Nicola and his brother Olivier performed almost every weekend at national and international competitions. Not just to win prizes and titles: it also gave them the opportunity to train and promote horses from the Philippaerts family, and to prove themselves as riders on a weekly basis, all while keeping their fingers on the pulse of the equestrian sporting world.
Nonetheless, Nicola delivered some impressive performances. 2014 saw a win in the Göteborg World Cup (with Donatella – N), a victory in the Big Ben Grand Prix in Toronto (with Challenge van de Begijnakker) and podium finishes in five-star jumping events at Doha, Qatar (with Cortez) and St. Tropez (with Donatella – N).
Although the Philippaerts brothers compete with each other in the arena, they remain firm friends. Nicola explained to Cavalor: ‘Outside the arena, we try to help each other as much as possible; we are one team and we’re both striving for the same goal.’
