After weeks of uncertainty following the sale of Olympic gold medalist Utophia at a public auction, Carl Hester announced via his Facebook page on June 28 that the stallion will remain at his yard.
“Apologies for the long wait, but it has been worth it,” he wrote. “I can now confirm that Uthopia has been secured and will stay at home where he is much loved. Those involved wish to remain anonymous, and I hope everyone will respect that—suffice to say I am enormously grateful to them.
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“Thank you all for your support,” he continued. “It has been overwhelming to know so many people care. A very happy ending to a stressful time and will make my birthday celebrations tomorrow extra special!”
The 15-year-old Dutch Warmblood (Metall—Odelia, Inspekteur) was sold May 27 for $241,056 to an unknown buyer. The sale came about after former owners of the stallion, Sasha Stewart and her father Derek Harrison, filed for bankruptcy. Hester, who rode “Uti” on Great Britain’s gold medal-winning team at the 2012 London Olympic Games, stated at the time that he’d hopefully arranged enough money to keep the stallion.
