MADAM,

I WOULD like to take this opportunity to comment on the letter submitted by Avalon Everett, Head of Sport, Legal and Governance at Horse Sport Ireland, in the 16th January 2021 edition of The Irish Field, regarding the proposed centre of excellence at Greenogue, Rathcoole, Co Dublin.

As spokesperson for the Equestrian Competition Venue Owners Alliance (ECVOA), there are a number of issues in Ms Everett’s letter I will address.

Ms Everett states, “as the exclusive recognised entity by all state agencies and the FEI, Horse Sport Ireland has the authority to make such decisions in the best interest of the sector with full cognisance of the needs and desires of the equestrian community”. Further on into her letter, Ms Everett states, “an extensive evaluation and feasibility process was carried out over two years with a number of locations considered within the county, none of which turned out to be feasible or timely. Furthermore, stakeholders were consulted at various stages in the process and where practicable their needs have been factored in, as were the needs of all sporting disciplines and breeding industry participants.”

I consider ECVOA to be a major stakeholder in the sports horse industry, yet only one member of our group, Coilog Equestrian Centre, was approached by a person conducting a feasibility study on behalf of HSI. This person asked a few questions and, on not receiving the answers he was perhaps expecting, departed. No other member of our group, which represents 18 of the largest centres on the island, was consulted with or asked for their input. If you consider that a large proportion of equestrian activities are now conducted at equestrian centres, this was surely a missed opportunity to avail of the experience and advice a group such as ECVOA could offer.

Ms Everett’s comment also invites scrutiny as to when and why the county of Dublin was selected as the only feasible location for a centre of excellence. A typo perhaps? Or another example of the needs of the rest of the country being ignored whilst our eastern seaboard flourishes?

I agree with the statement that HSI has the authority to make decisions in the best interests of the sector; I do not agree that HSI has a right to make decisions which have the potential to impact on the livelihood of those trying to make a living in the sports horse industry without a thorough consultative process. This is what happened in this instance.

I can assure HSI that no Irish professional rider chose to leave Ireland to further their careers abroad due to the lack of a centre of excellence. We need investment in facilities at regional level to provide top-class surfaces to riders and producers in all areas of the country. We need leadership and support from HSI to source the funding needed to develop and improve our existing facilities which have a proven record of survival and growth through challenging times.

Through this forum, I invite HSI to:

a) publish or make available to all interested parties the feasibility study associated with this project

b) outline the sources of funding and costs associated with the lease/purchase/rental agreement of the proposed centre of excellence and

c) make available the business plan for the proposed centre from 2021 onwards.

In these times, where openness and transparency are so highly valued, this is a great opportunity for HSI to allay any fears which have surfaced within the industry.

Yours etc,

Pat McCartan,

ECVOA

Mullingar

Co.Westmeath