In 2022, Jean Dresen was named Limburg's Breeder of the Year, and the list of his successful breeding products has continued to grow. With three robust lineages, Jean Dresen has established a flourishing breeding operation, supported on various fronts by Paul Hendrix. This lucrative collaboration has seen Jean Dresen as the foundation for international showjumping horses such as Dagma, Barino, Golia, and Dino, as well as the KWPN-approved stallion Opus One JDV.

Jean Dresen has been involved in horse breeding for about thirty years. His love for horses began as a recreational rider, eventually leading him into breeding. From the beginning, his goal was to breed a good showjumping horse, later aspiring to produce an approved stallion or an Olympic horse. The stallion has been achieved, and who knows what might follow.

Solid foundation
A key figure in Jean Dresen's story, who over the years transitioned from cattle to horses on his mixed farm in Valkenburg, Limburg, is Paul Hendrix. "My cousin Ben Linckens was already involved in breeding and often met Paul at competitions. He introduced us, and through Paul, I was able to buy a few valuable broodmares." One of the first valuable mares was Aberlina, a daughter of N-Aldato from the Oberlina line. Her dam was a half-sister of the international 1.60m horse Olympic Andretti T (s.G.Ramiro Z), owned by Henk van den Broek. Aberlina first produced the Caretino daughter Rolina at Stal Hendrix, who later proved herself in breeding as the dam of international 1.45/1.50m horses De Vleut (s.Vleut), Wolina Roundthorn (s.Numero Uno), and Baccord du Abnt (s.Colandro). Aberlina then moved to Valkenburg. At Jean Dresen's, Aberlina produced five international showjumping horses, the most notable being the 1.55m-classified Barino (s.Larino), who performed at 5* Grand Prix level with Marc Bettinger. They won the 1.45m Grand Prix of Oliva and placed third in the 1.45/1.50m Grand Prix of Vilamoura and the 1.50m CSI3* Villach. "With Aberlina, we had the chance to start our breeding on the right foot. I had bred some horses before, but not with mares that could make a significant difference. Aberlina had a hip injury that prevented her from competing, which was our luck. Otherwise, such a mare would probably never have entered our breeding program. We rode her recreationally in the woods here, and she produced ten offspring for us. Paul wanted to buy back the foals, so we made the stallion choices together from that point on. I kept two good daughters of Aberlina, the Coriano mare Zoëlina and the Entertainer daughter Kaberlina JDV. We continue this line with them," says Jean, who always relies on the support and help of his wife Maria for the horses.

Zoëlina
Almost 25 years after acquiring Aberlina, this line is still well represented at Jean Dresen's. The Coriano daughter Zoëlina, like her dam, has already produced five international showjumping horses in a direct line and has proven to be a significant transmitter of jumping talent. No less than four of her offspring perform at least at 1.50m level. The Vingino son Dino, with Brian Cournane, has placed in multiple 5* Grand Prixs and was fifth in both the 1.60m Grand Prix of Calgary and the 1.60m Grand Prix of CSI3* Bromont. From Zoëlina, Jean also bred the international 1.55/1.60m classified Elina (s.Carambole), owned by Charles Luyckx and Alise Oken, the successful 1.50m horses Golia (s.Bustique), owned by Red Morgan, who previously scored with Marlon Zanotelli, and Joelina (s.Entertainer), who continued her career under Amanda Landeblad after multiple successes with Oda Charlotte Lyngvaer. "Zoëlina is one of our best broodmares. Most of her offspring went to Paul, and through Stal Hendrix, they ended up in the right places, which is a great advantage for us as breeders. From Zoëlina, we also have the Cardento daughter Kalina JDV, with whom we breed. Zoëlina was barren last year, and we bred her to Eldorado van de Zeshoek this year, so hopefully, she will produce a foal next year. Zoëlina herself has never been ridden because it was clear to us that she would stay here for breeding. It's wonderful that she proves her value as a broodmare, and her Cardento daughter Kalina shows a lot of similarities with her. Kalina has a lot of blood but is calm in temperament. We saw the same in her grandmother Aberlina. Zoëlina is a very pleasant mare and usually fertile; we've flushed some embryos with Paul. Some were born here, and some at their place. We do many things together, and it works well."

