Passionate Holsteiner breeder and accomplished horseman Hans Jürgen Köhncke has passed away at the age of 84.
Hans Jürgen Köhncke had taken over his parents' agricultural farm in Badendorf near the gates of Lübeck at a very young age and expanded it into one of the most important and well-known breeding establishments in Holsteiner horse breeding. His father had bequeathed to him at the time the Markgraf-Nomade daughter Gangsterin, who in 1966 in conjunction with the Thoroughbred Sorgenbrecher xx produced the damline founder of Holsteiner mare family 4539 Cesta. She was the foundation mare of many successful breeding horses and descendants decorated with the highest honours in international sport. These include, among others, the stallion Chin Chin by Constant out of Larese-Farnese-Sorgenbrecher xx, which placed in a leading position at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul. Also to be mentioned here is the Contender-Landgraf-Rebel Z-Farnese son Collin, who won the Hamburg Derby three times in a row with Toni Haßmann – in 2004, 2005 and 2006. Hans Jürgen Köhncke advocated for the Holsteiner horse with expertise, passion and a sense of proportion, always keeping breeding progress in focus. He was responsible for breeding almost 270 horses registered in Holstein, including nine licensed stallions and 25 state premium mares. Among the licensed stallions from his breeding are Libertino I and II, Cordobes I and II, Claudio’s Son and Lordano, to name a few.
The farm in Badendorf, which is now run by his son Hanno and daughter-in-law Marina, is widely known and appreciated as a stud station of the Holsteiner Verband. The two stallions Constant and Contender in particular have shaped the station. Hans Jürgen Köhncke accompanied the Holsteiner Verband for decades with great voluntary commitment: he was chairman of the Stormarn-Lauenburg licensing district for 37 years, a member of the licensing commission for 20 years and also involved in the foal and mare commission for many years. For his extensive, extraordinary lifelong breeding achievement in Holsteiner horse breeding, he was awarded the Georg Ahsbahs Medal by the Holsteiner Verband in 2006 and was also honoured for special achievement in animal breeding by the Schleswig-Holstein Chamber of Agriculture in 1999.
Photo: Janne Bugtrup
