ENGLISH TEXTS and do well on the track and make people happy, it’ s hugely gratifying, and has hopefully resulted in some return business.” Although overall numbers were down on a record 2025 sale where top lot achieved a million, the median was only narrowly short of the previous year’ s £ 37,000. 147 Lots sold for a total turnovewr £ 8,389,25.
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REPOR- TAGE
HARAS DE BEAUFOUR
BY MARIE-HÉLÈNE BLANCHET
At the heart of the Beaufour stud’ s grasslands, in France, both sport horses and racehorses grow side by side. Behind each of them is constant attention: that of Éric Levallois, present at every stage of their development, from the choice of matings to competition, including birth, first jumps, and training.
With its four facilities spread over 300 hectares, the stud does everything possible to support the horses in the best conditions, constantly ensuring respect for both their physical and mental well-being. The first“ Beaufour” foals were born in 2010. Out of 20 foals, there were 18 for show jumping and 2 out of trotting mares. This year, 50 births are planned for sport and 4 for racing( initially 14 foals were planned, but 10 were sold beforehand).“ I have a passion for both sport horses and racehorses. I enjoy race strategy, but also watching horses develop. Racing is another world, and I think that’ s also why it interests me. I’ ve always liked trotters, even when I was living with my parents.” All the foals are raised together, regardless of the discipline they will later be destined for.“ It’ s the same, you have to take care of them. You have to pay attention to their conformation, their feeding … When I start schooling the sport horses over jumps at around one year old, the trotters and thoroughbreds jump as well. At that age, it’ s just schooling, it’ s education. We teach them to turn right, to turn left. We have them go over poles on the ground. It’ s simply to give them a first idea of what lies ahead.”“ I don’ t have fifty of them, but I enjoy taking care of the training of the trotters. It’ s my little moment of relaxation. I had another trotter who was good and is now a broodmare. When she was at home, I trained her myself, I went to the tracks or to the beach with her.” Éric Levallois has already bred horses that have stood out in both show jumping and trotting.“ I had the chance to breed Elie de Beaufour, a top trotter who won some very good races. For me, that’ s a source of pride. Of course, some races are more or less prestigious, but just winning them is already very satisfying. There was also Joligirl Beaufour, who performed very well. I take as much pleasure in seeing Dynastie de Beaufour win a Grand Prix in show jumping as I do in watching my horse win a big race at Vincennes. Trotters really get under your skin, you have to experience it to understand.” Each discipline has its emotions and its major events.“ With sport horses, when you produce horses that perform well in 5 * international Grand Prix, that’ s really the pinnacle. But producing good horses is already enough for me. Not only is it rewarding, but it also reflects all the work you’ ve put in, the time spent, the thinking behind the matings, and so on. It’ s a real satisfaction. With trotters, it’ s the same, it’ s satisfaction and a reward for the work. But from a sporting perspective, you really need to have a horse in your life that wins at Vincennes. The number of people you see crying at Vincennes when their horse wins there is incredible.” The quality of Normandy’ s land for breeding has long been recognised.“ I think there are regions like Normandy, with the departments of Manche, Calvados and Orne, that are particularly suited to raising horses. For a foal’ s skeletal development, being in a region that supports proper growth is the foundation of a successful breeding operation. The importance of land quality
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