Runaway Horse in Paris

Thursday, 19 February 2009 - A French military horse threw off its rider near President Nicolas Sarkozy's Élysée palace and stunned onlookers as it galloped along the banks of the Seine and through the streets of Paris.

Garibaldi, a normally highly-disciplined chestnut stallion aged 15, charged along the right bank of the river after throwing off its Republican Guard rider.

The horse's incredible gallop - which at times resembled a scene from the Grand National - was filmed as it caused chaos by ignoring traffic lights and outpacing squad cars, forcing vehicles to screech to a halt.

The drama unfolded late on Wednesday morning when the horse, part of a routine patrol guarding Mr Sarkozy at the Élysée Palace, was spooked.

"There was no way of stopping him - he wanted to get to his stables," said Lieutenant-Colonel Pierre Rousseau.

First stop was Place de la Concorde - one of the busiest squares in Europe - and then the horse headed on to the riverbank.

After half a mile, as the horse approached the Louvre museum, it briefly skidded and fell to the ground in order to avoid a parked lorry.

Soon afterwards, as the horse passed the city hall, a female police officer leaning out of a squad car window managed to get alongside the horse and bring it to a halt.

"He had a few superficial wounds, but was otherwise fine," said Lt-Col Rousseau.

He said Garabaldi had shown 10 years of loyal service and was unlikely to be disciplined.