His innate talent, determination and hard work, opened the doors to amazing opportunities in the European horse world. During this time, he had the opportunity to ride and train several top stallions such as Flamenco di Semily, Quanto van Essene and Lambada van Berkenbroek. Top success continued for Kevin when in 1997 he was highest ranked young rider over all international GP with the stallion Landetto.

By the 2000’s he had already a clear idea of his place in the world of professional equestrian sports. He had the talent, which he demonstrated on the ring with his long list of winnings and accomplishments such as: winning the prestigious Sires off the World at Lanaken with the Stallion Millar, but he also discovered his desire to coach other riders and transfer all his knowledge to other generation of riders. From 2002 to 2007 he continued his successful professional riding career with the highlight of being 3rd place in the Belgian National Championship in the 1.60m category.  During the remaining 5 years he started working together with Henk Nooren and Hank Melse, scouting horses and selling them all around the world.

By 2007 he had an amazing opportunity to broaden his network in the equestrian world. That year he moved to Mexico, where he coached several Mexican families and was able to help them train and improve their riding techniques. After a very rewarding experience in Mexico, in 2008 Kevin moved to the USA, specifically to California to continue coaching and training horses.

With a much wider and international view of the sport in 2009 Kevin moved back to Europe. He continued working together with Hank Melse and returned to the competitions. He was in his best moment, having a lot of success at the international level and reached in one year the top 100 in the FEI world ranking with an overall of 90 wins. After this successful year unfortunately, he got a very bad injury during a winning round at CSI Lummen with Riant van de Mosselcentrale, he had to quit riding immedialety. During his recovery period, Kevin did more and more coaching of athletes and searching for top quality horses.

Throughout the 2010-2016 seasons he was back in the game. Kevin competed at a multitude of top international events including the Brussel Stephex Masters, Samorin, Olomouc, GP Eindhoven, with some remarkable horses like Fariska (Nonstop mare) and stallion Captian, placed several times at international GPs.

Coaching is and has always been one of his passions, so he is always eager to help other riders reach their maximum potential. He Coached Micky Morsinkhof from regional level up to winning rider of 2- and 3-star internationals.

The beginning of a new dream

2017 was a very special year because it was the beginning of a new era for Keving Gielen. This year he bought an old mushroom factory in Bree, Belgium where he had a big project in mind that was going to change everything.
By 2019 he continued training and coaching riders, this time a very successful Canadian rider jumping at GCT. Parallel to this, renovations to the Gielen Equestrian Center were started, with a main objective in the horizon: creating a place with a great familiar atmosphere, a place where clients can train together with Kevin to develop their riding skills and take both horse and rider to their maximum potential.

At the beginning of 2020 the equestrian center was ready to start functioning professionally. Located in the heart of the equestrian world, the Kevin Gielen Equestrian Center has 26 luxury stables available for rent with the possibility of professional and personal coaching. It’s location in Europe is close to many airports and top international shows, all within an hour drive. The location is a prime spot for equestrians.

With his equestrian center up and running, Kevin is now focused on continuing personal coaching of riders up to GP level in his installations, which are equipped with everything to get the best training possible. With his experience in horse scouting and dealing he is also able to help his clients find the right horse to match their needs.