As the son of Olympic champion rider and the well-known international dealer Francois Mathy, Francois Jr has been surrounded by horses since the day he was born. He started off riding ponies when he was seven, but he was so tall that he soon moved on to horses. Rather surprisingly he did not train with his father, with whom instead he ‘absorbed’ horses and their world, but was then encouraged to travel, move around and never stop. And so it is to the Italian instructor Guido Dominici that Francois Jr owes a great deal of his formidable success. However, his desire to improve, to learn and understand and develop his skills has not yet diminished in this rider. In spite of his success he still experiences equestrianism with the spirit of an adolescent – and his dreams remain those of all young riders arriving on the stage of high level show jumping: riding for his country in the Olympic Games.

When he is not on horseback – with a degree completed at the HEC Management School in Liege -  Francois is busy running his dealing yard and bringing on young horses and young riders, while also practising other sports such as squash, tennis, running, golf and skiing. He spends as much time as he can with his daughters Alix and Elena in spite of a very full schedule!