OFFALY’s Darragh Kenny continued his red-hot form in Florida racking up two back-to-back wins in $35,000 competitions on Red Star d’Argent and Chanel in just 24 hours at the Winter Equestrian Festival last week.

Kenny won the $35,000 Winter Equestrian Festival Challenge Cup with the 11-year-old Red Star d’Argent who has just been sold to Abdullah Sharbatly. Wishing the new owner, the best of luck, Kenny described the sale as “bitter sweet”, paying tribute to Red Star as “a great horse”.

Kenny who hails from Belmont, Co Offaly, and was a member of Ireland’s Investec Aga Khan winning team at Dublin Horse Show last year is in the midst of a great run of form. Kenny claimed the win against a field of 68 combinations beating top American rider Kent Farrington.

Lorenzo De Luca finished third on the Irish Sport Horse Limestone Grey with Cork’s Shane Sweetnam placing fifth riding Buckle Up, a 10-year-old gelding owned by Shane Sweetnam and the Blue Buckle group.

Kenny also won the $35,000 Illustrated Properties 1.45m Classic with Chanel owned by Kerry Ann LLC.

The pair bested a field of 59 over a one-round speed track built by German course designer Olaf Petersen, Jr. From the 48th position in the order, Kenny and Chanel, an eight-year-old Oldenburg mare (Challan x Lordanos) stopped the clock in 62.43 seconds for the win. Two trips later, America’s Andrew Ramsay set out to take the lead, but came up nearly two seconds short with a time of 64.88 to settle for second place in the irons of The Doodle Group’s Cocq A Doodle.

Egypt’s Abdel Said and California took third in 65.39 for owner American Equestrian Association II, LLC.

Co Down’s Conor Swail and Cita, owned by Ariel and Susan Grange, claimed fourth in 54.50 while America’s Margie Engle and Elm Rock, LLC’s Böchmann’s Lazio rounded out the top five in 65.60. In seventh was Thornhill Kate, an 11-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare (by Courage II x Clover Hill), ridden by America’s Laura Chapot (0/68.88), owned by Laura and Mary Chapot.

Kenny has jumped Chanel sparingly throughout the winter season with goals to produce the mare into a young rider mount for his student and owner, Kerry McCahill.