Hanoverian Stallion Bodyguard New Junior Ride for Paul Jöbstl

Dressage

Austria

The 12-year old Hanoverian licensed stallion Bodyguard has moved to the Switzerland to become the new junior rider's horse for Austrian Paul Jöbstl.

Bodyguard is a 2009 born stallion by Burlington out of Power Girl JL (by Pik L x Grande x Pokal). He is bred at Brood Farm Frieling.

Licensed

Previously owned by Josef Wilbers of Ferienhof Stucker, the chestnut stallion was first licensed at the 2011 Hanoverian Stallion Licensing and approved for Rhineland a year later.

He did his 30-day stallion performance test in Neustadt/Dosse in the autumn of 2012 and scored 8.45 for dressage and 8.15 for show jumping, totalling 8.41 points.

As a breeding stallion Bodyguard was not very popular. He has 16 offspring registered for sport with the German Equestrian Federation. Two of his daughters are state premium mare. He has no licensed sons, so far.

Bundeschampionate and Burgpokal

Bodyguard was first competed by Janine Driessen as a 3-year old in the riding horse tests. Mid-season Wilbers gave the ride to Jana Freundh, who steered the stallion to bronze at the 2012 Hanoverian Young Horse Championships in Verden and a fourth place at the 2012 Bundeschampionate.

Jana Freund and Bodyguard at the 2014 Bundeschampionate

In 2013 Drissen was back on board for local shows, but when the Championships came round the corner, Freund got to ride the horse. He was again third at the 2013 Hanoverian Young Horse Championships in Verden and got silver at the 2013 Bundeschampionate.

Freund retained the ride through 2014 and scored bronze in the 5-year old division at the 2014 Bundeschampionate.

As of 2016 Matthias Bouten began campaigning the stallion and rode him in the developing Prix St Georges horse classes at local shows first and then in the Nurnberger Burgpokal qualifiers. At the 2017 Nurnberger Burgpokal Finals in Franfurt, they were third. Bouten kept the ride throughout 2018.

Bodyguard did only one show with Drissen in June 2019. He returned to the arena in January 2020 at Developing Grand Prix level under Heiner Schiergen. The new pair competed in three shows that year, Troisdorf, Voerde and Hamm-Rhynern. At the latter event in August 2020 they won an Intermediaire I class.

Move to Austria

Bodyguard will now continue his competition career with the 17-year old junior rider Paul Jöbstl.

Based in Switzerland, Jöbstl began his international dressage career in 2017 in the Children's division with Dunkelbunt, a Bavarian warmblood by Don Corazon x Fair Play. In 2018 he moved up to junior level and added Florentina Gisi Lorenz' Austrian team horse Coco Procol Harum (by Cheenook x Carprilli) to his collection. Paul competed at the 2019 European Junior Riders Championships with Coco and at the 2020 Europeans with Dunkelbunt.

"I really love Bodyguard's sweet character and the feeling he gives me when I ride him," Paul told Eurodressage. "He‘s a real dream horse."

Paul is taking his time to gel with the chestnut stallion he has received on loan from Wilbers.

"My plans for 2021 are to get to know Bodyguard better and give myself all the time that needs," he said. "Of course it would also be great if I get qualified again with either Dunkelbunt or Bodyguard for the European Junior Championships. Let's hope this year will be more normal than last year."