Foal Auction Prinsjesdag uses young scouts to put together collections

With the bar at the top, it is a challenge every year to put together high-quality dressage and jumping collections. As of this year, Foal Auction Prinsjesdag will therefore not only deploy professional selection committees, but also young breeding interests to play an active role in this as scouts. In this way the first top foals have already been registered.

Rejuvenation is one of the reasons for the organization to use scouts. “Young people have the future” says Prinsjesdag board member Peter Bleeker with a laugh. “We are all getting older and want to involve young people in the organisation. This is a great way for them to grow with the auction.” The scouts keep a close eye on their network. “Information goes through the internet at lightning speed, our scouts have an enormous network on social media and will use it to discover the best foals.”

stake out lines

From this year on, some familiar and new faces will be collaborating to put together the foal collections of Foal Auction Prinsjesdag. One of them is scout Koos Poppelaars, who has been very actively involved in the auction for several years. “Partly because of my father Bert, who is part of the selection committee for dressage foals, I am closely involved in Foal Auction Prinsjesdag and the selection. As a scout I mainly keep an eye on social media and I approach breeders from my own network when they have an interesting dressage foal. It is a matter of drawing many lines, having a clear idea of what kind of foals are good enough for our auction and being lucky enough that breeders want to auction their best foals at Prinsjesdag”, says Koos.

High gun factor

The success of an auction stands or falls with the foals offered. “The results and reputation of Foal Auction Prinsjesdag ensure that most breeders are happy to have their foals auctioned here. We all strive to put together an even stronger collection of foals every year, and in that regard we have made a convincing start this year. The first foals have been definitively registered, including three that I tipped. The auction topper could already be among them, because the level is very high. It is a win-win situation for everyone when the best foals come under our hammer and I am happy to be a part of that.”

Pedigree and presentation

Also Fred Jr. van Straaten, Wouter Bon, Peter and Jasper van der Waaij, and Steffi Verhagen are involved as scouts in Foal Auction Prinsjesdag. The latter sees many foals every day and views them through the eyes of a Prinsjesdag selection committee member. “Through a discussion with the selection committees, we as scouts are well informed about what kind of foals meet the requirements for Foal Auction Prinsjesdag. The selection committee has set the bar high, and so do I.”

Sign Up

On the website From now on, the foals can be registered online for one of the selection days for Foal Auction Prinsjesdag, the first of which is scheduled for Saturday 5 May. The selection criteria for Prinsjesdag foals are strict. The selection committee pays attention to correctness, quality, long lines and flexibility. In addition, the foal must have sport in terms of pedigree and must be commercially attractive. In the case of jumping foals in particular, the mother, grandmother and great-grandmother must have performed well in the sport themselves or have offspring that perform remarkably in the sport.