Approved stallion
Thanks to Kalina JDV (Cardento x Coriano), two years ago, Jean Dresen saw a dream come true when her first foal Opus One JDV (registered name Oska JDV) was approved by KWPN as a three-year-old. "That was something I always hoped for. Opus One JDV is a product of Cape Coral RBF Z, and since that combination worked out so well, Paul arranged for us to do ICSI with this mare in Utrecht. This resulted in eleven embryos, which was certainly above expectation. This year I have four colt foals and one filly from this combination, which is very special to see them all together in the pasture." The KWPN stallion Opus One JDV has been leased for sport to France and is already performing well in young horse competitions under Christophe Grangier. Jean also continues this line with the Entertainer mare Kaberlina JDV, a direct daughter of the foundation mare Aberlina. As a three-year-old, she was prepared for the inspection at Stal Hendrix, which earned her the championship title in Limburg and a spot at the National Mare Inspection. For 2025, this mare is bred to Boston VDL. "Normally, we breed about seven foals a year. This year, there were a few more because the ICSI treatment of Kalina was so successful. My wife Maria helps me with everything, including the births, so it was quite busy this season. Unfortunately, it's been challenging to get them pregnant so far, so it's uncertain if we'll have seven foals next year."

Line of Dagma
The same year Cape Coral RBF Z's son Opus One JDV was approved for the performance test and later approved, Jean also succeeded as the breeder of the selected stallion Oral JDV (s.Cape Coral RBF Z). This stallion comes from another performance line he uses for breeding. "We started this line with the Calvin Z daughter Cantate Z, which we bought from Paul when she was eight. We have also achieved significant success with this line. One of the first horses we bred from Cantate was the mare Dagma, a daughter of Tangelo van de Zuuthoeve." This Dagma competed internationally at 1.45m level under Malin Parmler and later made a name with both Emma and Alicia Bocken in youth championships. "Dagma did very well in the sport and won several medals. At the time, we chose Tangelo van de Zuuthoeve, and Paul arranged the semen, so he is listed as the breeder, but that's okay. Dagma is now back with us for breeding, and we are very happy about that. She produced her first foal this year, a filly by Entertainer. Hopefully, more will follow, as if they inherit their mother's fighting spirit and winning mentality, they will do well in the sport." The first horse Jean bred from Cantate Z (s.Calvin Z) is the mare Arina. This Crown Z daughter has now earned her performance predicate based on foreign registered and bred offspring. She produced no less than seven international sport horses, including the 1.60m-classified Boleybawn Aasha (s.Dignified van 't Zorgvliet).

Worldwide sales
Jean also bred the international 1.40m horse Lucifer JDV (s.Cape Coral RBF Z) and several (international) 1.30/1.35m horses from Cantate Z. Her daughter El Cate (s.Cantos), who finished at the top of the Central Inspection in Limburg as a three-year-old and participated in the NMK, returned to Valkenburg for breeding after a sport career at the 1.35m level. Until recently, breeding also continued with Cantate's daughter Hantate (S.Lamm de Fetan), mother of the 1.40m showjumping horse Lancer JDV (s.El Salvador), who placed sixth in the final of the KWPN Championship for six-year-olds last year with Pieter Keunen. This powerful gelding was sold a month later by the Hendrix family at their prestigious Dutch Sport Horse Sales auction, where Jean Dresen's breeding products have previously been successfully auctioned. For example, the Bustique son Goliath (out of Zoëlina by Coriano), later known as Golia, was sold as a six-year-old in this auction for 400,000 euros. Other breeding products from Jean Dresen also found eager buyers in other Hendrix auctions. "It's great that the horses find their way. For several years now, I have been adding the suffix JDV to the foals' names, making it easier to trace them in the future. Unfortunately, we had bad luck with Hantate. She delivered a filly by Dourkhan Hero but did not survive herself. Sadly, setbacks are part of the business, and we are certainly not immune to them. Hantate was precisely a mare I hoped to work with for many more years. She is still in the photos published with this article. She was heavily pregnant at the time, but shortly after the birth of the foal, things went wrong. Her filly survived and is now with a foster mother. She is definitely not going anywhere." Hantate is also listed as the mother of the selected stallion Oral JDV.

