IN 2024, the Ulster Region Showjumping Ireland committee were delighted to welcome on board a new headline sponsor of the Ulster Region Grand Prix Series in Fraser Homes. Building on last year’s successful series, the Ulster Region in association with Showjumping Ireland and Fraser Homes, hosted seven legs at venues across Northern Ireland, concluding at Castle Irvine, Necarne on August 10th, boasting a substantial prize fund of over £16,000.

The series featured classes from 90cm up to the 1.35m Grand Prix, including sportsmembers, amateurs, junior/ young rider sections and, the 2024 series, saw the introduction of age classes, which proved hugely popular amongst the riders.

The Ulster Region series catered for a range of abilities, plus highlighted some of the country’s top talent, developing a ‘stepping stone’ for athletes and horses preparing for larger national shows. Each leg of the 2024 series saw a record number of entries and the Ulster Region committee is looking forward to building on this success during the 2025 series.

Ulster Region committee chairman, Derek Reid said: “I am delighted that Fraser Homes agreed to sponsor the 2024 Grand Prix Series. The additional funding from Fraser Homes will help support the prize fund for our members and hosting venues. On behalf of the Ulster Region Committee, I extend our sincere gratitude to Fraser Homes for their kind and generous sponsorship, and we look forward to future cooperation and a very successful Grand Prix Series.”

The league winners were Lesley Cooey (90cm/sports member), Niamh McFall (1m), while Naomi McCavana was crowned the A Amateur and Beverley Irwin the AA Amateur champion. In the 1.10m, it was Beverley Irwin who claimed the title, while in the 1.10m young rider the title was clinched by Adam Adair. Winner of the 1.20m league was Emma Jackson, while the 1.20m young rider title went to Cara McFadden. Following an exciting final, it was Paul Caves who secured the 1.35m title, while Alfie Adair took the young rider title in this category. In the young horse classes, Emma Jackson claimed the five-year-old league and Kevin Mackey the six year-old league.

Munster Region

2024 proved to be another fantastic year for show jumping in Munster. Riders with horses had an array of leagues to participate in, including the Spring Horse Tour, the Munster Summer Horse Tour and the Development League.

Munster SJI were delighted to be able to contribute to the sponsorship of all leagues in Munster – horses, ponies and amateur. The Spring Tour ran from February to April, with the final taking place in Clare Equestrian Centre. The development league ran throughout the summer with the final in October. There was a great response to these leagues.

The Summer Tour started off in April in Ballylawn, with the final run by the Munster Region in Roscrea Equestrian Centre in October. Categories in the league included the 1.15m, 1.25m and 1.35m Grand Prix. The attendance was excellent, culminating in a nail-biting finale. League winners were Patrick Joyce, Francis Connors and the leading young rider in the Red Mills 1.35m Grand Prix was Daisy McNamara.

The region expressed their thanks to the sponsors of these classes and acknowledged that without them it would be impossible to run a league of this standard. For those that missed out, the 1.35m Grand Prix was videoed each week by the Doyle family and is available on YouTube to be viewed.

Legs of the interprovincial were run within the Munster region, with the final taking place in Tipperary Equestrian, with Munster representatives going on to Barnadown for the final. Munster was well-represented at the national pony championships in Mullingar, with many taking top spots. Many Munster pony athletes and young riders competed successfully abroad throughout the year.

Maryville Stables was the venue of the National Young Rider championships and the National Amateur Championships. Both were a huge success.

The branches in the Munster region also hosted four National Grands Prix, a Premier Grand Prix, Amateur RDS Qualifier, Pony Premier, Pony Spring Tour and Pony Masters.

An exhilarating Munster Showjumping Amateur Championship Final sponsored by Boomerang Horse & Country Store, was held at Tipperary Equestrian Centre in September. The top three A and the top three AA amateurs from the branch leagues, the McDonogh league in Limerick/Clare, the Enjoy league in Cork /Kerry and the MacKey league in Waterford/Tipperary qualified to compete.

Congratulations to A Champion Molly Ní Chonchubhair and BH Best Lad from the Cork/Kerry SJI branch. Molly had a fantastic double clear in 37.45. Waterford Tipperary SJI riders finished the podium, with Evelyn Farrell and Little Miss Sunny taking second place with a double clear in 38.30 and Ruth Walsh with Joes Charm also having a lovely double clear in 40.89 to take third.

Jody Townend was crowned the new AA champion. Also from the Cork/Kerry branch, Jody set a blistering time of 30.79 to take the title. Derrick Burke from the Limerick/Clare SJI branch produced a super double clear in 33.81 with his ever-reliable partner Tyreda Chip to take second place. Stephanie Cunningham and Silverglen Wishing Well from the Cork/Kerry branch had a very quick double clear in 34.83 to complete the podium.

With all the results turned into points and added up, Cork/Kerry ran out very worthy team champions. A big thank you went out to Sinead from Boomerang Horse & Country Store for sponsoring such fantastic prizes and to all competitors for travelling and making it such an exciting class.

