Uthopia’s public auction: follow live with H&H
On Friday 27 May at 6pm Wilsons Auctions’ unreserved prestige auction – which includes the sale of Olympic gold medal winning stallion, Uthopia (Uti) – will begin at Wilsons Auctions’ head office in Mallusk, Northern Ireland.
Horse & Hound’s dressage and sport horse editor Alice Collins will be at the auction bringing us details of the bidding as it happens via our live blog below. The auction starts at 6pm, with Uthopia listed as lot 80 in the auction catalogue.
Alongside Uti, the auction will also include a selection of supercars, prestige jewellery, watches designer goods and more, but we will all be waiting to tenterhooks to find out whether the London 2012 star will have his future secured so he can remain in the care of Carl Hester, or whether he will be sold into the hands of new owners.
Confirmation that Uthopia was to be sold at public auction with no reserve followed many months of speculation and uncertainty surrounding the ownership of the black stallion by Metall, who won team gold under Carl Hester at the London Olympics.
Continued below…
H&H dressage editor’s blog: how much I think Uthopia will sell for
Uthopia’s auctioneers ‘inundated with global interest in his sale’
Carl Hester believes Uthopia’s future is secure
Uthopia is being sold by Tom Keenan (Keenan Corporate Finance) and James Neill (HNH Group) who hold joint ownership of the horse by virtue of their respective roles as trustee in bankruptcy over two separate bankruptcy estates — Sasha Stewart and her father Derek Harrison.
After initially describing himself as “appauled” that the horse’s future was to be decided in this manner, Carl Hester has said that he is hopeful that he is in a position to secure the stallion’s future with him long-term. However, the auction house has said that it has been inundated with interest in the horse from around the world, so only time will tell as to whether Uti will remain in the hands of those who have cared for him for so long.
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Carol is an experienced journalist and editor, who is also a passionate amateur rider and dedicated horse owner, having ridden since childhood. She has a particular interest in the emotional well-being and ethical training of horses, alongside veterinary matters, having garnered extensive first-hand experience of numerous equine health conditions through more than 30 years of horse ownership.