Gregory WatheletOlympian

About Gregory Wathelet

Grégory Wathelet, born on 10 September 1980 in Huy, Belgium, is one of Belgium's leading international showjumpers. He grew up around horses in the Condroz region, began riding at eight, received his first horse at ten and rode his first regional show at sixteen; his published biography records that he started his own professional activity in 2000 [6]. Between 2005 and 2007 he held Ukrainian sports nationality, and his 2006 World Equestrian Games and 2007 European Championship starts are attributed to Ukraine rather than to Belgium [23].

His verified senior championship record covers three Olympic Games, three World Championships and five European Championships. He made individual and team Olympic starts at London 2012 with Cadjanine Z and at Tokyo 2020, held in 2021, with Nevados S, where Belgium won team bronze and he finished ninth individually [15]. At Paris 2024 he made an individual-only start with Bond Jamesbond de Hay, placing 23rd in the qualifier and 15th in the individual final; he did not start the team competition, and no team appearance is recorded for those Games [11]. At the 2015 European Championships in Aachen he took individual silver with HH Conrad, and in 2019 at Rotterdam he anchored Belgium's first European team title with Nevados S [13][19]. He also started the 2022 World Championships in Herning with Nevados S, where Belgium finished seventh and he was 42nd individually [32].

His single Rolex Grand Slam Major victory is the Rolex Grand Prix of CHIO Aachen on 23 July 2017 with Corée [21]. His Rolex Grand Prix wins at the Royal Windsor Horse Show in 2022 and 2025 carry Rolex branding but are not Grand Slam Majors, and his Lyon 2023 and Oslo 2024 wins are World Cup qualifier legs rather than Finals. He has three verified FEI Jumping World Cup Final starts - Omaha 2017 (seventh with Forlap), Basel 2025 (21st with Bond Jamesbond de Hay) and Fort Worth 2026 (34th with Double Jeu d'Honvault) - and no World Cup Final podium.

Wathelet's championship horses span Loriot, Cadjanine Z, HH Conrad, Corée, Nevados S and Bond Jamesbond de Hay. Nevados S, a grey stallion by Calvados Z, was produced by Wathelet from 2015 through European team gold, Olympic team bronze and the 2022 World Championships, and won the seven-year-old final at the 2015 World Breeding Championships for Young Horses at Lanaken - a young-horse breeding title, not a senior World Championship. His retirement was announced in December 2024, with a farewell at Jumping Mechelen on 29 December [31].

He is based at Clavier, Belgium, where his published biography describes a stable from which he develops horses, trains and coaches riders, and trades horses [6]. In January 2025 a fall in California left him with a fractured collarbone and rib bruising; he had surgery, returned to competition in March and started the Basel World Cup Final that April [28]. In the FEI snapshot taken on 6 August 2026 he stood 35th in the Longines rankings on 2,177 points. He appeared among Belgium's nominated entries for the 2026 World Championships at Aachen but was not named in the definite team or the travelling-reserve place announced on 28 July 2026, so no start or appearance is recorded for that championship [26].