Holger Schmorl, founder of the Australian Hanoverian stud farm Kinnordy Stud, has passed away. Together with his wife Melanie he promoting Hanoverian breeding in Australia.
Schmorl was originally from Menninghausen, Germany, but due to Melanie’s declining health they emigrated to Australia in 1982. They founded Kinnordy Stud in Darling Hills near Toowoomba, Queensland.
The Schmorls took seven horses with them, including their home bred stallion Daktylus (by Diskus x Absatz), stallion Winterkönig (by Woermann x Pik König), and the 1978 Verden Elite Spring Auction top selling mare Averara (by Absatz x Wohlan). Later on they integrated a number of genetically interesting thoroughbred mares into their herd.
Kinnordy stud bred some of the most wanted Hanoverian breeding stallions of Australia, Daley K (by Daktylus). They also imported the licensed breeding stallion Gymnastik Star (by Glückspilz x Calypso II) in 1998.
Their most famous dressage bred sport horse was Wiking (by Winterkönig x Field Officer xx) which represented Australia at the 1998 World Equestrian Games in Rome with Nancy French.
The Schmorls were initially very involved with the Australian Warmblood Horse Association, but in 1993 they were approached by the German Hanoverian Society to establish an Australian branch. For a while the Hanoverian Society existed alongside the AWHA, until the AWHA, allegedly under the influence of a ‘Dutch mafia’ starting refusing to recognize Hanoverian mare papers – and the two societies grew increasingly antagonistic (read more about that history here).
Schmorl was the first chair of the board of the Australian Hanoverian Society and retired from it in 2002. The couple retired fully from horse breeding in 2014 and sold Kinnordy Stud.
Photo © Julie Wilson
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