The region also thanked Tipperary Equestrian Centre for hosting the amateurs on their fantastic grounds. Munster senior riders, both those based abroad and those who travelled throughout the year, also made the region proud with their outstanding performances, competing as individuals on Nations Cup teams.

Leinster Region

The Mervue Equine Leinster Tour, as always, was another competitive affair, which saw Cian Byrne make his presence felt in the senior ranks. Over €50,000 was on offer throughout this series along with league prizes, a young rider bursary and an opportunity for the tour winners to visit Karlswood Stables. In the 1.35m section, the winning horse/rider combination of the tour took home €2,000 and the runner-up took home €1,000, while the winning young rider won the coveted Ballywalter Farm Bursary with international rider Bertram Allen. In the 1.20m and 1.10m section, the winning horse/rider combination netted €1,000, while the runner-up collected €500.

Wicklow native Byrne took the 1.10m and 1.20m overall and Young Rider titles. Runner-up in the 1.20m league was Deirdre Doyle and Kancruise, while the runner-up in the 1.10m was also Byrne. The young Wicklow rider went into the final leading the lead on 28 points and in the runner-up position on 27 points. In the 1.35m league, it was Harry Wood and a seven-year-old BP Lionman that took the overall league, while the leading young rider was Jack Murphy, and the leading Pro Am was Kerrie Curtis.

The League final took place in Mullingar Equestrian Centre. In the 1.10m final, 59 combinations went to post and of those, 23 delivered double clear rounds. Cian Byrne certainly was a force to be reckoned with in this league and he brought the tour to an exciting close as he took the win and the runner-up place to cement his title. Riding China Man he delivered the winning round. Not content with the win, he also took the runner-up spot with Ciao Bella, when he was just over a second behind.

There was a strong following for the 1.20m final, with 70 combinations battling it out. Leading the victory lap was Aisling McGreal aboard her own Rincoola Macushla. Taking the runner-up spot was Peter McMahon on the eight-year-old Martell Me This.

A total of 49 combinations battled it out in the 1.35m final and 11 booked their places against the clock. No stranger to this pressure, it was Sven Hadley and Phenomene Bleu VDM, who led the victory lap. Harry Wood claimed the runner-up spot with BP Rocketman; Wood had gone into this final in pole position and this second place was enough to secure him the title. Kilkenny’s Vincent Byrne and the Langara Ventures’s Galwaybay Sparkie took third place.

Connaught Region

In the amateur ranks, riders proved to be a force to be reckoned with in Connaught. The Judge Equestrian league was a hotly and closely contested affair and, in the end, it was Nathan Kenny that emerged on top with Ken Lowry, Caitlin Duffy, Niamh Quinn, Tara Brandon and Stephanie Forde providing an extremely close finish.

In the Connaught Region Committee-sponsored 1.10m league, it was Jessica Lee that took the 2024 title. The competition among the ladies remained intense, with the top of the leaderboard fiercely contested right up to the final day. Clodagh Lee, Jessica Lee, Orla Dixon, Nadine Carey and Elanor Lavin delivered exceptional performances, keeping the standings incredibly close.

In the KF Sporthorses Connaught Region 1.20m League, it was Sven Hadley that took this title after he dominated proceedings. Putting the pressure on Hadley was Shane Goggins.

In the Derryronane Stud Connaught 1.35m Grand Prix League, Shane Goggins came out on top. Goggins proved extremely competitive with his two horses in the Grand Prix League, leaving it hard for the other riders to catch him at the top of the leaderboard. However, Jake Hunter stayed in contention throughout and secured a third-place finish in the League.

There was also fierce competition in the Castlelawn Stud Young Horse Connaught League, which ran in conjunction with the league shows. The winner of the five-year-old league was Shane Goggins, while the winner of the six-year-old league was Noel Power. Shane Goggins added to his tally for the year, as he won the seven-year-old league.

The Roxboro Stud Connaught Pony League, which was generously sponsored by Sinead and Dara Larkin, went down to the wire. Claiming the Under 10 crown was John Furey, while the 128 90cm winner was Ashley Maher. Winner of the 138cm 1m was Mark Mellett, while Mark Neilan claimed the 148 1.10m.

The open league for ponies featured numerous thrilling jump-offs, becoming a highlight of the grassroots and green field shows in the region. These events brought together families and friends, who shared in the excitement of show jumping.

The Connaught International Partners Novice Pony League proved to be a real hit around the region. This league is a new initiative for the region and is hugely supported by the Connaught International riders.

Following some tough competition, the Newcomers’ winning pair was Elaine Briscoe, partnered with Michael Duffy. The 128cm winner was Kaleigh Dolan, partnered with Jessica Burke. In the 138cm section, it was Isabelle Curry, partnered with Michael G Duffy that claimed this accolade. Claiming the 148cm title was Cian Cawley, partnered with Richard Howley.