Sterrehof’s Calimero retired

After a long and extremely successful career, Sterrehof’s Calimero says goodbye to the sport. Under the saddle of Marc Houtzager, Calimero jumped to many great results. He won several Grands Prix, including Jumping Amsterdam, and was high-ranked in others, like third in the famous Grand Prix of Aachen. In addition, he brought his rider to his first national title and represented the Netherlands at four big championships, scoring eighth place individually at the home European Championships in Rotterdam. Now Marc has decided that it has been enough for our top gelding. He is already seventeen years old, still super fit and will get his well-deserved retirement!

‘We understood each other’

Calimero means a lot to me and also to my career, Marc says. “He is an abnormally good jumping horse, although we didn’t think it would go this way when he was young. He could be quite spooky, but at one point we understood each other and from then on things went really fast. He has done so many great things. Looking at everything, I think third in the Grand Prix of Aachen was the best, with team victories in the FEI Nations Cup Final of Barcelona and the GCL Super Cup Final in Prague shortly after that.

“What made him that good? Actually everything; carefulness, scope, suppleness, he was just like a rubber ball. He could jump anything and wanted to jump clear. In his prime, I just knew he would jump clear if I rode him well. If you have that kind of feeling with a horse it makes your life easy as a rider. He is seventeen now, still jumped another good year, but I felt at the last show that it was getting a bit more difficult. A horse like Calimero does not deserve to compete at 1.40m level. He has a beautiful age and can enjoy his time off on the pasture.”

Calimero enjoys the sea during a jumping tour in Oliva, Spain

Main results:

1st Grand Prix Jumping Amsterdam
1st FEI Nations Cup Final Barcelona
1st GCL Super Cup Final Prague
1st Dutch Championship
1st Grand Prix Ommen
1st Grand Prix Drachten

2nd World Cup Basel
2nd Nations Cup Rome
2nd Nations Cup La Baule

3rd Grand Prix CHIO Aachen
3rd Grand Prix CHIO Rotterdam
3rd Grand Prix Dutch Masters Den Bosch

Best Dutch combination at WEG Tryon, European Championship Rotterdam and European Championship Riesenbeck

Victory in Amsterdam: