The Holstein Horse Days in Elmshorn have begun! To kick things off, Herbert-Blöcker-Platz was transformed into a dressage arena and the young performers took to the ring – with Bundeschampionat qualifiers and performance tests for four- to six-year-old stallions under the new stallion performance testing system, the event got off to a highly intriguing start.
The three- and four-year-olds competed in riding horse classes – and a total of three promising young horses were nominated for the National Championships: firstly, the three-year-old association stallion Bonduel by Bonds-Zack (ZG Horz, Flensburg). He won the class with a score of 8.3 under the saddle of Lea-Katharina Strothmann. And among the four-year-olds, two further horses secured their places at Warendorf: Franco by Fürst Zonik-Cascadello I (Cristina Trauffer, Switzerland), ridden by Roland Metzler and awarded an overall mark of 8.1 by the judges. Oyphorie by Dynamic Dream-Aljano (Malte Kuhnert, Freienwill) and Markus von Holdt also finished the competition with an 8.1 – completing the Bundeschampionat trio.
For the first time ever since the reform of the stallion performance test system, performance tests for four- to six-year-old dressage and show jumping sires are being held in Elmshorn. In a Class A* dressage test – which also served as the HLP assessment for four-year-olds – F-Dur by Floriscount-Feedback, owned by the Lower Saxony State Stud in Celle, took the win with a score of 8.3, ridden by Catja Thomsen. Things also went well for the Celle State Stud’s stallions in the five-year-old category: here, Rocky Mountain, a son of Revolution by Damon Hill, won under the saddle of Saskia Sophie Kunz with a score of 8.2. Eldorado by Escamillo-Floriscount was awarded the winner’s rosette in the six-year-old class. The Westphalian, owned by Hans Peter Mohr, was ridden by Sophie Ludewig and received a score of 8.14 for his performance.
Dressage on Thursday, show jumping from Friday
Tomorrow, Thursday 12 June, the programme continues with a focus on the dressage classes and the corresponding state championships. From Friday 13 June, the ‘Holsteiner core business’ – pure show jumping – takes centre stage once again. On Saturday, 14 June, the first show jumping champions will be crowned, and at 3 pm that afternoon, the Holsteiner Foal Auction will mark another highlight of the programme. The excitement continues afterwards with the Theurer Trucks GmbH & Co. KG Grand Prix on Saturday evening. And on Sunday morning (15 June), the spotlight will first be on the best mares from the 2021 and 2022 age groups, when the Holsteiner champions are selected as part of the Association’s Mare Show. The most talented five- and six-year-old young horses will then compete amongst themselves to be crowned state champions.
It’s
well worth a visit
Admission to the entire event is free. As well as a marquee party on Friday and a bull-riding contest on Saturday evening for adults, there’s also a bouncy castle for children. Mediterranean-style catering is available in the large catering marquee, and there are also other food stalls serving crêpes and soft-serve ice cream, a coffee van, Asian street food and a cocktail bar on the event grounds.
To ensure stress-free and secure parking for all spectators, parking attendants and security staff will be on site. Please therefore understand that a parking fee of €5 per day will be charged. The full collection for the foal auction can be found at www.holsteiner.auction. If you have any questions about the foals or the auction, Felix Flinzer (0162 3493942) will be happy to help. The Holsteiner Horse Days will be livestreamed on ClipMyHorse.tv.
Catalogue of the Breeding Association Mare Show
Photo: Janne Bugtrup (Bonduel by Bonds and Lea Strothmann)
