SPORT horse breeder and agent Ronan Rothwell has added another layer to his successful Boleybawn Horses business with the arrival at his Wicklow stud of two young stallions, Jan Van Holland and SHS SoCo Blue.

“I always wanted to stand a good young stallion in Ireland but I wasn’t going to stand one that I didn’t believe in 100%. I wouldn’t offer a stallion to other breeders that I wouldn’t use on my own best mares,” explained Rothwell, creator of the Irish Breeders Classic.

The quest to find his right type took several years. “And now I landed two within two months of each other! But thats how it goes. I am really happy about it and I can’t wait to see their progeny progress through the system.”

Both of the stallions will stand at Boleybawn where Rothwell has built up a network that he is hugely proud of. “I am blessed with the team I have at Boleybawn right now, everyone involved is at the top of their game. Michaeli Byrne rides the horses here now and she is super talented and a name you will hear a lot more of in the future.

“Tony Donohue and Siobhan Leonard manage the yard and all the horse husbandry and without them I would be lost. We also have a great team of contractors looking after farriery, veterinary and transport in Michael Keane, Larry Dunne, Helen Searight-Smyth and Charlie Fogarty. With these people around it makes it very easy to stand stallions and it’s a perfect fit for our business now,” added Rothwell.

Both of the promising young stallions are available by fresh and chilled semen. Each semen dose is €50, plus €500 per in-foal mare on October 1st.

The progress of the new Boleybawn stallions can be followed on Facebook (Boleybawn Horses) or search YouTube for Jan Van Holland and SHS SoCo Blue.

CONTACT DETAILS

Ronan Rothwell, Boleybawn Horse Farm, Fairwood,

Tinahely, Co Wicklow.

Tel: 087 648 2155 | Website: boleybawnhorses.com

2014. 173cms

“He is a stunning looker and has an exceptional pedigree, so it was an easy decision,” Rothwell said about his move to acquire a second stallion this year.

Owned in partnership with Ronan’s cousin Julian Pearson, it was Richard Widger who first told him about this young stallion with a strong performance damline.

“I went to try Jan twice, he was careful and scopey,” explained Rothwell, who was also impressed by the grey’s “fantastic canter and trot.”

Although his late arrival in Ireland meant he missed this year’s Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) inspections at Cavan, the exciting prospect will be presented at future HSI and Warmblood Studbook of Ireland (WSI) inspections.

Now in Ireland for two weeks, the German-sourced Jan Van Holland has had a quick introduction to the Irish show jumping circuit. “He has an exceptional brain and temperament. When he was transported to us from Germany, he was ridden the next day and then went to his first show in Ireland which was Barnadown, where he jumped four clear rounds on the grass.”

Otherwise, the plan for the Boleybawn team is to slowly produce the young stallion and aim for the four-year-old championship on home ground in September, when the Irish Breeders Classic, the richest young horse show jumping global class, takes place. Next year’s plan includes the five-year-old championships at Dublin and Lanaken.

“Jan is a stunning type and has an extraordinary pedigree. He is fully approved with the German Sport Horse Studbook where he passed the 50-day stallion test with very high marks and positive comments.”

By the young Clarimo son El Clarimo, this young stallion shares the same damsire as the prolific Molly Malone V in the Dutch-bred Cavalier.

Jan Van Holland is a half-brother to René Tebbel’s 1.60m World Cup and CSI5* Grand Prix campaigner Cosun, while his notable dam line has also produced Windsor, a World Cup and European championships level horse, and Suntory, Nigel Coupe’s good Grand Prix prize-winner at Aachen, Hamburg and Vichy, plus winner of the 1994 Millstreet Grand Prix.

2015. 165cms.

It took several months of negotiations to seal the deal for the three-year-old SHS SoCo Blue. “I went to see him first in October but it took a lot of persuading to get the seller to let him go, so he just got to Ireland in February,” revealed Rothwell. This exciting prospect is jointly-owned with David Cullen, the same lucky partnership that owned last year’s Dublin five-year-old champion BP First Editions and he was found for them by Castlefield Sport Horses’ Ger O’Neill.

“He has a super canter and his jump is unbelievable. He was approved in the Mecklenburg studbook where he was given the highest marks for jumping out of all at the stallion show.”

Here in Ireland, breeders got their first glimpse of SHS SoCo Blue at the Cavan inspections where he was amongst the best overall standard of sport horse candidates presented to date. He passed Stage 1, which as Rothwell acknowledges “is as much as he can do for now. He will return to do Stage 2 as a four-year-old.”

“SoCo was broken and ridden for four weeks here at Boleybawn and we jumped him under saddle three times and he is showing even more promise under saddle. I have never had anything to do with a three-year-old that has so much scope and natural ability. He is on a break now from training but I plan to have him out at shows next spring.”

With the Irish Breeders Classic and Dublin four-year-old championships pencilled in for 2019, SHS SoCo Blue is concentrating instead on his stud careers this year. According to Rothwell, six of the young stallion’s first seven mares have already scanned in foal and as with Jan Van Holland, his semen quality has tested as excellent quality.

His nine-year-old Clearway dam Belazza bred two foals naturally before she started her own jumping career.

Despite being only in the sport for two seasons, she is already performing very well at 1.35m level and is a half-sister to the 1.45m horse Silent Joter.

Both the Rio Olympics contender Zirocco Blue (SoCo Blue’s sire) and Plot Blue share the same successful sire in Mr Blue.