KWPN has awarded Maikel van der Vleuten's 13-year-old success mare Dana Blue (Mr. Blue x Hemmingway) with the title 'Horse of the Year' within the jumping discipline. Dana Blue is owned by Marta Ortega Perez and Springstal van der Vleuten, and bred by Jan and Paul Bocken in Weert, Netherlands. 

In 2020, Maikel van der Vleuten and Dana Blue won two CSI4* Grand Prix classes in Grimaud, France, as well as a 1.50m class at the same venue. In February last year, the pair finished third in the CSI5* Grand Prix in Bordeaux, France. These results followed plenty of success in 2019, a year when the two won the CSI5* Grand Prix in Valkenswaard, Netherlands, the CSI5* Grand Prix in Oslo, Norway, the CSIO5* Grand Prix in Geesteren, Netherlands and a total of three CSI5* classes in Amsterdam and Den Bosch, Netherlands. In 2019, the pair also represented Netherlands on home soil at the European Championships in Rotterdam. 

To learn more about Dana Blue, read our article 'From yougster to international Grand Prix horse' and our interview with the Bocken-family.