Bluffdale, UT – Dec. 5, 2017 – Pony Lane Farm is pleased to announce that one of their top stallions, Dulf Van Den Bisschop (Heartbreaker X Libero H), has been selected by the Belgian Warmblood Stud Book to join its exclusive group of BWP Ambassadors. Due to his superior blood lines and show ring performances, Dulf Van Den Bisschop has been chosen as one of five horses to earn the distinction this year, with less than 50 stallions boasting the elite title world-wide. This year’s class also included the Olympic gold medal winning stallion, Big Star.
To qualify, the horses needed to reach the top 10 in the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFSH) standings, be a finalist at the Olympic or World Equestrian Games, or rank within the top 100 in the WBFSH list of breeding stallions with a minimum five offspring. Each horse will be honored during the second phase of the upcoming BWP stallion selection in January 2018.
“We are so honored that Dulf has been selected as one of this year’s BWP Ambassadors,” said Maura Thatcher of Pony Lane Farm. “For him to be a member of this exclusive group is extraordinary, and we are so proud of all that he and his offspring have accomplished in the show ring and in the breeding sphere. I’ve always known that our boy was something special, but to have him formally recognized is the cherry on top.”
Originally bred by Tom De Craene and born in 2003, Dulf Van Den Bisschop was named the 2006 Stallion Champion during his year of approval, and later awarded “Elite” status by the BWP in 2013. Following an extensive and successful European career in the jumper ring, Dulf Van Den Bisschop came to be owned by Thatcher’s Pony Lane Farm in early 2011 after she recognized his enormous talent and impressive pedigree. In 2016 alone, Dulf Van Den Bisschop boasted wins in back-to-back grand prix, the $50,000 Prix de Lamplight and subsequent $75,000 Prix de Lamplight, and a reserve championship in the $250,000 Junior/A-O Jumper Prix at HITS-on-the-Hudson, among other top placings in high-profile classics and grand prix.
Adding to his reputation as a sire, Dulf Van Den Bisschop’s offspring have also made quite the name for themselves, competing and winning internationally at world-class events. In 2016, Dulf’s 9-year-old offspring H&M Harley VD Bisschop (Dulf Van Den Bisschop x Coronado) won the $380K CSI5* Rolex Grand Prix at the Tryon International Equestrian Center with Belgium’s Nicola Philippaerts in the irons. The pair went on to compete for Belgium at the 2017 FEI World Cup™ Finals and won the International Omaha Jumping Grand Prix.
Ridden by Steve Guerdat of Switzerland, Hannah (Dulf Van Den Bisschop x Kashmir Van Schuttershof) was victorious in the €200,000 Grand Prix CSIO5* in Lummen in April 2017, and soon after claimed the top spot in the CSIO5* in Falsterbo in July 2017. Most recently, the duo added to their list of accomplishments the championship in the $100,000 CSI5* World Cup in Stuttgart, Germany, propelling Guerdat to the lead in the Western European League standings for the Longines FEI World Cup.
Hilfiger Van De Olmenhoeve (Dulf Van Den Bisschop x Querlybet Hero)competes in the Longines Global Champions Tour with rider Emily Moffitt, and the pair recently clinched the win in the $130,000 CP Grand Prix International Open Jumpers CSI4*-W at the CP National Horse Show in Lexington, Kentucky.
Pony Lane Farm is excited to witness Dulf’s first round of American offspring enter the show ring soon, with plenty of young talent hopeful to move up the ranks into upper level competition in time. Thatcher’s stable, in conjunction with international competitor Alex Jayne, who recently bought a share of the stallion, both agree on the importance of the availability of strong bloodlines, which Dulf represents, in the United States for native breeders. The partners hope to continue contributing to American breeding by producing foals with top pedigrees.
Dulf Van Den Bisschop will be joined this year as a new BWP Ambassador by four other stallions: Halifax van het Kluizebos, Eldorado van het Vijverhof, Cabrio van de Heffinck and the infamous Big Star, who was a member of the gold medal team at the 2012 London Olympics and is the reigning individual gold medalist from the 2016 Rio Olympics with British athlete Nick Skelton.
For more information on Dulf Van Den Bisschop and Pony Lane Farm, please visit ponylanefarm.com.
