Dante Weltino OLD Not at Stud in 2018

Breeding

Oldenburg

The Oldenburg licensed Grand Prix stallion Dante Weltino OLD will not be standing at stud in 2018.

Owner Dressage Performance Centre Lodbergen wants to give rider Therese Nilshagen and Dante Weltino the best preparatory conditions to qualify for the 2018 World Equestrian Games in Tryon and do well there.

Nilshagen and the 11-year old Dante Weltino (by Danone x Welt Hit II) took sweet revenge at the 2017 European Championships after missing out on the 2016 Olympic Games when the black stallion injured himself on vet check day in Rio. One year later in Gothenburg, they won team bronze and just missed out on an individual medal, placing fourth in the Grand Prix Special.

The pair's last competition was the Saab Top 10 Dressage at the CDI Stockholm in December, where they were third in the Grand Prix and sixth in the Kur.

For 2018 all attention will go to WEG and the stallion will not be asked to do double duty as a breeding stallion, not even for half the breeding season until April.

"The owner is a bit scared that it is a bit too much for the horse, to be at stud and do sport, so we chose only to make sport this year as we did last year," Nilshagen told Eurodressage. "We just don't want that it is too much. For the owner it's more important that the horse does not have too much pressure."

Nilshagen and Dante Weltino are coached by Klaus Balkenhol. She has scheduled the CDI's in Dortmund, Hagen, Rotterdam and Aachen as her qualification road for Tryon.

"That's the plan if nothing comes in between," Therese added.