Royal Dutch Sport Horse
The As Time Goes By
Even as equestrian sport evolves, the KWPN’s foundation of producing excellence never changes. American breeders explain how KWPN horses have developed in the last 30 years.
By Jennifer M. Keeler I
n our ever-changing world, the standards of horse sports are constantly set higher and higher. Scores of 80% are now expected for dressage horses at the top of the sport—a
mark almost unheard of just a few years ago. Jumpers and eventers are asked to leap higher and faster than ever before. Te expectations for performance horses are continuously raised, even for those competing at the lower levels of sport. As equestrian sport evolves,
breeding trends for Royal Dutch Sport Horses have also shifted over the years in order to meet the changing demands of com- petitors. “For over more than two decades of breeding KWPN horses, we’ve seen the standards become higher and higher,” says Scot Tolman of Shooting Star Farm in Spofford, New Hamp- shire. “Tere’s no resting on laurels. Tis is one of the most ex- citing aspects of breeding Dutch horses; we know if we maintain the selection criteria of the studbook, every generation of our program becomes stronger and stronger.” Madeleine Austin of Williston, Vermont has been breeding horses for 30 years and has witnessed firsthand how horse sports have changed—as well as how the KWPN horse has evolved to keep pace. “Te Netherlands has always been quick to develop its products in keeping with the desires of the buying world, and horse breeders and dealers are no different,” she says. “Te mod- ern KWPN sport horse is a relatively new creature: bred from the multi-purpose Gelders and heavier Gronings horses, the ad- dition of lighter blood made the offspring a more useful partner for the international show ring. As the ante has been upped, the KWPN has tried to stay at the forefront, developing horses that the buying public wants.” Te KWPN was the first sport horse registry to recognize the necessity of sport specialization in breeding in order to optimize a horse’s potential in competition. Depending on its bloodlines, conformation, and abilities, the modern-day KWPN horse is registered in one of three distinct categories: the Riding type
Keuring in 1989. Gert van der Veen is pictured in the sports coat, second from left. Te horse at right is the KWPN stallion Roemer.
(RP), the Gelders type (GP) or the Harness type (TP). Te riding horse group, which makes up 85 percent of all KWPN- registered horses, is also subdivided into dressage, jumpers and hunters (in North America only). Terefore, today’s KWPN breeders, like Jackie Ahl-Eckhaus of Mountain View Sport Horses in San Luis Obispo, California, aren’t just breeding a Warmblood, they’re breeding specifically for a horse with the talents necessary for a particular sport—and many believe this specialization has been the key to success. “Te horses have been re-
fined and in the riding type they have taken two separate lines for jumping and the dressage horses,” explains Ahl-Eckhaus. “Terefore the horses are specifically bred to perform their inten- tional sport, which I think has helped to keep the KWPN horses at the top of their game. Tis has also further helped the breed- ers be aware of the differences needed to produce top horses in their discipline.”
Long-time KWPN breeder and jury member, USEF sport
horse breeding judge and founding member of the NA-WPN, Faith Fessenden of Reno, Nevada agrees. “For the dressage horses, the past decade or so of success of the KWPN horse has been driven by a very progressive collaboration among the marketing skill of the organization, the veteri- nary research within the Netherlands, plus the reactivity and respon- siveness to breed the type of horse rewarded
Top of page: Charlotte Dujardin rides current world champion dressage gelding Valegro.
Tish Quirk’s flagship stallion, Best Of Luck, that she imported in 1983.
SPECIAL KWPN-NA SECTION Warmbloods Today 37
KWPN-NA Courtesy KWPN Courtesy Tish Quirk
Courtesy KWPN-NA
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