nouvelles - 07/09/2008 Luxemburg september 2008 - Luxembourg
par Karl DonvilLuxemburg Autumn Show 2008
Will Luxemburg be forced to stop its own success?
It is obvious that the two shows of Luxemburg are extremely popular and amongst the best known shows in Europe. Twice a year the show beats its own previous record and the September edition has passed the entry number of 4000, 4065 to be precise, which means another increase of 5% compared to last year. Although there are still some halls available, for practical reasons it is almost impossible to find a working solution as they are not connected indoors, there is a parking in between. To make turn it into a 3 day show is not immediately a good option as usually Friday is not a big success. Many exhibitors need to work on Friday and in the past this has not proven to work well, unless for a World or European Show, that many exhibitors won’t miss and combine with a few days of holiday. But who knows if Luxemburg will be forced one day? Will its reputation be then so good that a Friday is a good option?
One of the most important reasons for the popularity of the Luxemburg shows is its Championship rules. It is enough to win the CACL twice in Working, Intermediate or Open Class or even only one if entered in Champions Class and this without limitation in time. This seems relatively easy, certainly in some less popular breeds, but if you see the number of dogs entered on one of both shows, it gets less and less easier as competition grows.
Luxemburg attracted dogs from 29 countries from as far as from Russia (33), Greece, Israel, the United States of America and Canada (one from each country). France was best represented with 1171 dogs or more then ¼ of the total number. Belgium, France and Holland together were good for more then ½ of the entries.
Of course, even if you can enter your dog for free, it is important that you have a reliable judge, one that offers you a fair chance. This is another of the big qualities of these shows. Inviting judges is one of the most difficult things for an organizer of a dog show as it can cost a lot of money to compose an international panel. This time 37 judges from 15 different countries were invited from all over Europe. On both days 28 judges officiated and they had an average of 76 dogs on Saturday and 69 on Sunday, which is very high compared to many other shows. I will limit my overview to those judges with a minimum of 90 dogs on one day.
Paul Jentgen had a total of 90 dogs on Saturday, 68 of them were Labradors. Bozena Ovesna from the Czech Republic had 102 Companion dogs. Mrs Hassi Assenmacher from Switzerland had 112 dogs from the same group of which no less then 77 Pugs. Mrs.Gitty Schwab, President of the Luxemburg Kennel Club, had 97 dogs from the Terrier Group on Sunday. 57 Of them were Yorkies. Mr.Guy Kips, also from Luxemburg had 92 entries on Sunday. He judged all the Setters and the English Pointers. Mrs.Anna Brancovic from Serbia judged on both days. On Saturday she ended up with 91 dogs, 77 of them were English Cocker Spaniels. On Sunday she had 92 entries of which 48 Shar Peis. Her husband, Mr. Zoran Brancovic, had the highest score of the show on Saturday, 121 entries. 89 French Bulldogs were co-responsible for this. On Sunday he could relax a little more, but with 79 entries, 57 Bulldogs included, he was still busy enough.
Mr.Kari Jarvinen must be quoted too as he had a remarkably high number of 28 Czech Wolfhounds or Vlcaks, which is an uncommon breed. Other high single breed scores; 46 Dalmatians for Mr. Barbara Kacens from Luxemburg, the only breed she judged, 94 Cavalier King Charles Spaniels who were divided under Mrs.Annika Paloheimo from Finland and Mrs.Ruth Machrie from the United Kingdom, 84 American Staffordshire Terries for Mr.Igor Selimovic from Croatia and 47 Afgan Hounds for Mrs.Ruth Wagner from Luxemburg. Mr.Hans Almgren from Sweden ended up on Saturday with no less then 78 Boxers, a number long-time not seen and Mr. Laurent Heinesche and his partner Mr.Jean François Vanaken divided the Poodles, ending up with 143 in total. Both judges are specialists in this breed and have bred many champions.
Mr. Kari Jarvinen from Finland was asked to judge Best In Show, but due to flight schedules that were too tight, he was forced to hand over this honour Mrs. Hassi Assenmacher from Germany. Her 3rd place went to the very typical representative of the Deerhound breed, the Champion bitch “Cute Coney O’Cockaigne”, owned and bred by Caroline van Zanten-Boomgaard from the Netherlands. The bitch is 5 years old and was judged by Mrs. Natalja Nekrosienen from Lithouania and made Group winner by the very same judge.
The second place was a mixed Swedish-USA victory, the two year old English Springer Spaniel “Mariposa Aldabaran”. This Dog was entered in Champion class under Mrs.Anna Brancovic from Serbia who also judged the group. This dog was bred in the USA and is co-owned by the breeder David Swank and the handler Mrs. Annika Ulltveit from Sweden.
Mrs. Assenmacher was most charmed by the Papillon “Queen Bless JP Royal Connection”, her Best In Show. This 5 year old dog was entered in Champions Class too under Mr.Bozena Ovesna from the Czech republic and won his ticket for the finals under Mr. Laurent Heinesche from Luxemburg who judged the group. Queen is owned and handled by Abeloos –Devos from Belgium and has an impressive list of victories. He recently won the Masters Trophy in Liège this year, 3rd place in Mechelen and 2nd place in Leuven, and many more.He is a stunning, and proud representative of the breed. He looked so used to attention and camera flashes, like a real VIP or should I say VID? This dog is building up a spectacular career and we should better watch out for him. He will challenge you certainly on the next Luxemburg show in spring, the 78th edition that will be on 28 and 29 March.
