The Olympic star Apardi is without a doubt one of the most exciting upcoming breeding stallions in the jumping world. Ridden by Daniel Bluman, the impressive Apardi competed at the highest level and performed among world’s very best. As the full-brother of the incredible Bacardi VDL and sire of some very promising youngsters, Apardi could be the next top sire in line. “Apardi has got all the ingredients naturally; I did not have to train that, I only had to manage that,” rider Daniel Bluman explains about the son of Corland.

Apardi was bred by F. van de Linden in Haaren, The Netherlands and as a youngster, he ended up at the renowned VDL Stud. As a 3-year-old, Apardi was spotted by investors from Colombia. “Some friends of mine from Colombia bought Apardi as a young stallion at VDL Stud,” Daniel Bluman tells. “Their timing was good, since at that time, it was not yet known that Apardi’s dam Supardi would turn out to be so influential. Apardi is the oldest brother of all the successful horses that Supardi would later on produce.”

Apardi, a son of the great Corland out of the Kannan x Jasper mare Supardi, made his move from The Netherlands to Colombia, where he was produced as a sporthorse. At the end of his 7-year-old year, the reins of Apardi were taken over by Daniel Bluman. “After the Olympic Games in London in 2012, I was approached by the owners of Apardi if I could take the ride on him. He had some competition experience up to 1.35m-level and moved to my barn in Wellington,” Bluman tells.

From the day Apardi arrived, Bluman was impressed by the strong and tall stallion. “Apardi is a beautiful horse; a gorgeous stallion,” Bluman says. “He looked like a real athlete; a lot of blood, long legs, and lot of speed in his feet. But also a real hormonal stallion; he had a lot of energy and was loud. All the ingredients were there naturally; I just had to manage his energy."

After some months of getting Apardi into Bluman’s training program, the work started to pay off. “Our first success was the victory in the final for the 7- and 8-year-old horses in Wellington. In a big and strong field of competitors, Apardi stood out. That year, I took him to some big shows in Europe as well as to Calgary and he was placed many times in 1.45m classes,” Bluman tells. 

In 2014, as a 9-year-old, Apardi stepped up to top level. Apardi was victorious in a CSI5* 1.50m competition at Spruce Meadows, Calgary and jumped his first CSI4* and CSI5* Grand Prix competitions. The highlight of the year was Apardi’s double clear performance in the prestigious Grand Prix of Dublin. “To jump double clear and finish in 5th place as a 9-year-old in Dublin, was a fantastic performance,” Bluman tells. “And from that year, Apardi has had a great career at the highest level.” 

With podium finishes at some of world’s most prestigious venues, like Aachen, Birmingham, La Coruña and Brussels, including a 3rd place in the Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of Chantilly, Apardi made a name for himself at the top-level circuit. At the age of only 11, Apardi competed on the greatest stage of all: The Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in 2016.

When you analyse his pedigree, Apardi’s showjumping talent did not come as a surprise. Sire Corland was among the Netherland’s best showjumpers ridden by Wout-Jan van der Schans. In 2001, the wonderful grey stallion and Van der Schans were in the lead going into the final day of the European Championships in Arnhem, and eventually finished in 9th place. In breeding, Corland became one of the leading stallions of his generation, producing Silvana HDC, California, Fardon, VDL Torlando and of course the world-class jumper Bacardi VDL – the full brother to Apardi.

Apardi’s dam Supardi could be considered as one of the very best broodmares of the moment. Supardi did not only produce the superstars Apardi and Bacardi VDL, who was highly successful with Jos Lansink, Janika Sprunger and Edwina Tops-Alexander, but Supardi is also the dam to 1.60m showjumper Dapardie, ridden by Steffen Engfer, the 1.50m jumper Fasupardie and numerous up-and-coming international talents.

“I love this family,” Bluman emphasizes. “Out of this line they are all jumpers; they might not all be of the same level as Apardi and Bacardi, but they are true sporthorses and they will always make somebody very happy.” 

In addition to his fantastic type and jumping qualities, the pedigree of Apardi definitely lays a great foundation for his breeding career. “With this family behind it, that is where the magic comes from for Apardi. He is suited for a big range of mares, because he combines athleticism and blood with a lot of power and long legs. I have offspring by Apardi out of bigger mares, smaller mares, mares with lots of blood and mares who lack blood, but in general they are all naturally athletic and jump in a great way,” Bluman tells.  

Apardi’s first offspring were born in 2017 and have already made a name for themselves at the various stallion shows and young horse jumping competitions. His son Aligato Ra Z was approved by sBs, Naughty Boy vd Hagenhorst got his approval by AES and Napardi, Niancard EB and Nobel Rebel-S made a great impression at the KWPN Stallion Show in 2021 and were invited for the KWPN Performance Test. 

In his sports career, Apardi stood out for not only his jumping talent, but also for his fantastic appearance and charisma. “As a sporthorse, being a stallion did not always help him though: He was easily distracted and had a lot of energy. Sometimes when I rode him, I wished he was a gelding. But now, if I look at him as a breeding stallion and see his talented offspring coming through, I am very happy that we kept him a stallion and that his legacy can be continued,” Daniel Bluman concludes about his incredible Olympic partner Apardi.