Christopher Hector celebrates the equestrian stars, who make their own stars…
When Lara Liedekerke-Meier riding Hooney d’Arville became the first Belgian to win a five-star event, she was not only making history, but carrying on a proud tradition of the eventing fraternity, the practice of breeding your own horses to ride in competition.
Lara rode Hooney’s dam, Nooney Blue, at the 2011 European Championships. Nooney Blue was Lara’s first-star horse, taking her through Junior and Young Rider ranks to a senior debut at the 2010 World Championships in Lexington.
Lara and Nooney Blue on course at Lexington
But their competition career came to an end at the Euros the following year.
“Nooney broke down in the European Championship during the cross country, and that was the last time I rode her,” says Lara, “She needed to go back in the trailer to the stables. We didn’t know how bad the injury was, and then I just wanted to bring her home and to give her time, and then we would try to have a foal. At first it didn’t work, and then this one, Hooney, came. My dad will probably have already sent me a message that [this win] is thanks to him, who went to pick up the semen!”
Vigo d’Arsouilles
Dad made a wise choice, the Nabab de Reve son, Vigo d’Arsouiilles has sired an incredible number of top-level showjumpers, but he is also the sire of three 2* eventers, seven 3* and three 4*. Hooney’s dam, Nooney Blue, is by the Jalisco son, Jet Set du Rezidal, and she is out of a Thoroughbred mare by Shamaraan xx. Nooney is also the dam of Kiarado d’Arville, a two-star eventer by Diarado.
Lara and her husband, Kai-Steffen Meier run Five Star Eventers at Gesves in Belgium. Kai has competed successfully up to the 5* Level in Eventing and was placed multiple times at Badminton, Luhmühlen and Pau. He represented Germany at the 2009 and 2011 Europeans, in 2010 he was selected for the WEG at Kentucky, but missed out due to an injury to his horse, TSF Karascada M. In 2012 he was selected as a reserve for the London Olympics.
According to their website: “He has competed with over 60 different horses in nearly 600 FEI competitions, he has produced many young horses from their first cross country jumps at the German Bundeschampionat classes for young eventers, up to the World Championships for young horses at Le Lion d’Angers.”
A glance at the list of horses Five-Star has produced, shows a deliberate use of stallions with eventing credentials.
Ducati d’Arville competing as a young horse
Hermione d’Arville, a four-star eventer with Lara, is by Royaldik, who is by Royal Diamond, but out of Heraldik’s full-sister, Herka xx. Ducati d’Arville is by the current number one on the WBFSH eventing sires rankings, Diarado. In 2024, Ducati has scored two seconds at 4*, at Balrowko and Boekelo. La La Land d’Arville is by the Heraldik son, Herald III, has two seconds at 2* level.
I was lucky to catch up with Lara at Aachen recently where she had two horses in the CCIO4*, doubly lucky since she is one of the world’s most charming interviews.
Was Hooney (it sounds very different filtered through Lara’s French Belgique accent) the first horse you bred?
“No, before that my mother and I bred some horses, but in an amateur sort of way. My mother was fascinated and she knew the horses on the market were quite expensive, and she knew that I was quite a special rider in that I liked to have them from the beginning, I’m not good at taking the ride on a horse from someone else, I like to start them from scratch.”
Lara and Alpaga d’Arville at Le Lion in 2013
“We only bred one or two a year, it was never industrial, it was always difficult for me to sell them afterwards. Hooney was the third or fourth we bred.”
I was looking at your current breeding program and the stallions you are using seem deliberately chosen for eventing, what does your breeding program look like?
“We only have mares that I rode before. I feel that it is a hard sport and I want to give them the best chance of retirement. We wanted maybe to pull an embryo out of Hooney, but it is against what we have always done, I don’t want to become more intrusive because she has won five-star. I want to stay fair with my mares, I’m not going to do it. I’ll breed with her when she changes her career.”
“I understand the pushing of the breeding nowadays, but I don’t want to push beyond what the horse is willing to give to me, and you take something out of the horse, and they cannot feed the foal themselves, no I am not going to do it…”
When you are looking for an eventer, what are the qualities you are looking for?
“I’ve always had them from the beginning, so I know what they are good at, and what they lack, so I always try to balance a little bit, the weaknesses and the strengths. As I’ve ridden them in the past, I know exactly their character, also health wise, like fetlocks or something like that, do I need to work on the back, I know them well and trust a bit my gut feeling. I’ve only bred with four-star mares, if they don’t make four-star, I give them to a junior or something like that. So they are competitive, the quality of being a good mover, good jumper, and having ‘blood’. Then when they are a bit heavier, we go to a lighter stallion.”
“I’m not too picky about extra blood on paper, nowadays with the dressage atmosphere, too much blood is difficult to get the best out of them, because of the pressure. I want them to be the best in their head, that’s why I like breeding them and giving them time in the field. I introduce them to the sport in the quietest way possible. They will go to one show, then back in the field, I really take my time with all of them.”
“Choosing stallions, I like not too extravagant, maybe pretty, I think that helps for eventing. Good conformation, not too much power in the back end or the back, something which is balanced, careful enough, doesn’t need to be the biggest in carefulness, a horse I would like to ride myself. Then I pay a lot of attention to the stallion on course, are they spooky, fussy in the head. I listen to the interviews with the riders, and imagine how that stallion will go with my mare.”
This year, what stallions are you using?
Urikas vd Kattevennen
“One stallion I am using is Urikas vd Kattevennen (Uriko / Cassini I) who is going to the Olympic Games with Harrie Smolders. If you have a look at him, he’s really small, really compact, but really quick on the ground, leggy and a little bit laid back. Harrie picks him for the big shows and when a rider of that calibre does that, it means something.”
Diablue
“I have also used the Schockemöhle stallion Diablue by Diaron out of a Chacco Blue mare over a Verdi mare who is a little bit weak in the back. Diablue is very strong in the back, really beautiful uphill canter, and the mare is a bit downhill. Last year we also used Gemini, the clone of Gem Twist, over a heavier mare because he has more blood, and he is not really Thoroughbred in his head. More an old-fashioned Thoroughbred, like really easy going. And I use Diarado.”
People always say, ‘oh you can’t breed eventers…’
“I think we can, I think we just need to trust the brood mares, and the mare I think is the most important, because the foals grow up in the fields with them. I try to leave them outside for as long as possible, let them gallop in the mud. You have to know from the beginning if they have the will to do the sport, that’s important, then let them learn nicely. It’s not a sport that needs to be pushed to the extreme, every horse can do a medium trot and a flying change, and a little half pass, even if it is not a winning half pass. Every horse can jump 1.10, 1.20, and cross country is just a question of bravery, courage and trusting the rider.”
“For sure, a normal horse might not be a four-star horse, but I think when you breed them, and you know them early enough. In showjumping it has to be super horses, but in eventing, just trust the mare you have, use a nice stallion, then you need a little bit of luck, that the x-rays are good, and the horse is sound enough and has a nice conformation, but in eventing really what you need is time, patience, and love.”
Lara and Jive About Wonderland competing as a young horse
Lara joins that dedicated, and growing, group of eventing riders who breed their own. Come to think of it, the eventers themselves have been remarkably successful when it comes to producing riders: Reiner and Ingrid; Bruce and Buck; Anne, Mark and Zara, Bill and Mavis and Wayne, Barry and Clarke, Tinks and Andy and Muzi, feel free to add to the list…
Breeding your own eventer in Australia? Go to www.ihb.com.au and select the right stallion for your mare, like Diarado
Or Diablue
