Former Licensed KWPN Stallion Geniaal Sold to China

Dressage

China

The formerly licensed KWPN stallion Geniaal has been sold to Chinese dressage rider Sarah Rao, who is based in Great Britain.

Geniaal is a 10-year old KWPN gelding by Vivaldi out of Wocky (by Biotop x Ferro). He is bred by the Van Traa family in Maren Kessel, The Netherlands.

Licensed Stallion

Geniaal was licensed at the 2014 KWPN Stallion Licensing in 's Hertogenbosch where he finished third in the champion's ring behind now Grand Prix stallions Glamourdale and Governor. He scored 82 points in his stallion performance test, with an 8 for walk and trot, 8.5 for canter, suppleness and rideability, and 8 for self carriage and potential as a dressage horse.

Until 2019 he sired 310 offspring registered with the KWPN society, including licensed sons King Olymbrio L and Next Pitch US as well as 2015 KWPN Foal Champion Kompaan. He was also approved for the Oldenburg breed society.

Geniaal first stood at the Glock Horse Performance Centre where Hans Peter Minderhoud started the training, but Marieke van der Putten soon took over. She rode him in his first stallion tests, but after van der Putten left Glock the stallion was supposed to continue under Minderhoud but didn't show as he had an injury to his splint bone.

Geniaal moved back to Van Uytert and at the start of 2018 he had recovered and Annika Roodhart took on the ride. However when Roodhart injured her back, Dinja van Liere began competing the stallion at national level in The Netherlands.

Van der Putten and Geniaal at the 2015 KWPN Stallion Licensing

Van Liere and Geniaal won silver at the 2019 Dutch Small Tour Championships and in 2020 they won the VHO Trophy at the KWPN Stallion Licensing.

Sold to Denmark, Gelded

Listed as owned by Van Uytert in partnership with stallion keeper Jan Lamers until 2019, Geniaal sold to Andreas Helgstrand in February 2020 after the stallion licensing as a future junior-young riders' horse for his son Alexander.

The new combination, however, did not gel. The bay was gelded and he continued his competition career in Denmark at national level under Michael Gronne Christensen. The showed at three national shows in August and September 2020, winning twice at M-level.

Sold to China

Geniaal has now been sold to British based Chinese rider Sarah Rao who trains with Richard Davison and Sarah Higgins.

Rao dreams of qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games and become the second Chinese rider ever to represent her country at the Olympics in dressage. In 2008 Lina Liu was the first at the Games in Hong Kong.

The 23-year old Rao began her international career at small tour level in March 2018 aboard Waldessarini (by Wolkentanz II x Donnerhall). In 2019 she campaigned Gillian Davison's Grand Prix horse Alfranco (by Negro x Zevenster) at small tour level. In 2019 she placed fourth and fifth at the Asian Games in Pattaya, Thailand on Waldessarini.

Rao rode her first international Grand Prix tests in the Under 25 division on Alfranco in 2020. This year she added the Polish bred King Ron P (by Ron William x Corleone Z) to her string, riding him once in the U25 division at the CDI Wellington Heckfield.