For the first time in Danish Warmblood history, geldings were officially recognized at what has traditionally been the mares’ Elite Show.

“Geldings have been somewhat overlooked in a breeding context, yet they make up half of our population. We need to have them evaluated because their results provide valuable data for our linear profiling and breeding indexes. Moreover, breeders producing stallion offspring should be rewarded for strong breeding results—just as geldings can now contribute points toward their dam’s elite mare status. For that reason, we awarded breeder medals this year to the breeders of geldings designated as medal candidates. It was particularly gratifying that every gelding selected for the Elite Show proved to be of very high quality,” said Danish Warmblood Director Claus Hansen.

At the KRAFFT DWB Elite Show, held August 28–31, the best 3-year-old and older mares and geldings from the summer’s saddle gradings gathered—both in dressage and show jumping.

Since the discipline split in 2003, Danish Warmblood has specialized its evaluation and testing of show jumping and dressage horses. In 2023, this was emphasized further by introducing discipline-specific descriptions of rideability.

At the saddle gradings, dressage horses are tested under saddle, receiving marks for walk, trot, canter, rideability, and capacity.
Jumping horses are free-jumped or, at the owner’s choice, jumped under saddle if 4 years or older. Horses shown in free jumping are also presented under saddle, where they are judged on canter and rideability, while jumping performance—free or under saddle—is assessed for technique and capacity.

Spotlight on Dressage Stars

Judges select the best 3-year-old and older horses at the regional saddle gradings, who are then invited to the Elite Show. Here, breeder medals in gold, silver, and bronze are awarded, and the judges name the Best Dressage Mare and Gelding and Best Jumping Mare and Gelding of the Year.

At the Elite Show, dressage horses are primarily shown under saddle (though they may be presented loose), while jumping horses demonstrate their quality in free jumping.

In dressage, four geldings and 38 mares entered as medal candidates. The judges awarded 28 bronze medals, 13 silver medals, and 1 gold medal.

Dressage mares in the final:

• Just Me Majlund (Jovian/Secret), bred & owned by Stutteri Majlund
• Ravenna Klint (Revolution/Blue Hors Farrell), bred by Gitte & Poul Erik Klint, owned by Frida Mortensen
• Livas Alva (Bon Coeur/Aljano), bred by Lipas Horses v/ Paul Jacobsen, owned by Stutteri Teglovnen ApS
• Dizzy (Hesselhøj Donkey Boy/Blue Hors Zack), bred by Hesselhoej.dk ApS, owned by Helgstrand Dressage

Dressage Mare of the Year was Ravenna Klint, who also earned the gold medal. Judges described her as “a very harmonious, modern, and suitably refined mare with a strong foundation. Her gaits are functional, and she has demonstrated excellent rideability with a strong interior.”

Dressage geldings in the final:

• Petersborg Bossanova (Atterupgaard Barcelo/Sezuan), bred by Henrik Groot, owned by Matthew Johnson (USA)
• Aagaardens Fardin (Blue Hors Farrell/Blue Hors Zack), bred & owned by Stutteri Aagaarden v/ Hanne Aagaard

Both geldings received silver breeder medals, and the judges named Petersborg Bossanova Dressage Gelding of the Year, noting he is “a large-framed, elegant riding horse type with excellent expression. He has shown to be highly functional under saddle with three very good gaits and outstanding rideability.”

Linking Breeding Success to Sport Success

Danish Warmblood has seen a strong correlation between medal mares and later success in sport and the FEI WBFSH Dressage World Breeding Championships for Young Horses (WBCYH/UVM).
Of the 25 medals won by Danish Warmblood horses at the WBCYH, 11 were achieved by medal mares or graded mares.

Examples include:

• Fiontini (silver medal mare), triple WBCYH gold medalist under Severo Jurado Lopez, now competing Grand Prix in the USA.
• Queenparks Wendy (gold medal mare), who won WBCYH medals with Andreas Helgstrand and now, as Wendy de Fontaine, has earned Olympic and European medals with Isabell Werth.
• Brandtbjergs Divya (gold medal mare), six years old, silver medalist at Verden 2025 under Anders Hoeck.
• Quinn G., a Danish Warmblood mare, triple WBCYH winner with Betina Jæger and Fiona Bigwood.

