The Welsh-bred riding pony Sir Sansibar (registered with the Hanoverian Stud Book as Reitland’s Sansibar), owned by Daniel Bachmann Andersen, has won the European dressage title for pony riders with Danish rider Filippa Jaeger Jensen. During the European Championships in Le Mans (France), the pair won the freestyle to music on Sunday with a top score of 79.960%. Earlier in the week, Jensen won silver with the Danish team in the team competition and also took home a silver medal in the individual competition.

Jonker’s Socrates

The 10-year-old palomino gelding is a son of Jonker’s Socrates (by Veenstra’s Promise), a renowned Welsh dressage sire in Germany, and was bred from the NWR mare by High Flown’s Oxford x Diamond. This mare is a full sister to Reitland’s Obama, who won the FEI Pony Freestyle in Wellington with the Australian rider Abby Weel with a score of 73.408%, and to the studbook stallions Reitland’s Obama II and Reitland’s Sir Obama. She is also the full sister of the dam of the NWPCS studbook stallion Reitland’s Bon Coeur (by Brouwershaven Black Caviar). Furthermore, his pedigree includes influential NWR stallions such as Wester Aikema’s Adios, Anjershof Rocky, Coelenhage’s Purioso, and Verona’s Bo-Gi.

European title

With his European title, Sir Sansibar underscores the quality of the Welsh riding pony in international dressage. The gelding, bred by Lenert Busch of Stal Reitland in Stadland (Germany), once again reaffirms the strong reputation of the Reitland breeding program at the European level.

Text: Jan S. Jukema
Photo: Libby Law Photography