Now, a few decades later, Katja owns horses\u2014though she refuses to reveal their exact number\u2014and she is a journalist and producer known and loved by the entire nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSomeone just told me that you can ask a horse woman her age and weight, but not the number of horses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She does reveal that it\u2019s around seven, and also emphasizes that she co-owns them with Anne-Leena Pellikka. And more foals are on the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The horses naturally include her own riding horse LeRocks, known as Lenni, who is a descendant of her foundation mare Up to Heaven, nicknamed Pullukka, several foals and young horses, a Finnhorse, and some competition horses made available to other riders. Katja prefers to keep horses in her ownership\u2014because she can.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI can juggle things and come up with solutions through my wide network. What matters more to me is that the horse ends up somewhere it\u2019s good to be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In her own breeding, her goal is well-tempered, pleasant horses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPullukka\u2019s mare line has proven invaluable to me. The offspring are incredibly brave, kind, and good\u2014and at the same time truly excellent performance horses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Does Any of This Make Sense\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Horse Show has been a fixture in Katja\u2019s calendar over the years, as the event is the social highlight of the year. In the corridors, you always run into old acquaintances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s such an important part of it all\u2014that you bump into each other and squeal for a moment. Have a bit of coffee or a beer, marvel at how you\u2019ve once again bought everything imaginable. And ask whether any of this makes sense, and then laugh.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd the peer support\u2014like, so how\u2019s your laminitis going? That\u2019s so important, especially when the mud is knee-deep, it\u2019s dark, and the horses are tearing each other\u2019s and their own rugs. The only way to get through this is knowing that others are dealing with exactly the same thing. If not right now, then at least next year. Laughing together is how you survive this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Katja herself has recovered from a month-long bout of pneumonia that ultimately required hospitalization, and her horse from a borreliosis infection treated with a month-long course of antibiotics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd then, once I was better and the horse was healthy, the dog came down with kennel cough.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maybe this, too, will already be something to laugh about in February\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Katja Has Prioritized Horses and Her Dog in Her Life<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Katja is currently best known as the charismatic host of El\u00e4m\u00e4ni biisi<\/em>. She also co-hosts the Saatan olla v\u00e4\u00e4r\u00e4ss\u00e4kin<\/em> podcast with Kimmo Vehvil\u00e4inen, as well as the Konsulttitoimisto St\u00e5hl & Kuustonen<\/em> podcast. At the beginning of the year, the El\u00e4m\u00e4ni biisi<\/em> tour will begin, and in June Katja will graduate as a workplace coach. How on earth does she also manage to take care of her horses and her dog G\u00f6sta?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cJust fine, because I\u2019ve prioritized them. My dog and horses are vital to me. I don\u2019t take on jobs that would prevent me from being with the horses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Acting Is Not the Only Way to Perform<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Originally, Katja was meant to become an actress. However, a phoniatrician told her that acting would not be possible with her vocal cords. Her dreams had to be reshaped, and a couple of years later Katja applied to Laajasalo Institute to study radio journalism. Her career started with a bang when she was selected from among some 1,500 applicants to host the new youth program Jyrki<\/em>\u2014and to host its very first episode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn a way, since I\u2019m a performer by nature, I realized that acting isn\u2019t the only way to perform.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Over the course of her career, she has worked at several radio stations and television programs, served as editor-in-chief of Suosikki<\/em> magazine, and built a significant career in the music business. That opportunity opened up when she moved from Jyrki<\/em> to the BMG record company. Katja has worked behind the scenes with major Finnish bands and artists such as Apulanta, HIM, Don Huonot, and Kaija Koo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s why hosting El\u00e4m\u00e4ni biisi<\/em> felt like a perfect fit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn a way, it was a continuation of everything I\u2019d done before. Of course, there\u2019s the live aspect, which is something truly special\u2014especially when the band is right there in front of you. It\u2019s just incredibly powerful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ve interviewed pretty much everyone imaginable over the course of my career. It brings a certain calm when you know how things work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Katja at the Hevosurheilu RATSASTUS Program Stage<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Katja has worked at the Horse Show before. There was the Tallit\u00e4hdet<\/em> series, the riding challenge featuring Radio Nova hosts Oku Luukkainen and Esko Eerik\u00e4inen, as well as previous hosting roles and marketing communications. Now, Katja is producing the majority of the content for the new program stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is an element I\u2019ve really been missing. A stage where the audience can listen to discussions on various topics and proper, high-quality interviews with top riders. Anyone can come and listen whenever a topic happens to interest them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Katja will interview both international competition riders and hobby horse athlete Ada Filppa, rally co-driver Reeta H\u00e4m\u00e4l\u00e4inen, and Doctor of Animal Physiotherapy Heli Hyyti\u00e4inen. Dressage rider Daniel Bachmann Andersen will join Katja on stage on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Daily panel discussions will cover riding from the perspective of adult riders, feeding, horse breeding, and the future of dressage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Every day, the audience can also enjoy Back on Track bingo hosted by bingo hostess Katja St\u00e5hl, as well as saddle fitting. From Friday onwards, there will be a live podcast in which Katja and Teemu Ahtee discuss current topics\u2014and a bit beside them too\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n A New Fair Ticket Alongside the Show Ticket<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Katja and the other content of the Hevosurheilu RATSASTUS program stage can be followed with both the Horse Show show ticket and the new fair ticket. The two ticket categories make it possible to attend the event just to enjoy the fair atmosphere, shopping, and a wide and interesting program\u2014excluding only the international arena program and warm-up. The fair ticket is affordable and aimed especially at families with children, allowing them to get to know horses and riding at a low threshold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI think it\u2019s absolutely great that the fair ticket opens up the opportunity for more visitors, including young people, to attend, and that the event isn\u2019t solely focused on elite sport.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/helsinkihorseshow.fi\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Katja-Stahl-ja-Lenni-Kuva-Johanna-Rontu-b-737x1024.jpeg\")