Jumping: Small Numbers, Big Impact

Around 350 foals of show jumping pedigree are registered each year in Danish Warmblood—a small number compared to other Western European studbooks. Nevertheless, focused selection and visionary breeders have consistently produced top-quality jumpers with strong performance damlines.

Judges awarded 5 silver medals and 10 bronze medals in jumping and selected five mares for the final.

Jumping Mare of the Year was Grazia Ask (Todt un Prince Ask/Darco de Revel), bred and owned by Stutteri Ask.
A true “functional jumper mare,” Grazia Ask impressed with scores of 9 for canter, technique, and capacity. She comes from a high-performance line—dam Grace Ask competed on the Danish European Championship team under Søren Møller Rohde, who also rode sire Todt un Prince Ask at the European Championships in Rotterdam.

Finalist mares (all awarded silver medals):

• Chatterley Lox (Chacfly PS/Ci Ci Senjor Ask), Stutteri Lox v/ Joan Arler & Peter Børsen
• Ziloubet E (Teglovnens Zir-Oculus/Balou du Rouet), Mathias Engelsted Jensen
• Hurricane La’be (Todt un Prince Ask/Ci Ci Senjor Ask), Lasse R. Bendixen
• Grazia Ask (Todt un Prince Ask/Darco de Revel), Stutteri Ask A/S
• HM Balourina (Balou/Heartbeat), Thomas Warmdahl Mikkelsen

Elite Foal Auction

As tradition dictates, the Elite Foal Auction was held alongside the show, with nearly 50 foals under the hammer.

The top-selling foal was Löschners Golden Girl (Viva Gold/Millennium), bred by Ralph & Zoe Löschner, sold to Maria von Rosing/Helgstrand Dressage for €40,000.
The most expensive jumper foal was Loui (Casalou PS/Chacco-Blue), bred by Cristine Larsen, sold to Frandsbjerg Agro for €26,000.

DWB Amateur Dressage Cup

New this year, Danish Warmblood introduced a dressage cup for amateur riders on Danish Warmblood horses. The initiative proved highly popular, with over 100 combinations competing in the Helgstrand Dressage DWB Amateur Cup at Vilhelmsborg, held alongside the Elite Show’s national dressage competition.

Riders competed at L and M level, and the top 10 pairs from each division (20 in total) qualified for the final, to be held at the Danish Warmblood Stallion Licensing in Week 10, March 2026.

Titles at the 2025 KRAFFT Elite Show

Dressage Mare of the Year: Ravenna Klint (Revolution/Blue Hors Farrell) – bred by Gitte & Poul Erik Klint, owned by Frida Mortensen
Dressage Gelding of the Year: Petersborg Bossanova (Atterupgaard Barcelo/Sezuan) – bred by Henrik Groot, owned by Matthew Johnson
2-Year-Old Dressage Mare of the Year: Darbie Højmark DWB (Danciero/Franklin) – bred by Inger Wejlstrup, owned by LL Horses v/ Lennart Lindberg
2-Year-Old Dressage Gelding of the Year: Kalhave’s Dream Boy (Blue Hors Baron/Tailormade Temptation) – bred by Kalhave v/ Anette Toft Jensen
Jumping Mare of the Year: Grazia Ask (Todt un Prince Ask/Darco de Revel) – bred & owned by Stutteri Ask
2-Year-Old Jumping Mare of the Year: Chiara DWB (Bøgegårdens Chacoon/Chico’s Boy) – bred by Mie Nielsen & Theo de Vos, owned by Anette & Jacob Solkær Hougaard
2-Year-Old Jumping Gelding of the Year: Normann’s Callisto (Cassado Ask/Carmargue) – bred & owned by Stine & Joakim Søgaard Normann

Foal Champions:

Dressage Filly Foal: Vitala (Vitalos/Dancier), Lena & Ulrik Kristensen
Dressage Colt Foal: Tophøjs Excellent (Extreme U.S./Floriscount), Stutteri Tophøj
Jumping Filly Foal: Skovro’s Chasing Dreams (Chacfly PS/Balou du Rouet), Bomholts-Beslagsmedie ApS
Jumping Colt Foal: Verismo (Verdi/Converter), Mia Schødt Dickow