2004 Oldenburg Stallion Licensing

Stal Eurocommerce Purchases the 2004 Licensing Champion

There are three very exciting moments at a stallion licensing. The first moment is when the committee announces which stallions are accepted or not, the second moment is when you hear which stallion has become the licensing champion and the third moment is witnessing the auctioning of these young talents. Prices soar in tough bidding duels when a licensed, premium stallion is offered for sale. Unfortunately, the 2004 Licensing champion was not presented for sale, as the bay had already been sold one week before the licensing, to the Dutch show jumping (!) stable Eurocommerce in Lochum, The Netherlands.

Intrigued by the fact that a Dutch show jumping stable has purchased a German dressage bred Furst Heinrich offspring, Eurodressage made a late Sunday night phone call to Ger Visser Jr., manager of Stal Eurocommerce. "We are stallion station with show jumping stallions," Ger Visser Jr explained, "but we want to be a complete station, which means that we have to offer dressage stallions as well. We want to satisfy our customers because some of them have jumper mares, and others have dressage bred mares."

Eurocommerce discovered the Furst Heinrich x Volturno through a liaison, who had sent them a video tape of the horse. "Last week Sunday we went to the barn in Germany to take a look at the horse. We liked him and on Monday we bought him," Visser Jr. said. Visser praised the Furst Heinrich colt for his overall beauty and good gaits. "He's a super lovely horse and moves with great ease. He has a very engaged hind leg. His walk, trot and canter are all very good."

Not knowing that the bay colt would be approved or not, and not even imagining that he would become the 2004 Licensing Champion, Eurocommerce spotted talent in this horse and bought him from René Tebbel a week before the licensing. The Dutch stable had a lucky break when their recently purchased star became the grand champion of the licensing. "You sometimes need more luck than wisdom," Visser Jr. said, hitting the nail on the head. "Of course he needs to be talented, but horses is "made" and you have to work on their future."

Stal Eurocommerce has not yet given a name to their Furst Heinrich champion, but they have already made plans to present him at the KWPN licensing. "Eurocommerce names all its horse to a location, so we have to come up with a good "V" name for the horse." Depending on his acceptance to the KWPN studbook, the Furst Heinrich colt, who used to be named 'Frischer Wind', will receive a Dutch Warmblood V-name or a German bred F-name.

Ger Visser Jr. further disclosed that a professional dressage rider will be training the stallion in the future, but he could not yet mention a name as they stallion station had not yet decided on a rider.

Text and Images copyrighted Astrid Appels/Eurodressage. No reproduction Allowed

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