The 81-year old KWPN breeder Tonnie van der Koppel has passed away on 3 February 2014, seven months after his wife. The renowned breeder from Wadenoijen, The Netherlands, suffered from an aneurysm a couple of weeks ago and did not survive when complications arose.
Van der Koppel was born in a horsey family. His father was a judge at breed shows in North Holland, which Tonnie did as well for fifteen years. He was especially known for being a judge at foal inspections.
Tonnie's foundation mare was Nolda (by Jagermeester), which produced the U.S. based dressage horse Wanroij (by Symphonie). She was also the grand dam of Playboy (by Kennedy), who was the reserve licensing champion in 2000, and mare Kabola (by Darwin).
Kabola produced Dutch Mare Champion Pabola (by Ferro) and international dressage horse Ferrero (by Ferro). This dam line also produced the licensed small tour stallion Apache (by UB40).
The last few years Tonnie often worked together with Dutch stallion owner and horse dealer Ad Valk.
Photo © Dirk Caremans
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