Look who Rebecca Klimke and Susan Pape bumped into at the Wellington International show jumping show, none other than Hollywood movie star Sylvester Stallone, who was dining with real estate mogul Mark Bellissimo. German Grand Prix rider Michael Klimke took the honours of taking this photo.
Zuchterforum reported that the Baden Wurttemberger dressage horse breeder Ernst Rus passed away. Based in Gingen/Fils, he was 78 years old. Rus was a member of the Ba-Wu horse breeding association for more than 55 years and has bred well over 100 foals in his lifetime. His breeding successes include the licensed stallion Lord Henrico (by Lord Leopolds) as well as 51 successful sport horses, six of those are at S-level dressage, including FBW Dory's Dream (Kristina Olson) and Du Ciel (Hayley Beresford and Carina Scholz).
Austrian Olympian Victoria Max-Theurer has taken over the ride on the 6-year old Brandenburg bred licensed stallion Montgomery (by Morricone x Foundation x Don Cardinale). Bred by Reinhold Marschall, Montgomery sold as a foal at the Riedlingen auction to Gestut Birkhof. The stallion won the Baden Wurttemberger and South German young horse championship under Nicola Haug. Montgomery will join other Birkhof stallion, Topas, at Max-Theurer's castle in Achleiten, Austria. The family also had Lord Leopold but he passed away due to colic.
The famous German horse painter Klaus Philipp passed away. He was 90 years old. He has a passion for Thoroughbreds and owned 16 racehorses. He even began as a jockey but was told he wasn't fast enough. He became a member of the mounted police and headed the riders' team patrolling the RAF prison in Stuttgart-Stammheim. He leaves behind four daughters from his first marriage and his widow Bernadette. He lived in Putensen near Luhmühlen. More about the painter's career on St. Georg.
The Washington state based American dressage Claire Darnell has relocated to Loxahatchee, Florida. Darnell is originally from Mount Vernon, WA, and was a 2021 Carol Lavell Advanced Dressage Prize. Aboard her top horse Harrold S she won the 2022 U.S. Developing Grand Prix horse Championship. As of April 1 she will began a training and sales horses business out of US young rider Emma Stephens and her family’s Nouvelle Farms.
Dutch young rider Micky Schelstraete has welcomed a new horse in the barn, the Pawluk family's Donovan, a 9-year old Oldenburg by De Niro x Pik Noir. The horse was competed as a young horse by Hannah Laser before Linda Weiss trained and competed him up to Prix St Georges level.
The Pawluks has had two "Donovans" in their lives. The 9-year old has been sent to Schelstraete, but Caroline Pawluk also competed a 15-year old Oldenburg bred Donovan (by Diamond Hit), which in 2021 was show by Jill de Ridder in his first international competition, the CDI Samorin, at small tour level, finishing sixth in the PSG but retiring from the Inter I. In 2022 Polish junior rider Caroline Pawluk competed this second Donovan in one international in Mariakalnok and placed 7th and 9th in the junior tests. This Donovan is bred by Michael and Claudia Roehrhoff and owned by Gestut Moosbend.
Horses.nl reported that Edward Gal has received the KWPN stallion Kyton (by Ferguson x Ferro) in training. The liver chestnut is owned by Dutch horse dealer Rom Vermunt BV in partnership with Harald and Jeanette Bruinier. He was previously trained by Bart Veeze. Vermunt recently did a similar strategy in having Gal put the Grand Prix movements on a horse before selling it. Indigro sold to the U.K. like that.