The chestnut Valpariaso was the price highlight of the 2026 Equine Elite auction held at British horse dealer Craig Rawlins' stable in Weert, The Netherlands.
The 2026 edition of his auction took place on Saturday 31 October 2026. A huge collection of 52 horses, aged between 2 and 14, was up for sale.
The 10-year old Westfalian gelding Valparaiso (by Vitalis x Florencio), listed as owned by Lara Pfeiffer, achieved the highest hammer price of the night, selling for 260,000 euro.
The second highest hammer price was 120,000 euro which was struck for two horses: the 7-year old Dutch bred Optimum (by Desperado x Houston) and the 3-year old Oldenburg stallion Fynch of Diamonds (by Fynch Hatton x Diamond Hit) .
Five horses in total sold for 100,000 euro or more. The fifth one was the 10-year old small tour horse Leonardo di Caprio (by Giovanni x OO Seven), going for 105,000 euro. He was shown by Mascha van Es a few years ago.
The 13-year old Westfalian gelding Vianello (by Vitalis x Furst Piccolo), who at one point was owned by Michael Klimke and competed in Germany by Carina Scholz, sold for 90,000 euro.
Sandra Frieling's 7-year old Hanoverian gelding Di Zucchero (by Don K x Lauries Crusaor xx) sold for 67,500 euro
The 7-year old KWPN bred Olympius T (by Zenon x Spielberg), listed as owned by Mexican Maria Ugryumova and Paulina Villareal de la Garza, sold for 65,000 euro
The 6-year old British bred Oldenburg gelding Gatsby (by Glamourdle x Millennium), as well as the 7-year old Oldenburg bred Beethoven (by Benicio x Totilas), and Kryptonite (by Bretton Woods x Friedensfurst) all sold for 50,000 euro.