Roelofs lineage
The third lineage of Dresen is the line of V.Sellie 1 Z (Vegas out of O.Sellie 14 by Coriander), another mare that came to this breeder via Hendrix. Again, a mare that has proven herself excellently in breeding. Jean bred six international showjumping horses from this 1999 Vegas daughter born at Stal Roelofs, including the eight-year-old Lor JDV (s.Corporal VDL), with whom Josef Schwarz has already competed at the 1.55m level in the 3* Grand Prix of Szilvásvárad this year. "The second offspring we bred from V.Sellie was the Calvaro Z daughter Erka, who jumped with Joy Lammers at the 1.45m level. The same rider also reached that level with the Ukato daughter Fellie out of V.Sellie," Jean recalls. Joy Lammers had previously had good experiences with this lineage thanks to her Grand Prix horse T Sellie 15 (s.Namelus R), who is a half-sister of V. Sellie 1 Z. More breeding success for Dresen came from V.Sellie 1 Z thanks to the 1.50m showjumping horse Hardy (s.Verdi) owned by Katie Leverick and Bassem Mohammed and the successful 1.45m winner Istinov (s.Ustinov) owned by Omer Karaevli, both sold through the Dutch Sport Horse Sales. From the first offspring Jean bred from V.Sellie 1 Z, the Namelus R daughter Disma, he already bred the international 1.45m horse Laska JDV. This offspring of Gaspahr is presented by Joseph Stockdale and, at eight years old, still has a promising future ahead. "It is indeed remarkable that a number of good eight-year-olds come from our breeding, such as Laska, Lucifer, Lor, and Lancer. We certainly hope they will continue to grow in the sport because good sport results are the best advertisement for us as breeders."

Sport-oriented
For Jean, it has always been clear that he wanted to breed a good showjumping horse. "What I love about showjumping is that it is very accessible: a fault is a fault, anyone can see that. I am certainly aware that we are very fortunate that most of our horses find good homes through Stal Hendrix. But it all starts with the right quality because those good riders are not going to invest time in horses that are not worth it. So it is a great collaboration, and Paul keeps us well-informed about our breeding products. He recently sent me a video of Opus One with his new rider, which looks promising. I regularly check the KWPN site, where the top 10 results of KWPN horses in international competitions are mentioned." In addition to the jumping ability and good canter, the breeder also pays attention to good conformation. By starting with good mares and continuing to select well over the years, he maintains the high level of his breeding operation. "I look at the expression of the foal's eyes; I have to have a certain feeling about it. It is hard to put into words exactly what it is." Jean does not have a successor for the breeding operation, but the grandchildren do have a pony at their grandparents' place. "Our son lives next door and is busy with his landscaping business, so he cannot continue it. The whole family is involved, and two years ago, the children and grandchildren were all there when we were honoured as Breeder of the Year in Limburg, which was wonderful. We hope to continue for a few more years because we enjoy the foals in the pasture every year. If we have the time of life, I hope to witness one of our horses participating in the Olympic Games. That is, of course, the ultimate goal for any breeder, but the chances are slim as it is for a very select group of horses. Fortunately, we are already very satisfied with how things are going now," says Jean Dresen.

Text: Jenneke Smit
Images: Dirk Caremans