A Little Hope in Poland

By Jeffrey Wintersteen

A delayed flight in Chicago meant missing my Munich connection and a late arrival in Warsaw. It was already 10 p.m. by the time I emerged from customs to be greeted by a familiar face, Patryk Kwiecien, whose father started providing transport for Polish Prestige guests and officials in the ’80s and was eventually joined by his sons. Polish Prestige was the precursor to Pride of Poland and Polish Arabian Horse Days. This was, however, Patryk’s first time back since 2015, the last sale before all the directors were dismissed by the newly elected PiS (Prawo i Sprawiedliwość) government. “The Polish Arabian survived two World Wars,” says Patryk, shaking his head, “and to think it was almost destroyed by politics.” Born and raised in Janów Podlaski, Patryk left for the UK after the dismissal of the directors. He has returned now, with his pregnant wife, to raise their family in his hometown.

As we drive east towards Janów, Patryk tells stories about how he and his friends would ride their bikes to the stud during the early auctions and sneak in the back of the tent to watch the foreigners bid on Janów’s prized horses. There were no hotels for foreign guests those early auctions, so they were put up by the families of Janów, who made a little extra cash in the process. Patryk remembers shortly after the fall of communism, his father built cottages on their property to house these guests. A reminder of how important the auctions were, not only for the studs, but the surrounding community.

Given all this, it is no surprise Patryk was nonstop with questions on the current state of the Janów. After eight years of corrupt politicians running the operation, everyone wants to know how bad is the damage and how long will it take to rebuild? I explain former Director Marek Trela is back in an advisory role for the new Director Weronika Sosnowska, but I tell him it will take time. For the auction, as example, this year we just need the horses to sell at fair prices, to rebuild the trust of international breeders, and create a reason to come to Poland again. That said, I also tell him I was there two weeks ago and saw most of the horses. “They are still in a hole,” I explained, “but it is not as bad as was feared.”

“So there is hope?” asks Partryk smiling, “a Pole can do a lot with just a little hope.”

Encarina (Ascott DD x Eneria) newly crowned 2025 Polish National Champion Mare and Best in Show with her team. Left to right: Katarzyna Stepczuk (Breeding Manager), Mateusz Tokarski, Gabriela Kwiatkowska, Weronika Łochnicka. Photo by Stuart Vesty.

Patryk’s hope continued into the National Show over the course of the next three days. An energy and optimism had grown since last year, the first year back with the “old” regime. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but you could feel it. The crowning Polish National Champion Mare and Best In Show Encarina (Ascot DD x Eneria) was the exclamation point on this optimism. After the award ceremony, her regular handler Mateusz Tokarski walked her over, not to the VIP area, but to the general public stands. For 10 minutes, she was greeted by her admirers, giving everyone time to touch her or get their pictures with Poland’s newest star. In hindsight, it was the most natural of reactions, for she is owned by the State Stud, so in essence was with her owners.

The evening after the auction, the crowd spilled into the foyer of the indoor arena. The atmosphere was still buzzing from, what by all accounts, was a successful auction. Every State Stud horse was sold with prices averaging 100,000 euros per lot. I caught Patryk’s smiling face in a sea of faces, and pushed closer to him. “That was good, right? The directors are happy?” he asked with a grin, already knowing the answer. I nodded and he patted me on the back with a wink.

Encarina greets her admirers after being named Best in Show at the 2025 Polish Nationals. Photo by Stuart Vesty.
The sun-filled morning after the next day’s Summer Sale and Janów breeding parade, we made our way south through the two-lane roads that hugged the Ukrainian border to Białka Stud. Białka did not join the State Stud tours last year due to some lingering politics, so it was my first time there since 2015. It was pure joy to roll into the stud and see the limestone stables surrounding the beautiful grass paddock that hosts the annual Spring Show. There has always been something special about the Białka breeding parade, the serene silence punctuated with the snort of a mare, or stallion and the sheer exuberance of the prancing foals. The horses never fail to perform, seemingly bursting with pride, as if to say “We are Białka!”

The star this morning was the last foal born at the stud this year, an amazing filly by Elshaan and out of Permarita by Morion. Permina was the most exquisite foal I had seen in a long time and instantly was reminded of when I saw Perfinka in this exact same location in 2011. Leaving Białka, I sent Patryk a quick video of Permina on WhatsApp. He had mentioned on our drive to Janów that maybe he would like to be a judge. For his entire life the horses had been in the background, perhaps it was time to bring them to the forefront. “For your judging education, so you know what a good one looks like,” I wrote. “Looks like more good news,” he wrote back.

The promising filly Permina (Elshaan x Permarita) makes her first public appearance at the Polish Arabian Horse Days Białka Breeding Parade. Photo by Anette Mattsson.

By the time we arrived in Michałów later that afternoon for lunch and their breeding parade, Patryk’s hope seemingly permeated everyone and everything I saw. Some of Michałów grooms and handlers, long since retired — including the incredible horseman Tadeusz Wojtal, sat behind us laughing and smiling during the breeding parade. There was no wistful longing for yesteryear, but pride in what had been built and looking forward to the future. Joining in with their laughter, I realized my heart was full. Poland was healing.