CRUFTS 2023
Romagnolo to step forward and crowned her as Best in Show! I still remember the very first Best in Show winner from overseas. It was 2002 when the Standard Poodle from Sweden “Topscore Contradiction” won the title. This year, BIS and RBIS went to dogs from the continent along with another foreign Group winner, the Fox Terrier. There is logic in this, as only qualified dogs from abroad are allowed to participate, while there are numerous more criteria for native dogs. Last year was the first post-Corona edition, with “only” 1,843 dogs from the continent and a total entry of 16,294. This means that we are, more or less, back to normal or at least to the last pre-Corona show in 2020 with 19,909 entries and 3,171 entries from overseas. Crufts is, and will globally remain, the top highlight of the year. And with some luck, I will be there again to see all my friends from all over the globe who I hap- pen to see only once a year... and that is at Crufts. So be aware if you come to Crufts. Before you know it, you will become addicted to it!
here was the five-year-old Irish Wolf- hound, “Paris, coming from Warrington, Cheshire, and handled and bred by singer- songwriter Chris Amoo. The Irish Wolf- hound, the biggest of all breeds, is also a Vulnerable Native Breed, with fewer than 300 annual puppy registrations. That left only two more Groups on Sunday, plus the BIS Finals. The Utility Group was won by Ch. Huffish Rewrite The Stars with Atastar, a Standard Poodle from Bristol, and his owner is Philip Langdon. “Jake” is four years old. Top breed in this Group was the Dalmatian with 237 entries. The Cavalier King Charles Spaniel takes this honor in the Toy Group with 260 dogs in total, and it was one of this breed that won the Group. “Dublin,” or officially "Ch. Ellemich American Express," aged 18 months, is co-owned by Michelle Chap- man and Tanya Ireland, who handled him in the ring. Top judge, Stuart Mallard, had a very tough task choosing the BIS, but when he reached out his hand for the Reserve BIS it was towards the Old Eng- lish Sheepdog, “Blondie.” The climax was finally broken when he invited our Lagotto
Sussex, won the Working Group. This was a lovely dog with a perfect gait, but unfortunately, an untypical tail, totally curled up over the back and not a saber tail. Archie, or better, Ch. Manzart Wise Guy, aged three, is bred by Mandy Ever- ley and co-owned with Nick Hughes. The top entry for this Group was for the New- foundlands with 174 specimens. The Pas- toral Group was won by the Old English Sheepdog, “Blondie,” who was handled, bred, and co-owned by Matteo Autolitano from Italy. The Old English Sheepdog is classed as “at watch” on The Kennel Club Vulnerable Native Breed list, having between 300 and 450 registrations a year. Saturday welcomed the Terrier Group and Hound Group. Ch Blanca Vd Schoenen Bergen, a Wire Fox Terrier from Germany, and her handler Juraj Sokolic, from Croa- tia, won the Terrier Group. Aged three, she is owned and bred by Friedrich-Wilhelm Schöneberg. The Staffordshire Bull Terrier is the most popular breed of the Group and counted no fewer than 349 entries. In the Hound Group, the record was for the Whippet with 400 entries. The winner
198 | SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, APRIL 2023
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