DENIS Lynch is a self-confessed pedigree nerd. “I have always been very very interested in the breeding side on all sorts of breeds, not just in jumping but also in racing, eventing and dressage. Pedigrees have always interested me as a whole,” said the Olympic show jumper and multiple five-star Grand Prix-winning rider.

The Tipperary native has long been associated with riding top-class stallions and he currently has a number of established and up and coming sires in his stable near Weert in The Netherlands, which led him to establishing a new business venture, Denis Lynch Elite Stallions, alongside his brother, Shay.

With time on his hands during a pandemic-strewn 2020, Lynch put the wheels in motion in offering his stallions to breeders across Europe and, importantly for the brothers, to Irish breeders.

“It’s always been in the back of my mind. Over the years, people have always asked me was the semen available of the stallion, and I always said when the time was right it would be,” Lynch explained. “I had enough time on my hands last year so I sat down with my brother and we figured out the best way to do it. So we set up a website and started advertising them.”

Lynch feels he has an edge as he can offer breeders information from the saddle of the stallion they are hoping to use on their precious mare.

“A lot of the time good stallions end up going to a stud but it is rare that you see a five-star rider associated directly with the stallion; it is very rare that you can talk to the guy who has actually ridden the stallion, except for in a place like Zangersheide.”

And he is thoroughly enjoying the process. “I love the interactions with breeders, it has been incredible. A breeder will ask me what I think of a certain stallion and tells me what traits his mare has and what would suit. So I will always try to give them what would suit their mare.

“I really want to help the breeder make the best choice and from mistakes I have seen through the years and knowledge I have built up, I feel I have quite a good bit of information stored up.”

Stallion roster

Seven horses make up the stallion roster at Denis Lynch Elite Stallions, six of which are at his stable and ridden by Denis, while one – Copabella Visage – stands in Australia.

Most high-profile of the bunch and new to breeding this season is Cristello, the 14-year-old KWPN by Numero Uno, who won a five-star class at the Dutch Masters in ‘s-Hertogenbosch last weekend. Lynch was the only Irish five-star Grand Prix winner in 2020 and that victory came aboard Cristello in St Tropez against a field of world class riders and horses.

Denis Lynch and Cristello winning at the five-star show in Basel, Switzerland \ CSI Basel

He is his contender for this summer’s Olympic Games. “The goal this year with him is trying to get to Tokyo. He is a very, very good horse, I was delighted to get him in 2019. I have had so many good days and wins at the top level, he is a very exciting horse.”

Another five-star Grand Prix winner is the beautiful Mexican-bred stallion Rubens LS La Silla (HH Rebozo x Cash) whose pedigree excites Lynch.

“It is very seldom you see four generations of 1.60m jumpers in both sides of the family. He is an incredible horse, you have championship performers in both sides of the family. His mother, Chanel 149, competed at the Olympic Games and his sire finished in the top four at the World Championships in Kentucky in 2010.”

There is a nice story behind another charge, the 10-year-old Quantino (Quarz ASK x Zagora T) who stood in Ireland as a young horse and was produced by Vincent Byrne until he was six. He was second in the four-year-old final at Dublin in 2015 and is now jumping at 1.50m level. “It is funny actually, I ended up riding him in Dublin as a four-year-old, when they ask an international rider to ride in the final, and I fell in love with the horse. I followed him and eventually we were able to purchase him.”

The future

Irish fans will also remember the striking nine-year-old grey stallion Cornets Iberio (Cornet Obolensky x Charlottenhof’s Iberio) after his hat-trick of victories in the seven and eight-year-old international classes at the 2019 Dublin Horse Show.

Lynch loves his future prospect. “He is a very, very interesting stallion who already has young progeny on the ground, and two sold exceptionally well recently. We didn’t get too many runs into him last year but he was an exceptional seven-year-old and he looks good for the future.”

Denis Lynch and Cornets Iberio at the 2019 Dublin Horse Show when they won all three of their international classes \Laurence Dunne Jumpinaction.net

Another young horse at his stable now and “one of the best seven-year-olds last year” is Inventa D’Or who is by RMF Bella Baloubet, who Lynch rode at the end of the stallion’s career.

Perhaps the one he is most excited about in the bunch, with one eye on a future Olympic Games, is the three-year-old Anchorman (Andiamo Semilly x Corsaria), who was the reserve champion (1C premium) of the Oldenberg Stallion licensing 2020.

“When I saw him as a two-year, I was thinking ahead as him as a Nations Cup horse. He has an incredible temperament and great rideability. He has a very interesting pedigree and I think it would be a very good cross with Irish mares. His mother line goes back to a thoroughbred and his great-grandmother has very good dressage breeding. I find that interesting for his movement, which is very important.”

Irish prospects

Kilcash Equine Clinic in Clonmel, Co Tipperary, and John Haughey in Northern Ireland are the Irish agents for Lynch’s stallions, who are available by frozen semen in Ireland, and he is keen to help Irish breeders with their questions.

“I want to offer the chance for people to use these horses and I am excited myself to see what we can achieve hand in hand with breeders. I truly believe that 50 years ago Ireland was the best breeding nation in the world and I would love to see us back there.

“I want breeders to know that they are not going to be caught out with a cost. Payment is on pregnancy. I’ve been in that situation myself, trying to get my mare in foal where it didn’t work out and I was stuck with a cost.”

Lynch and his wife, Australian show jumper Julia Hargreaves Lynch – who rode the aforementioned World Cup winner Copabella Visage before his retirement – are breeding from two mares. “It is very interesting to me, I love the breeding and pedigree side. I am excited by this new venture with the stallions.”

For more information on the stallions available, visit www.denislynchelitestallions.com.