On 8th and 9th October, Michałów State Stud had the pleasure to host the contestants of XIII Polish National Arabian Horse Sport Championships as well as the enthusiasts of this incredible breed of horses however not entirely associated with classic equestrian disciplines. Though Arabians have for years taken part in the races and endurance riding, it is hard to find any representatives of the breed in dressage areas and none are found on show jumping courses. The lack of Arabian jumpers can be justified by the small size typical of the breed, however the lack of horses characterized by amazing appearance and gaits in classic dressage competitions cannot be so easily explained. Therefore, the organizers of the event: National Support Centre for Agriculture, 1st Mounted Rifle Regiment Equestrian Club based in Michałów and Michałów State Stud, made every effort to promote Arabians as ridden and sport horses. The patronage over the ECAHO-affiliated event was taken by Polish Arabian Horse Breeders Association, while Świętokrzyski Voivode Zbigniew Koniusz was the honorary patron of the championships. The in-kind prizes in dressage, show jumping and Polish historical costume were funded by Bogdan Maślanka, the organizer of Polish Sports League for Arabian Horses, Edyta Ciara, the owner of the equine shop 4horse.pl and Blue Arabians Stud owned by Aneta Chrząstek-Szyc. The organization of the championships was also supported by the Mayor of the Municipality of Michałów Mirosław Walasek and the Governor of Pińczów District Zbigniew Kierkowski. Also, fabrykaherbaty.pl belonging to Agnieszka Kowal-Rudzka was the sponsor of additional awards. The difficult task of evaluating the contenders and their horses was done by the following judges: Wacław Pruchniewicz, Józef Zagor and Łukasz Wituchowski in classic competitions as well as Alicja Poszepczyńska and Magdalena Szarszewska in the ‘pleasure’ sections. At the same time, the participants could try their hand at riding Arabians in the novice classes which were for the first time affiliated by ECAHO, yet did not count in the medal classification.
There were thirty-eight couples participating in seven different categories in the National Championships and in the novice classes. As many as thirty-one horses took part in the first competition which assessed type and conformation of the horses. First and second place in the ranking were taken by the horses bred and owned by Michałów State Stud, the stallion ZŁOTY MEDAL (QR Marc – Złota Orda / Pesal) and the mare KARAMEA (Pegasus – Kasjopeja / Eldon). Third place winner was ELGORIUSZ (Medalion – Elgora / Poganin), also bred at Michałów and currently owned by Oliwia Kowal of La Posada stables.
Until late afternoon on Saturday, twelve semifinals took place at both novice and advanced levels, while the finals on Sunday started with the CLASSIC PLEASURE competition for novices. First place was won by Laura Górnikowska of the Zamek Sobków Equestrian Club who rode the gelding MARZYCIEL (Kabsztad – Marzenie Szejka / Wachlarz), bred by Andrzej Borkowski and now owned by Sylwia Górnikowska. Second place belonged to Katarzyna Stawiska-Semeryło of For Pleasure Equestrian Section and the mare EL SHANTIA (Barbarossa – Encina / Pesal), bred by Krzysztof Semeryło and owned by Katarzyna Brokl. The winner of third place was Helena Jankowska who rode the gelding WESSUS (Sus – Westalka / Złotogłów), bred by Krzysztof Jagielski and currently owned by Mariusz Jankowski.
HUNTER PLEASURE was the second final of the day and the first medal competition at the same time. The highest place on the podium was taken by the representative of For Pleasure Equestrian Section Monica Migliorino who rode her own stallion EL DINO (Ararat – Eutina / Eutin), bred by Krzysztof Jagielski. Agnieszka Romszycka who competed on the gelding EDINET (Włodarz – Ellila / Wachlarz) and Marta Matysik who rode the gelding INNER (Gorec – Indonesia / Santhos) placed right after the winning couple. Both geldings that now belong to the competitors were bred by Bogdan Tomaszewski.
