It’s the studbook that registers on average 3,000 foals each year, yet since its inception in 1955 the Belgisch Warmbloed Paard (BWP) is another Belgian studbook that has changed the ‘old guard’ lineup in world rankings.

A decade ago, the BWP had risen to fifth place in the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFSH) show jumping rankings – the market that the vast majority of its breeders focus on. By last year it was a unique 1-2-3 treble for Belgium in the 2017 rankings, with all three of its studbooks – BWP, sBs and Zangersheide – dominating the WBFSH show jumping studbooks leaderboard.

So how did the Belgians achieve this in six decades?

Primarily by methodically importing and using the best of their continental neighbours bloodlines. French and German pedigrees are traced in the majority of the foundation stock that subsequently produced 12 BWP-registered show jumpers at the Rio Olympics (a total second only to KWPN); the 2017 European championships dual team and individual medal-winning horses: H&M All In (s. Kashmir van Schuttershof) and Good Luck (s. Canturo), plus a host of leading stallions, including the great Darco, Heartbreaker and Toulon, sire of the Eamonn Murphy-bred 2017 Lanaken gold medallist Columbcille Gipsy.

Add in the fact that the WBFSH top-ranked show jumping horse last year, the Lorenzo de Luca-ridden Halifax Van Het Kluizebos, is another BWP-bred and that Hector Van D’Abdijhoeve brought the number of Belgian-bred horses on the victorious Irish team at Gothenburg to 50%, and it is clear to see that the BWP has become a force to reckon with.

Bertram Allen's BWP-bred stallion Hector Van D’Abdijhoeve pictured at the Dublin Horse Show (Credit: Laurence Dunne/ Jumpinaction.net)

WINNING FORMULA

Rudi Eerdekens, BWP’s director, explains their winning formula.

To what would you attribute the success of the BWP in show jumping?

The quality of our horses is always improving and what is even more important is that the BWP breeders succeed in breeding increasingly more first-rate horses. The goals that the BWP studbook strives to meet are still standing proudly. Performance, health and exterior remain the foundation of the BWP breeding policy.

Was there any particular stallion that first put the BWP on the global breeding map?

The first BWP breeders started from nothing, as there were no breeding traditions yet for such a typical saddle or sports horse. The BWP management and the breeders went looking abroad (France, Germany) for the best genes in order to start the breeding of a suitable sports horse.

It started with the stallions Lugano van La Roche, Flügel van La Roche en Codex, the ancestors of Darco.

How many approved stallions are in the BWP studbook?

There are 195 approved stallions in the BWP studbook ( +/- 80 in other countries as 60 in USA).

How many colts/stallions were presented for inspection this year (2018)?

At our stallion selection there were 124 new candidate stallions of three and four years of age.

Are mare inspections well supported by breeders?

The inspection of the mares is not obligatory. About 480 mare participated at our mare shows (model and gaits). Each year we do linear scoring of three-year-old mares.

Halifax Van Het Kluizebos – how is his success and breeder recognised and promoted by the BWP?

In our magazine, Equitime, and on the BWP website we try to recognise the breeders of our successful horses.

What is the BWP’s policy on the use of clones?

We registered clones (only two, clones of Sapphire), but we don’t promote it.

How important is dressage and eventing breeding to the BWP? Or is it a primarily show jumping studbook?

The number of BWP foals is increasing. We have about 10% dressage foals and the market for dressage horses is also important in Belgium. The eventers are mostly by-products of our show jumping horses. We have only a few breeders of eventing horses. They are mostly looking for stallions with a good attitude and good temperament.

We have seen some studbooks, particularly in Germany, merge in recent years. Do you think there will ever be a Pan European studbook, or would you like to see studbooks retaining their own unique identity?

This is possible because each studbook has the same aim: breeding excellent sport horses.

In Ireland, we believe that we sold many of our best mares abroad when Irish-bred show jumpers reached their peak in the 1960s/1970s/1980s. Do you know of any such mares within BWP pedigrees?

We don’t see many Irish bloodlines in our damlines.

BWP POPULAR SIRES

Sire foals produced:

• Le Blue Diamant Van’t Ruytershof (83).

• Tangelo van de Zuuthoeve (74).

• Vigo d’Arsouilles (58).

• Nixon van’t Meulenhof (58).

• Lavallino Ter Klomp (56).

• Untouchable (50).

• Windows Van Het Costersveld (Cornet Obolensky) (43).

• Cicero Z (42).

• Elvis Ter Putte (42).

• Emerald Van’t Ruytershof (34).

• Matisse de Mariposa (34).

• Ironman Van de Padenborre (33).