End of year: looking back and forward

If we look back on the past 12 months, it has clearly been a year with several highlights, but also a year marked by farewell. On the eve of a new year, we can additionally look ahead, and see that things will change in 2025 as of 1 January Stal Van den Bragt will officially start on our premises.

A particularly successful year

Looking back, a true highlight of the year was of course the amazing victory of Sterrehof’s Dante and Marc in the Grand Prix of Rotterdam. Even without this result Dante and Marc’s year can be called particularly successful. Our almost 17-year-old mare and her rider started 2024 with a sixth place in the World Cup of Amsterdam, finished with a fifth place in the Grand Prix of Maastricht and in between, in addition to CHIO Rotterdam, they also took the win in the Turnier der Sieger of Münster, second places in the Grand Prix of Hagen and of Indoor Friesland and were highly ranked in several other big classes.

Farewell

In contrast to all these highlights was, of course, the final farewell to Sterrehof’s Opium. Despite his very respectable age of 28 years, the death of our famous stallion came rather unexpectedly. A farewell of a completely different kind was the retirement of the almost eighteen-year-old Sterrehof’s Calimero. After a glorious career, he said goodbye to the sport.

Taking also a clear step back do Ivo and Ellen themselves. That is why this year the last edition of the Stoeterij Sterrehof Trophy was organised at Outdoor Gelderland and the last show on the premises of Sterrehof Stud was held.

Cooperation remains

A step back doesn’t mean a final farewell to Dutch equestrian sport for Ivo and Ellen. Earlier, it was announced that the almost twenty years excisting cooperation with Marc and Julia will continue. Ivo and Ellen invested among others in Mereusa who is co-owned with the Houtzager-Kayser Stables and it was precisely this talented mare that regularly showed herself strongly in international classes for seven-year-olds.

Stal Van den Bragt

Other young horses from Sterrehof Stud also showed their potential for international sport in 2024. Most of them did so under the saddle of Edward van den Bragt. He will continue to do this for us with some horses in 2025, but no longer as our rider, but as a self-employed one. From January 1, Edward will run his own training stable at our stud farm and will also train horses from others, as he did successfully for Sterrehof Stud for many years. Stal Van den Bragt will thus continue the horse business in Nunspeet, until a sale of our company is definite.