Royal Kaliber was a Dutch Warmblood stallion that competed at the Grand Prix level of

show jumping Show jumping is a part of a group of English riding equestrian events that also includes eventing, hunters, and equitation. Jumping classes are commonly seen at horse shows throughout the world, including the Olympics. Sometimes shows ar ...

, and was part of the United States Show Jumping Team at the

2004 Athens Olympic Games The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

Show jumping career

American

Chris Kappler Chris Kappler (born February 9, 1967) is an American show jumper and horse trainer. He is an Olympic gold and silver medalist, and the winner of over 100 Grand Prixs. He is a founder of the North American Riders Group. Early life Kappler grew u ...

first began riding the Dutch Warmblood when the horse was 8, after receiving him from Ben Boessen. Boessen trained the horse for the large competitions. Kappler rode him to several impressive wins, and Royal Kaliber was named 2002-2003 AGA Horse of the Year and 2003 U.S. Equestrian Horse of the Year.

2004 Olympic Games

Royal Kaliber was a part of the US Show Jumping Team at the

2004 Athens Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

, winners of the team silver medal. However, while jumping in the final round of the individual competition, he had an awkward landing from the 15th fence on course, a large oxer. Kappler felt his mount take an odd step and, with only two fences to go, pulled him up and dismounted. A diagnosis by the team veterinarian found that the horse had an acute strain to his superficial digital flexor tendon of his left foreleg. This made him the third show jumping horse to be injured, which brought up questions of the suitability of the footing. Royal Kaliber was pulled from competition, but his previous effort had still earned him the individual bronze. It was decided to keep the stallion in Europe until he had completely recovered from his injury, before shipping him home. Following the disqualification of gold medalist,

Cian O'Connor Cian O'Connor (born 12 November 1979) is an Irish equestrian competing in show jumping. He has competed at four Olympic Games, four World Championships and six European Championships. O'Connor was stripped of the gold medal at the 2004 Olympi ...

of Ireland, for a drug infraction, Kappler and Royal Kaliber were awarded the individual silver medal.

Resulting colic

Royal Kaliber's leg was said to be healing very well following the Games. However, the horse began experiencing problems with

colic Colic or cholic () is a form of pain that starts and stops abruptly. It occurs due to muscular contractions of a hollow tube (small and large intestine, gall bladder, ureter, etc.) in an attempt to relieve an obstruction by forcing content ou ...

, and an ultrasound was performed finding intestinal adhesion. The veterinarians Dr. Jack Snyder and Dr. Barry David (who flew in from the United States) and Dr. Edwin Enzerink deemed that surgery was appropriate, and on 27 September 2004, they performed the procedure at the Veterinair Centrum Someren in Someren, the Netherlands. Finding the intestine adhered to the spleen, they removed parts of both the large and small intestine. Royal Kaliber appeared stable after the surgery, but his health worsened on 6 October. The veterinary team performed another surgery, and found that further adhesions had occurred, which were non-repairable. The decision was then made to euthanize him on 8 October 2004.

Offspring

By chance, a sample of Royal Kaliber's semen was collected for approval testing. Using the surplus, it was possible to breed a few mares, and the result was four offspring: one was sold to Europe, one given as a gift to trainer

Frank Chapot Francis Davis Chapot (February 24, 1932 – June 20, 2016) was an American equestrian who competed at six consecutive Olympic Games - from 1956 to 1976 - and won two silver medals in team show jumping, at Rome 1960 and Munich 1972. Chapot was ...

, one to a client of Chapot's, and a filly was kept by the owners of Royal Kaliber.

Accomplishments

2004 * Team gold and individual silver medal at the Athens Olympics * 2nd $60,000 Idle Dice Classic (Wellington, Florida) 2003 * Team gold and individual silver medal at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...

(Dominican Republic) * 1st Grand Prix at Devon (Devon, PA) * 1st $200,000 Budweiser American Invitational (Tampa, FL) * 1st AGA Show Jumping Championships (Wellington, FL) * Named U.S. Equestrian Horse of the Year and

American Grand Prix Association The American Grandprix Association (AGA) is a national association that promotes Olympic-level show jumping Show jumping is a part of a group of English riding equestrian events that also includes eventing, hunters, and equitation. Jumpi ...

Horse of the Year 2002 * 1st $175,000 Cargill Grand Prix of the United States (San Juan Capistrano, CA) * 1st $52,100 Bayer/USET Wellington Cup (Wellington, FL) * 1st $50,000 Bayer/USET Wellington Cup (Wellington, FL) * 1st $60,000 Budweiser American Gold Cup (Devon, PA) 2001 * 2nd $75,000 Ford Idle Dice Classic * 2nd $200,000 Budweiser American Invitational * 2nd $75,000 Kilkenny Internationale Cup (Wellington, FL)

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist Show jumping horses Individual warmbloods Individual male horses Horses in the Olympics 1992 animal births 2004 animal deaths American show jumping horses Dutch Warmbloods