The Jumping International de la Province de Namur will not only be making headlines for its courses. From July 8 to 12, the Walloon event takes a major step forward by hosting the first sport horse auction ever organised within an international show in Wallonia. A project driven by Grégory Wathelet, Gilles Botton and the 365 Auctions team — Tom Lemmens and Stijn Van Campehout — with one clear ambition: to bring together the best European genetics and put Namur among the must-attend dates on the auction calendar.
A first that changes the scale of the show
The Jumping International de la Province de Namur continues to grow.
The arrival of a second arena will not only offer more sport. It will also make it possible to host an event Grégory Wathelet had been imagining for several years: a real auction organised at the heart of the show.
The date is set for Saturday, July 11, from 8.30 p.m. The auction will take place in front of the public on the Jumping site, but will also be accessible online, allowing buyers from all over the world to take part in the bidding.
A new addition that marks an important step in the development of the Namur event.
Building an auction that inspires confidence
(Grégory Wathelet is fully involved in both the JIPN and the new auction. ©JIPN)
or Grégory Wathelet, there was no question of improvising.
« We wanted to create something serious ” explains the Belgian champion. « If we were going to do it, I wanted to do it properly and surround myself with the right people. »
Around him are Gilles Botton, a recognised figure in European breeding, and the 365 Auctions Zangersheide team, with Tom Lemmens and Stijn Van Campehout, specialists in international auctions.
The objective is simple: to offer a coherent, demanding and credible catalogue from this very first edition, laying the foundations for an event designed to become an annual fixture.
Not a clearance sale, but the top shelf
The rider from Borsu is keen to remove any ambiguity.
The horses he will present are not the ones he wants to move on. Quite the opposite.
Among the thirty or so lots on offer, Grégory Wathelet will personally put several products from his best breeding families up for sale.
The headline act will undoubtedly be a filly out of his exceptional Corée, winner notably of the legendary Grand Prix of Aachen. A unique product that should quickly attract the attention of international investors.
« This is absolutely not a clearance auction ” insists Wathelet. “These are the best products from our breeding programme. If we want to give this auction standing, we have to lead by example and offer some of the best we have. »
Major European bloodlines on the menu
But the auction will not be limited to Grégory Wathelet’s horses.
Thanks to the selection work carried out with Gilles Botton, around thirty lots will bring together breeders from Belgium, France, Germany and other major breeding countries.
The catalogue will give pride of place to the great damlines that are shaping international showjumping today.
Buyers will notably find descendants from the families of:
- Corée ;
- the dam ofAce of Hearts ;
- Si La Sol de Greenbay Z ;
- Jumpy de Kreisker ;
- Dubaï du Cèdre ;
- Hello Folie ;
- Sylvana ;
- Picobello van’t Roosakker
he details will be revealed in the coming days.
Elite bloodlines… but opportunities too
The idea, however, is not to reserve the auction for a handful of wealthy investors.
Grégory Wathelet also wants to offer several more accessible foals, while still maintaining solid origins.
The same philosophy applies to the embryos that will form part of the catalogue: limited in number but carefully selected, they will come from direct families of five-star Grand Prix horses or their close relatives.
Enough to allow both professionals and amateurs to find an investment that fits.
L’ambition : faire de Namur un rendez-vous incontournable
This first edition is no trial run.
The objective is clearly stated: to establish this auction permanently within the programme of the Jumping International de la Province de Namur and to turn the show into a new meeting point between top-level sport and breeding.
With major European damlines, exclusive products from the Wathelet stables and the expertise of 365 Auctions, all the ingredients seem to be in place for a successful first edition.
In Namur this July, it will not only be the fences going up. The bids will be rising too.
