BELGIUM (by Jo de Roo) In 2017, Stefaan Delabie collected his award for breeding the world’s showjumper of the year for Halifax van het Kluizebos. Born in 2007, Halifax is BWP registered, and a son of progenitor Heartbreaker, out of Dalida van de Heffinck (Fetiche du Pas - Ovanna van de Heffinck x Darco). Delabie characterizes Halifax as having great willpower in everything he does: “That’s his greatest strength”. As a stallion, he is approved with sBs.
Delabie (64) has worked in several sectors. “My main activity was the meat industry. I exported for instance to countries such as Russia. I have been there several times on business tours. During the nineties of the past century I was very active abroad, which means that there was less time to spend on my horses. Annually, I was abroad for between 15 and 18 weeks. Nevertheless, even then I kept on breeding. Each year I have been breeding two or three foals.”
Q What are you doing now?
For the past 15 years I have been working as an independent in the renewable energy industry.
Q How long have you been breeding?
As a breeder I have more than 30 years experience. Yearly I breed two or three foals. Breeding horses is a hobby. I am not breeding on a large scale. As an exception, I bred four foals one year. I own a half-sister to Halifax called N’est Ce Pas vh Kluizebos. She is by Tornesch. This year she produced a colt by Urano de Cartigny. I own several other breeding dams, amongst them MS Franziska, a full sister to Clinton. Nobody can predict, but if a breeder doesn’t dream a little bit, it’s better that he shouldn’t breed at all. One may not become a mathematical breeder. One should partly breed by feel. This can turn out better than was expected, but also may not meet expectations...
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