provides industry news Sign up to get exclusive industry information delivered to your inbox Kevin Rouet confirmed as Senior Women’s XVs Head Coach From Rugby Canada Rugby Canada has confirmed a change to the Senior Women’s 15s setup which will see Kevin Rouet take the reigns as Head Coach who brings an end to an 11-year stint with the organisation including four years as Head Coach of the Senior Women’s 15s program Rouet comes into the role with notable experience having been the Assistant Coach of the Women’s 15s squad for the last four years as well as the Head Coach of the Women’s Program at Laval University Rugby Quebec’s Provincial Women’s program and assistant coach at Stade Bordelais Rouet has signed on to lead the team through to the end of the 2021 Women’s Rugby World Cup which takes place in New Zealand later this year having originally been postponed due to COVID-19 “I’m delighted to be named Head Coach of the Canadian Senior Women’s 15s squad at such an exciting time We have the quality to achieve a podium finish at the Rugby World Cup and that will be our primary aim as our preparations continue over the coming months Rugby is growing in popularity across Canada This program is a beacon of inspiration to that next generation of players and we know a strong performance in New Zealand will encourage more Canadians to try our great sport.” Rugby Canada Senior Women’s XVs Head Coach Kevin Rouet and following Jack Hanratty’s transition to Head Coach of the Canada Women’s Sevens squad Rouet will be flanked by regional coaching staffs for upcoming training camps before finalizing his staffing roster in early April Rouet’s first duties as Head Coach were overseeing check-in camps the past two weekends with focus now turning to the program in the lead up to the Rugby World Cup: These plans will include up to six possible test matches away and in Canada prior to departure for the Rugby World Cup with opponents and venues to be announced who remains a valued Rugby Canada employee will officially leave the organisation at the end of March This departure aligns with the conclusion of the season for the Rugby Canada Development Academy in Ontario where he serves as lead which Rugby Canada has made the difficult decision to discontinue following a reduction in funding “Sandro has been with Rugby Canada for over a decade in a number of roles and has been a significant contributor during his time with us,” said Jamie Levchuk “We thank Sandro for his contributions over the years He will be missed and we wish him the best in his future endeavors.” the Olympic champion is sending two shining bearers of hope to the Elite Foal Auction on Saturday herself a successful 1.60 m jumper under Billy Twomey and Anthony Condon is also dam to no less than star sire Stakkato Gold successful in 1.50 m jumping under Jan Sprehe.  Other international top stallions like Quabri d L’Isle and Emerald van’t Ruytershof present their foals on Saturday August 25th at the Oldenburg Horse Center Vechta You can also order a print catalog from the auction office at Vechta you can also bid on your favorites conveniently by telephone please contact the following employees at the Oldenburg Auction Office BC) – Rugby Canada has confirmed a change to the Senior Women’s 15s setup which will see Kevin Rouet take the reigns as Head Coach who brings an end to an 11-year stint with the organization including four years as Head Coach of the Senior Women’s 15s program.Rouet comes into the role with notable experience having been the Assistant Coach of the Women’s 15s squad for the last four years France.Rouet has signed on to lead the team through to the end of the 2021 Women’s Rugby World Cup which takes place in New Zealand later this year having originally been postponed due to COVID-19.“I’m delighted to be named Head Coach of the Canadian Senior Women’s 15s squad at such an exciting time,” Rouet commented “We have the quality to achieve a podium finish at the Rugby World Cup and that will be our primary aim as our preparations continue over the coming months.“Rugby is growing in popularity across Canada especially among young women and girls,” he added “This program is a beacon of inspiration to that next generation of players and we know a strong performance in New Zealand will encourage more Canadians to try our great sport.” Rouet will be flanked by regional coaching staff for upcoming training camps before finalizing his staffing roster in early April.Rouet’s first duties as Head Coach were overseeing check-in camps the past two weekends Sandro Fiorino departs Rugby CanadaFiorino will officially leave the organization at the end of March which Rugby Canada has made the difficult decision to discontinue following a reduction in funding.