The British Breeding Virtual Futurity Evaluations – High Quality Entries Score Gold All The Way!

The British Breeding/Baileys Horse Feeds Futurity Evaluations are now mid-way through, and the high-quality entries continue to impress the team of international evaluation experts with 5 highly coveted gold awards achieved this week in the Dressage and Eventing categories.

For the first time ever owners and breeders are submitting their entries in a digital format in sets of detailed videos taken on hard and soft ground that are examined by a senior veterinarian, nutritionist, linear scorer and senior evaluators from the UK, Holland and Germany. 

The Futurity evaluations aim to identify British bred, young potential sport horses and ponies that are destined for careers in dressage, eventing, show jumping, or endurance and may even find the Olympic Champions of the future. Entries are categorised by discipline with age groups for foals, yearlings, two and three-year olds.
The highest scoring Futurity entry of the week with a score of 8.45, was the lovely two-year-old gelding Cevin’s Compromise (Cevin Z x Catherston Liberator) who was presented for eventing and who impressed the evaluators with his powerful and expressive canter and his very correct conformation. He was bred by Jane Holderness-Roddam of West Kington Stud and is owned by Heidi Wilton-Baker and Ian and Tara Harris. Cevin’s Compromise is by the legendary Cevin Z who sadly passed away earlier this year, and who has left his mark on British sport horse breeding like few others, having sired countless international performance horses. Cevin’s Compromises mother is particularly interesting. She is the full sister to the international CCI4* horse Howick Freedom, who has been competing with Craig Anderson and Emily Parker, before moving to the stables of Alex Postolowsky. Her half-brother Howick Stealth by Rock King has competed at CCI2* level with Tabitha Baird and is now competing nationally under the saddle of Fiona Brenninkmeijer-McKenzie. Cevin’s Compromises grand-dam is 5* event horse Softly Softly placed 14th at Badminton with Caroline Powell. With provenance like this, paired with superb conformation and natural ability, this young horse surely has a very bright future ahead of him. 

Jane Holderness-Roddam of West Kington Stud said ““Having just recently sold Cevin’s Compromise, known as Trevor, we are delighted that he has done so well on his first outing and we are sure Gabriella Wilton-Baker will have lots of fun eventing him in the future, we will follow them closely”.

Another eventing 2-year-old who achieved the prestigious gold accolade with a score of 8.2 was Fleur Swanton’s Silver Opposition, by Opposition Bombshell out of a Libro mare. Currently still at the lanky two-year-old stage, with some maturing to do, Silver Opposition showed a real desire to move forward, with an expressive, ground covering canter and a beautifully elevated and scopey trot, which are so important in potential event horses.  

Opposition Bombshell is the sire of Catherston Oakley, who attended the Futurity and qualified for the Bridge where he was the highest placed Eventing entry in his age group! 

Opposition Bombshell is world renowned for producing Olympic level progeny for eventing and show jumping. Silver Opposition is out of Silver Sovereign who gained 21 points eventing, competed at advanced medium dressage and Foxhunter level show jumping.

The highest scoring dressage entry of the week with 8.37, was a lovely filly foal bred by Kristina Flloyd-Walker, by her own coloured competition stallion Jumpanji Decor out of a lovely Krack C mare. DBM Zukini is the half sister of DBM Secre-C, by Secret, who came forward for Futurity evaluation last year where he was selected for the AES Elite Dressage Foal Auction and sold at the BD Nationals in 2019. The mother is the half sister of the international Grand Prix stallion Worker CL who competes internationally at Grand Prix level, and the direct motherline has produced the stallions Fleetwood Mac CL and the North American Performance Test winner in 2019, Koning DG. This filly impressed the evaluators with her beautiful conformation and long lines, as well as with a naturally balanced and expressive trot. DBM Zukini is pre-selected for the Futurity Elite Online Auction this September and a superb prospect for the sport with a strong, proven performance pedigree matched by natural ability and type.

Kristina says “I have been breeding for about 9 years, but it is only since owning my stallion, Jumpanji Décor, that I have focussed on coloured horses. I am really passionate about dressage and coloured horses and my mission is to breed coloured dressage foals without compromising on quality. Until Zummy I never realised you could have colour and quality in the same horse!”.

Staying with the dressage theme, we come to Ginley’s Gunpowder, another successful AES Elite Dressage Foal Auction candidate from last year, bred by James Boulton and owned by Vanessa Clewlow. His sire, Fiderhit, is bred and owned by Lianne Verity who has been a long supporter of the Futurity, which made it a particular pleasure to see him succeeding last year with two Elite offspring at the Futurity from his first crop of foals. This beautiful colt’s mother comes from a very interesting damline, with grandmother Heartbreak enjoying a successful dressage career that is now taking her to Inter I level. Great grandmother Golftaube was the mother of Walpurgis, mother of none other than Spencer’s Wilton’s British bred Olympic horse Super Nova II. 

Scoring an overall mark of 8.15, Ginley’s Gunpowder (stable name Waldo) impressed with his beautiful conformation and frame, earning him an overall mark of 9 from the vet and 8.75 frame mark from the international evaluators.  

Vanessa’s daughter Josephine is a dressage rider and currently competes at Inter 1 level. She has been accepted to the Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence through Haddon Training in association with British Dressage. Vanessa told us “Josephine hopes to make a career in dressage as well as one day competing at top level. As far as she is concerned Waldo is her future Olympic horse, and now they have their first Gold!”.

Last, but by no means leas, another lovely dressage foal, scoring 8.275 was presented by Hanoverian Stud in the young Flammengold son Forever Classic, named after this beautiful young colt’s damsire, the successful eventing stallion Classic Juan who very sadly passed away earlier this year. We have seen many wonderful Flammengold offspring at the Futurity over the years, and that stallion has gained an excellent reputation for passing on rideability and superb temperaments. This charming colt stood out to the evaluators with his lovely topline and an uphill, expressive canter, attributes that will make him suitable for ambitious amateurs or professionals alike. 

With the Futurity now well under way and more entries submitted every week, we are looking forward to an exciting 2020 season. The Futurity will run until 31st August.

For more information, visit www.british-breeding.com