LESS than 200 breeders worldwide can say they bred a horse at each Olympic Games. So, how many Irish-breds are in Versailles?

This week’s news about the withdrawal of travelling reserve horse Pacino Amiro, who performed so well at Tokyo with Bertram Allen three years ago, means there are three Irish Sport Horses on Paris show jumping teams.

James Kann Cruz, one of three Kannan show jumping offspring in Paris, heads the list - the Patrick Connolly-bred’s inclusion with Shane Sweetnam on the widely-tipped Irish team is a real boost for sport horse breeding.

Thailand had two Irish Sport Horses on its eventing team at Tokyo - Boleybawn Prince and Carnival March - and now has the Gerrard Marron-bred Kinmar Agalux on its Paris show jumping team.

Completing the Irish Sport Horse show jumping trio is BBS McGregor, bred by Marguerite Ryan and formerly competed by her son Jack, before the horse’s sale to the United Arab Emirates.

The most recent individual show jumping medal won by an Irish-bred? Barcelona back in 1992 when Irish (Regular Guy x Sandyman Star. Breeder: Alo Tynan) won bronze for Norman Dello Joio (USA).

Carling King (Clover Hill x Chairlift. Breeder: Dr Pat Geraghty) and Kevin Babington hold the best result by an Irish Sport Horse and Irish rider at Olympic level in this millennium. They finished joint-fourth at Athens 20 years ago, when Mr Springfield (Western Problem x Ballinahow Boy. Breeder: Robert Gallagher) and Robert Smith (GB) also shared that placing.

Kilkenny (VDL Cardento x Guidam. Breeder: Sinead Brennan) and Cian O’Connor (IRL) placed seventh at Tokyo. Another top-10 result was at London where Flexible (Cruising x Safari. Breeder: Edward & Catherine Doyle) was eighth with Rich Fellers (USA).

VDL Cardento had two more show jumping progeny at Tokyo where Chacco-Blue was the most-represented sire (six), including the sensational Explosion W.

The leading country by show jumping team medals at Tokyo? Belgium (five), including all three of the Swedish gold medal team horses: H&M All In (sBs), H&M Indiana (BWP) and King Edward (BWP).

Both Indiana, who like all horses at the Olympics sees her commercial prefix dropped for their duration, and King Edward are back for Paris and the latter is one of 18 BWP-breds - the highest number of any studbook - at the latest Games.

Eventing legends

What about eventing? An eleventh hour reshuffle on the US team sees Liz Halliday-Sharp and Cooley Nutcracker move up to replace Will Coleman’s pair of Off The Record and Diabalo. This now means there are seven Irish Sport Horses, plus two reserves and the Limerick-foaled Colorado Blue, at Paris.

How does that ISH number compare to recent Olympics? Athens (12), Hong Kong (17), London (14), Rio de Janeiro (11) and Tokyo (nine), where Colorado Blue and the Presenting-sired Glenfly brought ‘Irish connections’ to 11. The controversial ‘team of three’ format, which had some impact on Irish-bred numbers, applied at Tokyo. However, there has been a significant drop in ISH numbers since the Hong Kong peak 16 years ago.

Most recent ISH eventing individual medallists? Shear L’Eau (Stan The Man x Carnival Night. Breeder: Edward Walsh) won gold with Leslie Law (GB) at Athens. Then, McKinlaigh (Highland King x Stetchworth Lad. Breeder: Yvonne Walsh) and Mighty Nice (Ard Ohio. Breeder: William Kells) took individual silver and bronze respectively for their American riders, Gina Miles and Philip Dutton at Hong Kong and Rio de Janeiro.

Paulank Brockagh (Touchdown x Triggerero. Breeder: Frank & Paula Cullen) came close to an individual bronze at Rio. The Touchdown mare, who this summer had an Emerald van’t Ruytershof embryo transfer foal, finished fourth there with Sam Griffiths and they were also on the Australian bronze medal team.

Oliver Townend and Ballaghmor Class pictured at Burghley Horse Trials 2023 were members of the British gold medal team at Tokyo \ Nigel Goddard

Ballaghmor Class (Courage II. Breeder: Noel Hickey) and Oliver Townend were members of the British gold medal team at Tokyo. There’s no Irish-bred on the cross-channel neighbour’s 2024 team, hot favourites for another eventing gold at Paris.