“Sandro has been with Rugby Canada for over a decade in a number of roles and has been a significant contributor during his time with us,” said Jamie Levchuk Rugby Canada will continue to operate a fully-centralized Sevens program and the Maple Leaf Academy Program in Langford to support up-and-coming female players who aspire to be selected for Canada’s Women’s Sevens team the 2022 Commonwealth Games and to compete on the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series.Meanwhile World Rugby has confirmed their commitment to funding Women’s rugby globally including the previously announced 16-team three-tier Women’s global competition WXV set to begin in 2023 This competition is part of growing the profile fanbase and commercial revenue of the Women’s game and generating opportunities for Women’s rugby through the new Women in Rugby commercial programme Rugby Canada will continue to work with World Rugby for investment opportunities to grow and advance the women’s game in Canada as well as govern the Club and community game for more than 30,000 registered participants from coast to coast in conjunction with ten Provincial Union members.Rugby Canada is headquartered at the Al Charron National Training Centre in Langford Poland kicked off on Thursday and it was Brazil's Cassio Rivetti on the 11-year-old stallion Lagerfeld (Lauterbach x Calvaro) that took home the top honours in the opening 1.45m class with a time of 21,96 seconds in the second phase Bronislav Chudyba (SVK) on the 10-year-old mare Balouness (Balou du Rouet x Goldstrand) placed second with a time of 22,22 seconds and the third place went to Jaroslaw Skrzyczynski (POL) on the 8-year-old gelding Silver Shine (Califax x Balou du Rouet) with a time of 22,43 seconds Antonio Matos Almeida (POR) on the 16-year-old gelding Nikel de Presle (Kannan x Fennec) placed fourth with a time of 23,02 seconds and Taizo Sugitani (JPN) on the 13-year-old stallion Cuba (Cassini II x Nimmerdor) took the fifth spot with a time of 23,25 seconds in the second phase saw Emanuele Gaudiano (ITA) on the 8-year-old stallion Chalou (Chacco Blue x Baloubet du Rouet) blaze to the victory with a time of 58,05 seconds 36 went clear - but no one could threaten the speedy Italian Thierry Goffinet (BEL) on the 11-year-old gelding Artuur JH Z (Andiamo x Baloubet du Rouet) placed second with a time of 59,73 seconds and Jaroslaw Skrzyczynski (POL) on the 9-year-old mare Quintella (Sanvaro x Baloubet du Rouet) took the third spot with a time of 60,03 seconds Cian O'Connor (IRL) on the 9-year-old mare Cybel II (Varo x Lancer) placed fourth with a time of 60,51 seconds just ahead of his student Lillie Keenan (USA) on the 12-year-old gelding Fibonacci (For Feeling x VDL Corlando) who took the fifth spot with a time of 61,01 seconds Text © World of Showjumping // Picture © CSIO Sopot Sarah showed off the first hat on the runway and it was beautifully matched to her jacket Back in Victoria after touring England and France and criss-crossing Canada to watch his players in action with their club teams Canada rugby coach Kevin Rouet is ready for the next step on an important year for the Canadian women First up is defending their Pacific Four Series title The second-ranked Canadian women open a pre-tournament camp April 19 in Chula Vista with the women’s sevens squad joining on April 22 for a week of combined training ahead of the Pacific Four Series and the final stop of the HSBC SVNS series May 3-4 in Carson Canada opens Pacific Four Series play May 2 against the eighth-ranked United States at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City before flying to the Southern Hemisphere to play No 3 New Zealand on May 16 at Apollo Projects Stadium in Christchurch and No 6 Australia on May 22 at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane the team heads to South Africa for games against the 12th-ranked Springbok women July 5 Stadium in Pretoria and July 12 in Gqeberha There will likely be a couple more games in advance of the 16-country World Cup scheduled for Aug Rouet has named an expanded squad of 36 players for the Pacific Four Series with the two major injury absences in captain Sophie de Goede (knee) and Pam Buisa (wrist) The hope is both will be back for the