Researchers announced yesterday (July 12) the birth of a clone of the Warmblood show jumping champion E.T. The colt, named E.T.Cryozootech-Stallion, was produced to give breeders the opportunity to further the 20-year-old gelding’s line. The colt was born on June 2.

According to a release from Cryozootech, a French company that banks equine genetic material, E.T. won “all major show jumping competitions” between 1994 and 2003, including the World Cup twice, and he was at the top of the world ranking for three years in a row. However, he was castrated at three years of age, well before his athletic potential was realized.

“In September 2003, Hugo Simon, E.T.’s rider, and Eric Palmer (founder of Cryozootech)…decided together that E.T. should have offspring,” the release explained. “Thus a skin biopsy was carried out on this horse who, at the time, was still participating in high competitions. E.T.’s cloning process was started in collaboration with the Texas (A&M) University, who had already participated with the production of Quidam de Revel’s clone.” (That clone of another famous show jumper was born in 2005 and was named Paris Texas; see www.TheHorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=5729).”

A laboratory test has shown E.T.’s clone is genetically identical to the champion. The colt has a stripe and two socks on his hind legs, just like E.T., but “the fine and side ways stripe on his nose is very different from E.T.’s blaze,” according to the release