Brave stallion selections the background to Cicci BJN

Cicci BJN and Wilma Hellström Photo: Roland Thunholm

When "everyone else" chose Cardento, they tested a relatively unknown young stallion – Ci Ci Senjor Ask. The election was successful. Jonas Sohlman and Marjut Sohlman Carlström had succeeded in breeding Cicci BJN, who is going to the World Cup final with Wilma Hellström this weekend.

SWB mare Cicci BJN, born at Björnäs Gård, has shown enormous success in her first season of the World Cup, which she does together with Wilma Hellström. Behind the team are supporters, friends, family, horse owners but also as always – the breeders who wrote the recipe for Cicci BJN: Jonas Sohlman and Marjut Sohlman Carlström. They both ran Björnäs Gård together but then went their separate ways. Marjut unfortunately passed away in 2020.
- In total, we bred about ten horses. It actually started with us having a couple of really well-deserved mares, which were ridden and competed. They were eventually covered, says Jonas Sohlman, who today lives in central Stockholm but still has a solid commitment to equestrian sports, including as chairman of Flyinge & Ridskolan Strömsholm.

The first mare was Imelda Marco (F2.) by Irco Marco – Facette (F.2) – Furidant who competed up to 1.40 level.
- It was a wonderful mare, from a good mare strain, with which we began our breeding. Before the second foal, we covered with a young Tornesch, early in his breeding career. The result was the fine mare Tittut BJN, Cicci's mother who has also had success on the jumping course.’
- Next we tried to cover Imelda Marco with Ci Ci Senjor Ash but it didn't work. Then we chose instead to cover the then three-year-old Tittut BJN with Ci Ci Senjor Ash, which gave us Cicci BJN.

Choosing young stallions has been a bit of Jonas's philosophy.
- In order for the breeding progress to go faster, you need to choose young stallions. When we had to choose a stallion, there was an enormous amount of Cardento offspring in all young horse classes. The stallion selections were then often concentrated on older and proven stallions. We were a little bold and took a young and yet unproven stallion.

- Cicci BJN was a real character right from the start, just as Wilma describes. She was extremely independent and ran away from her mother. She took her time getting out, we had to help and pull, Jonas remembers.

Now the rest, as they say, is history. Cicci BJN is therefore going to the world finals and Jonas is sitting in the stands.

- You certainly get a bit of an urge to start breeding again. I have a gelding, which is also my own breeding, as well as a two-year-old mare with an interesting maternal line for me. I will now "just" convince my partner that it is a good idea to breed horses...