ORIGINALLY from Gort in Co Galway, I’ve been based in the UK for the past five years at Louisa Church’s Arion Stud.

1. 2024 highlights?

2024 was an amazing year. Slightly different too, in that I took a step back from five-star after we sold my top horse, Nikey HH. Actually, it taught me a lot about the business. If you’re career-motivated, it’s always difficult when you sell your best one, even though it’s what’s needed for a business. And I set up my own company: Coole Sport Horses.

I’m very lucky to have Express Trend. Winning the Queen’s Cup in Hickstead with him was special, as it’s one of the most prestigious and oldest classes. Another favourite day was winning the four-star Grand Prix on the Sunshine Tour at the start of 2024, because it was the same week as we sold Nikey.

It’s funny too how things work out. It was also the same week as my granny, who I was very close to, died. I went home for the funeral and then ‘Trendy’ stepped up to win that Grand Prix.

Trendy went on to jump double clear on several Nations Cups for Ireland and we were very unlucky not to win the Development League final in Warsaw.

On the business side, I had a chance to develop some younger horses, when you’re not always chasing the top shows. You have to look at what you’ve got coming up and try to develop them into your next best horses.

Another highlight was the return of African Affair to my string. He won a two-star Grand Prix in Chepstow, my first international Grand Prix win in the UK. Lots of highlights.

2. Tell us about your breeding programme.

It’s quite small at home at the farm in Ireland. I’ve a couple of offspring out of Vitesse, who I jumped in young riders. I’m very lucky with owners, Liam Nicholas and Louisa Church as, in conjunction with them, we started to take embryos from some of the competition mares.

We’ve got two Untouchable embryos from Nikey HH and I’ve got two beautiful Emerald and Conthargos fillies from Namamia, my first Nations Cup-winning horse. Something to look forward to going forward. I like to keep my operation small at home, but hopefully, we’ll grow in size.

3. “Fools breed foals for wise men to buy.” Agree/disagree with this saying?

I’m not so sure about that! Things have changed a lot, even in the last five years. Every breeder naturally believes their own horse is great, because they bred it.

I think people have to be a lot stricter with what they’re breeding, especially in the west of Ireland. If you want to breed trade horses, then that’s fine. But if you want to breed for show jumping or a particular discipline, a lot more thought needs to go into it. Even then, you still might not get a jumper.

The business is so commercial now. Everybody wants either a very, very good horse or, if it’s not a top horse, it has to be a commercial, nice, easy, saleable horse. Those horses all make plenty of money too.

You just have to do your best and cross the best mare with the most suitable stallion, by putting a lot of thought into it. That’s actually something that Liam Nicholas is very good at. He studies the qualities of the mares that I’ve jumped and spends a lot of time thinking about the appropriate stallion. Gone is the day where you could just sort of chance it.

The other side is, it costs the same to feed any foal to three or four years old. So, my theory is, try and keep the numbers smaller and keep the quality up.

Jessica Burke and Kaleigh Dolan at the 2024 Dublin Horse Show \ Susan Finnerty

4. How many broodmares do you have?

My competition schedule is so busy that I only have two broodmares of my own: Vitesse and Manda K, a daughter of my other young rider mare, Amanda 202.

Olga, my sister, has also just started as a vet and, with her involvement, we’ve added two more broodmares. Dad looks after everything for us, he also breeds Connemaras and a couple of thoroughbreds too.

5. The stand out stallion(s)?

Ermitage Kalone is very, very popular. Manda K, by Kannan, is actually in foal to him for 2025. He looks unbelievably balanced, which is so important now to produce a commercial horse. And he’s just a horse I absolutely love watching in the warm-up and in the ring.

He’s still young for the top sport, but he’s had a couple of very good shows recently.

I do actually like Emerald a lot. They can be difficult, but any I’ve had have all been incredible jumpers.

One of my favourites is Luidam. I’ve ridden a good few; incredible minds, very competitive, sold very well. They’ve been very lucky for us. I would be very quick to buy a Luidam over anything else.

We’ve got a couple of very nice Granderado’s at home and in the UK. They are nice, scopey, very blood horses.

Enjoy De La Mure was based at the Billy Stud and I think that he could be one of the best horses in the world. He’s amazing when you ride around beside him in the arena; an absolutely beautiful type, great mind and was absolutely incredible for the UAE team at the Paris Olympics. That’s another very exciting stallion in the sport now.

I’ve ridden horses from a lot of different stallions, so it’s very hard to pick one, but those would be the ones that I’d look at.

6. If you could have bred any horse?

I love Caracole de la Roque, who jumps with Karl Cook now. I jumped against her when Julian Epaillard had her and, oh my God, she was just amazing then and is amazing now.

She’s the type of horse I’d like to breed, because she’s the type of horse I like to ride; blood, fast, careful, scopey. Okay, maybe not the most classical type horse, but I think the way the sport is going, it’s not just about jumping clear rounds any more.

7. What type of horse do you think is needed for today’s sport?

You watch any 1.60m Grand Prix class, there could be 10 clears and so then, they have to go fast. You need a very blood, careful athlete; horses need everything at the moment.

8. CHF is yours, thoughts on prefixes?

CHF stands for Coole Horse Farm. In future years, you’ll see a couple more horses coming through from our farm with that prefix.

I do think a prefix is a very good thing. I work very closely with Billy Stud, where I’ve learned so much. You know their horses because of the prefix.

It’s the same at home with Marion Hughes, I’ve looked up to their incredible breeding system. You watch their super young horses, carrying the HHS prefix.

Obviously, Greg and Cheryl Broderick’s operation is another. They’ve got a lot of good mares, more young horses with the BP prefix and put a lot of thought into picking the correct stallion. I think everybody is upping their game.

9. “It takes a team” - who’s on yours?

I’m very lucky with my team. I’ve always been supported by my family, even since I moved to the UK, they travel to see me a lot. Dad holds the fort at home and mum helps with the bookwork side.

Then there’s the owners: Liam, who’s put a lot of investment and time into my career and put a lot of very good horses underneath me. Arion Stud owner, Louisa Church, is another massive support. Not only in business and sport, but as a friend, who has also taught me a lot about business.

My show groom is Aaliyah Phillips, Taylor Peare rides the young horses, Atty Birdwood manages the yard at home and Michael Fullick helps look after the trucks and cars. So, we kind of have somebody to do everything!

10. Winter holiday destination?

Skiing in Whistler!