William Fox-Pitt’s runner-up at Maryland CCI5* this year has come out on top of the 2023 Sport Horse Breeding of Great Britain (SHB (GB)) Mare Gradings.
SHB (GB) held gradings across the UK at a range of studs, equestrian centres and also at The National Hunter Show with William Fox-Pitt’s 2023 Badminton and Maryland ride Grafennacht (Grafenstolz), owned by Mrs A Gould, earning the top grading.
22 mares graded into the Head Stud Book, 14 attained Main Stud Book status and 1 mare joined the Foundation Stud Book.
28 foals were also presented, with 14 graded and 13 achieving the higher Premium status “The standard of foals was extremely high, and the highest placed foals were exceptional” says SHB (GB)
The Gemini Stud’s stallions Churchill III and Classic Opera were the sires of the leading graded foal and the second-placed graded foal in Great Britain under the SHB (GB) National Foal Gradings.
The highest placed foal was the filly Churchill’s Rose, who is by Gemini Stud stallion Churchill III out of the mare Templar Romance, owned and bred by the Gemini Stud.
The almost-black filly foal scored a range of nines and 10’s from the judges - former Burghley winner Judy Bradwell and Stuart Campbell. Churchill’s Rose’s dam, the thoroughbred mare Templar Romance (by Templar Spirit) was also graded this year and finished in third-equal place nationally, less than one mark behind the winner, Grafennacht.
The second highest graded foal was the grey colt Gemini's Storm, again owned and bred by the Gemini Stud and this time sired by their older stallion, Classic Opera, out of the mare Zara, who has already produced a four-year-old full sibling which will be evented by Laura Collett next year. Gemini's Storm also scored nines and a 10 from the judges.
The Gemini Stud also had success with its mare by Shannondale Sarco, Arnawood Profile High, who was fifth overall in the national mare gradings nationally. Her filly foal Churchill’s So Sarco, by Churchill III, took seventh place across all of the UK gradings.
Georgie Belton of the Gemini Stud said: “We have been ardent supporters of SHB (GB) for many years and are delighted with this year’s results. We wanted to thank Judy Bradwell and Stuart Campbell for taking the time to come and judge all the mares and foals at our Leicestershire base this year.”