Most successful Olympic eventing sire this millennium? Hands down: Stan The Man. Three individual gold medals (Shear L’Eau at Athens and La Biothestique Sam FBW’s back-to-back haul from London and Rio de Janeiro), plus three silver team wins by the full-brothers Shear H20 (Sydney) and Shear L’Eau (Athens), plus Michael Jung’s brilliant Sam at Rio de Janeiro.

Having previously stood with the late Jack Shorten in Askeaton, where his stud fee was the princely sum of IR£150, Stan The Man was later sold to the Marbach State Stud. This explains the German backstory of La Biosthetique Sam, one of a handful of foals bred by Günter Seiter.

Will the Paris results have any impact on the various studbook rankings? Yes, for the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFH) points-operated system and zero impact on Hippomundo’s prize money-based rankings. There’s no prize money at the Olympics, it’s more about the honour and glory.

How does the ISH studbook rate in the WBFSH pre-Olympic rankings? Eighth in show jumping and top in eventing. Legacy, Daniel Coyle’s Paris horse, is the third-highest ranked show jumping horse and James Kann Cruz (22nd) is the top ISH.

Shane Sweetnam with Olympic mount James Kann Cruz (ISH), who is one of three Kannan show jumping offspring in Paris \ Tomas Holcbecher

50% of the WBFSH top-10 eventers are Irish Sport Horses: Cooley Rosalent (third), HSH Blake (fourth), Greenacres Special Cavalier (fifth), Cooley Nutcracker (sixth) and MHS Seventeen (eighth). Colorado Blue is in seventh place.

Top horses, bloodlines and breeders at Paris? We’ll know the first batch of four-legged medallists by Monday (eventing).

Next week: Paris eventing medallists

Irish-breds at Paris

Eventing

BRAZIL

Castle Howard Casanova (ISH). Womanizer (KWPN) - K Cavalier Belle (ISH) by Cavalier Royale (HOLST). Breeder: Susan Fitzpatrick. Rider: Marcio Carvalho Jorge.

Ballypatrick SRS (ISH). Pacino (BWP) - Ballypatrick Romance (ISH) by Clover Hill (ID). Breeder: Austin Broderick. Rider: Ruy Fonseca.

CANADA

Hot Bobo (ISH). VDL Arkansas (KWPN) - Taney Leader (TB) by Supreme Leader. Breeder: Emma Phelan. Rider: Karl Slezak.

IRELAND

Action Lady M (ISH). Plot Blue (KWPN) - Action G 2 (HOLST), by Acorado I (HOLST). Breeder: Susanne Macken. Rider: Sarah Ennis.

Colorado Blue (SHB(GB). Jaguar Mail (SF) - Rock Me Baby (AES), by Rock King (AES). Breeder: Kate Jarvey. Rider: Austin O’Connor.

JAPAN

MGH Grafton Street (ISH). O.B.O.S Quality 004 (OLD) - Not recorded. Breeder: Martin J. Collins. Rider: Yoshiaki Oiwa.

UNITED STATES

HSH Blake (ISH). Tolan R (KWPN) - Doughiska Lass (ISH) by Kannan (SF). Breeder: Justin Burke. Rider: Caroline Pamukcu.

Cooley Nutcracker (ISH). Tolan R (KWPN) - Ballyshan Cleopatra (ISH), by Cobra (HOLST). Breeder: Gary Doherty. Rider: Liz Halliday (USA).

RESERVES:

Sportsfield Freelance (LHI) by Da Vinci (IPSA) - Kilmona Mizen (ISH) by Fresh Breeze. Breeder: Sharon Hallahan. Rider: Aoife Clarke (IRL).

Greenacres Special Cavalier (ISH). Cavalier Royale (HOLST) - Greenacres Touch (ISH), by Touchdown (ISH). Breeder: Michael Callery. Rider: Caroline Powell (NZL).

Show jumping

IRELAND

James Kann Cruz (ISH). Kannan - CSF Telly Cruz (ISH) by Cruising (ISH) (TIH).

Breeder: Patrick Connolly. Rider: Shane Sweetnam.

THAILAND

Kinmar Agalux (ISH). Aganix du Seigneur (SBS) - Lux Good (ISH) by Lux Z (HANN). Breeder: Gerrard Marron. Rider: Janakabhorn Karunayadhaj.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

BBS McGregor (ISH). Cardento (HOLST) - Random Chance (ISH), by Mark Twain (TB). Breeder: Marguerite Ryan. Rider: Abdullah Mohd Al Marri.