Happy Sport was created by a young woman driven by boundless daring and imagination. Introduced by Caroline Scheufele in 1993, the watches bear the stamp of the countless transformations of an era. They embody the free-spirited attitude of contemporary women and of Maison Chopard’s Joie de Vivre principle.
Julia Roberts chooses the Happy Sport watch
For Maison Chopard, Julia Roberts, the woman with the world’s most radiant smile, embodies the all-embracing love of life expressed by its Happy Sport watches, the representatives of the house’s Joie de Vivre philosophy.
There is this indelible image of Julia Roberts, dating back to 2016, when she strode up the famous steps of the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, barefoot and wearing an off-the-shoulder black dress that highlighted a Chopard Haute Joaillerie emerald and diamond necklace. This has arguably become the most memorable red carpet staircase event in recent editions of the Cannes Film Festival. Since then, Julia has personified the ultimate free-spirited woman.
For Caroline Scheufele, co-president and artistic director at Chopard, Julia would be the perfect representative of the face of the Happy Sport woman. “It was her and nobody else! Julia Roberts was the only person I felt could convey the spirit that I see in Happy Sport,” passionate film-lover Caroline said.
Since the 1990s, when filmmakers and audiences fell under the spell of her contagious laugh, Julia has become one of the most accomplished of Hollywood’s actresses. She won the Oscar for Best Actress in 2001 for her performance in Erin Brockovich and has garnered a slew of other awards. People magazine named her the world’s most beautiful woman a record five times.
Charmed by the boldness of the Happy Sport creations, Julia confirmed: “I am honoured to be collaborating with Chopard on the Happy Sport watch, one of the most iconic and desirable models in the industry.”
For the first time ever, the Happy Sport watch is appearing in a 33mm-diameter case, inspired by the golden ratio principle of aesthetic harmony. These watches with their daintier cases are particularly well suited to women’s wrists and perfect for all occasions and activities. When Caroline Scheufele of the Maison Chopard introduced the Happy Sport watch almost 30 years ago, it immediately appealed to women everywhere. A magnificent array of interpretations followed. They are now joined by fourteen new references in a rich variety of models.
Feminine and playful, technical and precious, timeless and modern, the first Happy Sport took the world by surprise. Here was a watch that combined steel and diamonds, set with cabochon-cut sapphires on the lugs and on the crown, its white dial enhanced by seven diamonds caught up in an animated dance. Caroline had taken the concept of dancing diamonds launched by her parents to new heights. This watch was not merely about reading the time, but about delighting in the perpetual ballet of the Happy Diamonds synchronised by the movements of the wearer. It was inevitable that Happy Sport would become the ultimate casual chic fashion item. More than that, it became the watch that also chronicled women’s emancipation.
The new interpretations include four two-tone watches, featuring a Lucent Steel A223 case embellished with ethical 18-carat rose gold, and three that are entirely crafted from ethical 18-carat rose gold, available on a leather strap or metal bracelet. An eighth version in ethical 18-carat white gold is entirely set with diamonds. All of them beat to the rhythm of the Chopard Manufacture 09.01-C movement with automatic winding and each dial is graced with the legendary dancing diamonds, whirling away.
Happy Sport is a modern-day amulet, to be taken everywhere in order to share a Joie de Vivre-infused dynamic and a carefree spirit.
ART DIRECTOR: XAVIER DOLAN. PHOTOGRAPHER: SHAYNE LAVERDIÈRE. STYLIST: ELIZABETH STEWART, ALEX TEUSCHER. ALL WATCHES AND JEWELLERY BY CHOPARD.