Explosion W | Explosion W

چهار نعل: Explosion W | Explosion W

Amid the gleam of his bay coat and a tall frame that slowly rose upright, Explosion W was more than a show jumping horse; he was a living narrative of power…

Explosion W was born in 2009 in the south of the Netherlands, in the stable of Willy Wijnen, a breeder who was later recognized in 2019 as the top KWPN breeder. He was the result of a golden pedigree combination: his sire Chacco-Blue, one of the most influential show jumping stallions in the world, and his dam Uarina (competition name "Untouchable"), another legendary daughter of the discipline, Baloubet du Rouet. According to experts, this pairing brought together Chacco-Blue’s scope and caution with Baloubet du Rouet’s power and technique in a single horse.

Standing just under 17 hands but with a presence that, with his constantly raised head, made him appear far bigger than his actual height, Explosion W received his first international training in the stable of Ben Maher and under riders such as Emily Mason and Carly Anthony. In 2016, at the age of seven, the British ownership syndicate Poden Farms bought him, paving the way for a season that would soon transform his destiny.

From 2018, when Ben Maher took the reins in international competition, the two became one of the most formidable show jumping combinations in the world. In that very first season, Explosion W won Grand Prix classes in Madrid, Rome, and Doha on the Longines Global Champions Tour and also played a part in winning the Global Champions League team title. The 2019 season was even more brilliant: four more Grand Prix victories in Rome, London, New York, and Prague, the championship title in the Longines Global Champions Tour Super Grand Prix in Prague, and finally an individual silver medal along with a team bronze medal for Britain at the European Championships in Rotterdam.

But the undisputed peak of Explosion W’s career came at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, which were held one year late in the summer of 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic. In a breathtaking final round among the world’s six best horses, Explosion W and Ben Maher were the only combination to finish the round clear and in a time of 37.85 seconds, claiming the individual gold medal; an honor that was Maher’s second Olympic gold after the team gold in London 2012 and placed Explosion W alongside the greatest show jumping horses in the history of the modern sport. A few months later, the pair also won the Rolex IJRC Top 10 Final at CHI Geneva.

In the following years, Explosion W remained at the highest level of competition; including by finishing second in the five-star Grand Prix at Royal Windsor Horse Show in 2023, before gradually moving away from the biggest arenas. In total, under Ben Maher’s saddle, he recorded eight victories in Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix classes and twelve podium finishes, making him statistically one of the most successful horses in the history of the tour.

On 21 December 2025, at the age of sixteen, Explosion W was officially retired in front of a crowd that had claimed every ticket for the London International Horse Show, during an emotional ceremony amid thousands of shimmering lights and a basket of carrots. Commentators and Ben Maher himself have repeatedly described him as a "horse of a lifetime" and one of the greatest show jumping horses in the history of the sport.

Explosion W’s legacy today stands as the complete symbol of a championship-winning horse: unmatched scope, unshakable composure under competitive pressure, and a rare will to win that turned an unknown Dutch foal into an Olympic legend.

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