The podium of SHOW JUMPING looked similar at both novice and advanced levels. First place in both sections as well as the title of Polish National Champion belonged to Karolina Hernik-Jasik of Hubertus Stud on the mare WEBISTA (Perseusz – Webera / Porto). Gold medalist in show jumping is also the owner of the winning mare, bred by Dariusz Łuczak. Second place on the podium at both levels as well as the silver medal was awarded to Nadia Klepacz, the representative of the Kielecki Equestrian Club, who rode the gelding EDENSON (Eden C – Emiramida / Piruet). The silver medalist in show jumping was bred by Stanisław Sławiński and is now owned by Piotr Lichota. Third place in the novice section belonged to MIRANDA (AR-Rahman – Marabia / Bardysz) ridden by Anna Sala, while the same position at the advanced level was taken by the gelding MOKAR (Wadi-Nur – Marabia / Bardysz) ridden by Oliwia Kurek who also became Second Polish National Vice-champion in show jumping. Both contenders represented Jawornik Squadron Sports Club and both their horses were bred by Józef Babiś.
One of the most interesting competitions is POLISH HISTORICAL COSTUME only held in our country. The win at the novice level belonged to the representative of the 1st Mounted Rifle Regiment Equestrian Club Iwona Sternak on the mare KARAMEA, second place was taken by Anna Sala on the mare MIRANDA, while in the third position placed another contender representing 1st Mounted Rifle Regiment Equestrian Club Marta Jaros, zootechnician at Michałów Stud, who rode the stallion ZŁOTY MEDAL.
Another three medalists were selected at the advanced level of CLASSIC PLEASURE competition. Monica Migliorino riding the stallion EL DINO took the top of the podium. Nikola Stankiewicz of WKJ Lublin who rode the gelding EMIS (Haytham Albadeia – Emdrida / Ararat), bred by Białka Stud, took the second place and the title of Polish National Vice-champion, while Oliwia Kowal on ELGORIUSZ became bronze medalist.
The novice level of the HUNTER PLEASURE contest was won by the gelding MARZYCIEL ridden by Laura Górnikowska. The gelding MINDEN (Perlik – Minora / Santhos), ridden by his owner Edyta Ciara, finished the competition on the second place, while the gelding EDINET ridden by Amelia Wiącek placed third in the ranking. Edyta Ciara with MINDEN also triumphed in DRESSAGE at the novice level. Right after the winners placed Nadia Klepacz on EDENSON and Anna Sala on MIRANDA.
Nikola Stankiewicz on the gelding EMIS was the winner of DRESSAGE at the advanced level as well as Polish National Champion in this discipline. Second place and the Polish National Vice-champion title was awarded to Agnieszka Romszycka on EDINET, while third place and the Second Polish National Vice-champion title belonged to Marta Matysik riding INNER.
Oliwia Kowal on the stallion ELGORIUSZ became gold medalist in the TRADITIONAL ARABIAN RIDING contest, where the riders wear traditional Arabic costumes. The representative of For Pleasure Equestrian Section Aleksandra Semeryło on the Janów-bred mare ENCINA (Pesal – Epoza / Eukaliptus) took second place on the podium, while Monica Migliorino on the stallion EL DINO became bronze medalist in this competition. Katarzyna Stawiska-Semeryło riding the mare EL SHANTIA won the contest at the novice level, Oliwia Kowal on the stallion ELGORIUSZ was second, while Edyta Ciara with the gelding MINDEN closed the podium.
The medals in the POLISH HISTORICAL COSTUME category were awarded as follows: gold – Katarzyna Stawiska-Semeryło on the mare EL SHANTIA, silver – Anna Majcherczyk on the gelding EL SZARMANTI (Barbarossa – Encina / Pesal) and bronze – Marta Matysik on the gelding INNER.
The prestigious title of CLASSIC ALL-ROUND CHAMPION was awarded to Laura Górnikowska with the gelding MARZYCIEL at the novice level and Oliwia Kowal with the stallion ELGORIUSZ at the advanced level. What is more, ELGORIUSZ was honoured with the prize funded by Polish Arabian Horse Breeders Association for the best PURE POLISH horse of the XIII Polish National Arabian Horse Sport Championships.
The promotion of Arabians as sport and ridden horses is of utmost importance at the times when the purebred Arabian horse breeding is mainly focused on the halter show horses. For centuries, Polish Arabian horse breeding has adhered to the idea that Arabian horse should not only be beautiful but also useful, and thus it should be characterized by correct conformation, excellent health and balanced character. Despite the common belief about its difficult-to-tame temperament, the Arabian is one of the most intelligent horse breeds and an extremely loyal human companion. The Polish breeding vision of the bold and beautiful Arabian horse became the guiding idea of the Polish National Championships. Please feel already invited for its fourteenth edition next year.
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