By Sally Reid
Photography: Stal Tops
Rolensky MVNZ (Cornet Obolensky - Casual LVP x Cassini I), a New Zealand-bred stallion previously unknown in Europe, was the equal top earner at the recent Tops International Auction in Valkenswaard.
‘Roly’ sold for €1.9 million, reportedly to a rider based at Stal Tops, causing a shockwave of delight to all Kiwi sport horse enthusiasts and, of course, to his own breeders, Wendy and Richard Keddell at Mount View Sport Horses in Tauranga. “I always believed wholeheartedly in Roly,” says Wendy Keddell. “He has such an incredible brain and travels so lightly across the ground. The qualities he’s been gifted with, and his good character, make his future in the sport very bright.”
Rolensky MVNZ had been in Europe for just a few months prior to his auction, during which he competed several times at Valkenswaard at heights of 1m35-1m40, without once touching a rail.
He is from Holst Stamm 826, and has a very good half-brother, Picasso MVNZ (Connor), who was New Zealand’s top eight-year-old jumper this year, and finished sixth overall in the ESNZ Grand Prix series last season
Their Zangersheide dam, Casual LVP Z (Cassini I x Landjunge x Lord) was bred in Belgium by LVP Stables and born in 2008. She is out of a Bezirksprämie mare, Novelle I, who was bred by George Clausen of Gestut Rabenhof in Germany. Her granddam, Lisa (Lord) is a half-sister of the famous foundation sire Caretino. Both descend from the mare Isidor.
Two other LVP mares, Heidi LVP (Cassini I x Lennon x Cascavelle) from Holst Stamm 2543, and Bonita LVP (Berlin x Lord x Farnese) from Holst Stamm 890, were imported as foundation dams for MVNZ.
LVP’s Luk van Puymbroeck has been an ongoing mentor to Wendy, for which she is very grateful. “We took a lot of our principle aims, goals, and learning from the Germans, Dutch, and Belgians, especially from Luk,” she told ESNZ recently. “When I first met him, I spent a whole afternoon with him talking about breeding. After that, I’d visit him every couple of years and he always had something planned. His wife would pack sandwiches and we’d drive the seven-hour journey to Holstein. On the way, we would talk flat out about horses and everything to do with breeding. I had pages of notes, and when he wasn’t on the phone I was asking him questions and making more notes. He’s just like a walking encyclopaedia.”.. To read the complete article you need to be a subscriber
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