South Africa tour Rouet says the travelling squad will change with 24 core players with six joining for the U.S game — giving way to another six for the games in New Zealand and Australia Rugby Canada can switch players between 15s and sevens play Players selected for the final SVNS stop will be available to join Rouet's 15s squad for the Pacific Four Series matches against New Zealand and Australia Taylor Perry and Olivia Apps have played for both 15s and sevens teams The Canadian sevens women sit fourth in the overall HSBC SVNS standings ahead of play this weekend in Singapore The women are coming off a third-place performance in Hong Kong Canada won last year's Pacific Four Series with its first-ever victory over New Zealand defeating the Black Ferns 22-19 last May in Christchurch The Canadian women had lost all 17 previous meetings with New Zealand with 10 of those defeats by 27 points or more This year's Pacific Four Series is seen as a stepping-stone to the World Cup with Rouet saying he will not field his strongest lineup against the U.S so he can see some other players in action Stade Français Paris (France); Alysia Comtois Ealing Trailfinders (England); Courtney Holtkamp Gloucester-Hartpury (England); Holly Phillips Ealing Trailfinders (England); Tyson Beukeboom Leicester Tigers (England); Fancy Bermudez Ealing Trailfinders (England); Justine Blatt-Janmaat Stade Bordelais (France); Krissy Scurfield Loughborough Lightning (England); Mahalia Robinson Stade Bordelais (France); Shoshanah Seumanutafa Counties Manukau (New Zealand); Taylor Perry This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 4 The German Federal Champion was the most expensive horse of the 31st Performance Sales International The six year old daughter of the World Cup winner Baloubet du Rouet That made the sporty bay mare the top price of the 50 horses in total which were auctioned off at the most important riding horse auction by the P.S.I initiators Paul Schockemoehle and Ullrich Kasselmann The elegant six year old grey mare Caruschka was worth only slightly less – exactly 770,000 Euros – for her new owner was a member of the jumping collection of the P.S.I The top price of the dressage collection was the five year old bay Hanoverian stallion Riccidoff The approved stallion changed ownership for 680,000 Euros Total proceeds of 12,616,000 Euros were reached at the 31st P.S.I clearly exceeded the previous year’s result of 10.44 million Euros The jumping horses reached an average price of 296,040 Euros and the dressage horses were sold for an average price of 208,600 Euros Auction make it very clear that clients are ready to invest in top quality horses,” commented Schockemoehle and Kasselmann “we are happy with the complete result of the P.S.I Five-star event rider Sarah Bullimore has enjoyed a number of impressive results at the highest echelons of her sport Most of these results have come with Reve Du Rouet (pictured) who Sarah has produced since he was a four-year-old and include second place at Pau CCI5* in 2017 and fourth place at Burghley in both 2018 and 2019 “He’s a lovely horse and talent-wise he is amazing, but he has been tricky in his brain,” says Sarah of the now 16-year-old gelding when H&H eventing editor Pippa Roome chatted to her on episode 25 of The Horse & Hound podcast. “You have to work him and keep him happy and you can’t take him on head on you have to just work around it and find another way — it’s all about keeping his brain right But I think we’ve got the right mixture now and he is one of the most consistent Reve Du Rouet has completed a whopping 11 CCI5*s and Sarah cites her second place at Pau as her biggest highlight to date with the son of Balou Du Rouet “We came so close to winning at Pau and in my eyes he did win as with the modern day scoring system we use now “It was something ridiculous like 0.17 of a second that pushed us over into one more time-fault on the cross-country that meant we lost the title by 0.1 of a penalty And both of his fourth places at Burghley were brilliant too — both were foot-perfect cross-country rounds Reve Du Rouet can still compete on the big stage when the 2021 season comes around “He’s tough and sound and hopefully he’s still got a little bit of competing left in the tank He still prances around like a spring chicken and we say that he’s basically four If you’d like to hear more from Sarah, listen to episode 25 of The Horse & Hound podcast or search “The Horse & Hound Podcast” in your favourite podcast app