SWITZERLAND (by Susan Finnerty, Adriana van Tilburg and Jean Llewellyn) Once again during the CHI Geneva International Horse Show, the best breeders in the world and the winning studbooks will be celebrated during the WBFSH-ROLEX Awards ceremony. Being an Olympic year, some major changes in the world rankings were likely to occur late in the season, following Rio 2016 – although the results also highlighted the fact that points co-efficients are perhaps not sufficiently rewarding as Olympic medals might suggest.
Another rather sad fact also came to light when the winning breeder of an eventing horse, David Goodin from New Zealand, will not be attending the awards ceremony as Balmoral Sensation was not registered with a member studbook of the WBFSH – an omission one hopes the existing NZ breeders’ associations will recognize as a critical lapse in judgement, and a serious blow to the notariety this accolade could have bestowed globally on their remote sport horse breeding industry. Certainly, breeders themselves should perhaps be more proactive in driving the membership initiative in any countries that are, as yet, also unrepresented.
In terms of the studbooks each winning breeder represents: Holsteiner (Chesall Zimequest), Hanoverian (Desperados), and Irish Sport Horse (Mighty Nice).
Showjumping: Chesall Zimequest (Casall)
Günter Schüder was raised alongside horses and he took over the family farm from his parents in 1971. In that year he bought the mare Hasja (Sable Skinflint xx - Osmana x Waldjunker, stamm 1120) and she would become the foundation for the success of Chesall Zimequest (Casall Ask - Milva x Concerto II). Günter Schüder recalls: “Sable Skinflint xx (Artic Star xx - Junita xx x Signal Light xx) was known to be difficult and to be a bit crazy, but if you have his blood in your mare line you will get his soundness and toughness. Several international jump- ing horses have him in the bloodline. I still notice the blood of him in my current mares. I used several stallions for Hasja but it was based on gut instinct rather than any real idea. I wanted to try to experiment with several stal- lions. Her Capitol I (Capi- tano - Folia x Maximus, stamm 173) daughter Delia was a very modern mare. She wasn’t a typical Capitol I mare, Delia had blood. I pur- chased Hasja when she was in foal to Pussta (Raimond) and that was a ver y special mare. She did some dressage with a girl in my area and when she went to a show her foal stayed in the field. She had a great character. The horses from this line have all an honest character and blood.”...
