O’Connor climbs rankings

FOLLOWING his historic victory with Colorado Blue at MARS Maryland Five Star, Cork’s Austin O’Connor has moved up to 22nd in the FEI World Eventing Rankings.

O’Connor (49) has produced Colorado Blue, known as ‘Salty’ (by Jaguar Mail out of Rock Me Baby by Rock King), now 14, from the start of his career. Together they have steadily progressed and improved. They were the best of the Irish at Badminton this year, where they finished third; at last year’s World Championships in Pratoni, where they placed 18th, as well as at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, where they finished 13th. The pair also helped Ireland to gain Olympic qualification for Paris 2024.

Last chance to have a say

THE last of the Horse Sport Ireland ‘Have Your Say’ Roadshows is being held next Thursday, November 9th. The series of four forums have been held in locations around the country, with the final one due to be held in the Glenroyal Hotel, Kildare, starting at 5.30pm.

HSI is seeking constructive feedback from breeders, producers and stakeholders on current HSI schemes and initiatives and input on potential improvements that could be made.

The forums are free to attend, but booking is required. Light refreshments will be provided.

Coaching demonstration

THURSDAY, November 23rd, will see HSI Level 3 Dressage Coach and High Performance Dressage Director, Anne Marie Dunphy, holding a demonstration on “Training and Young Horse Development; Flatwork Coaching Fundamentals for Confidence and Consistency Across the Disciplines” at CoilÓg from 5.30-8.30pm.

The demonstration will include: specific considerations for flatwork development and coaching with a focus on the training scale; starting young horses and riders on a pathway – 4/5-year-olds and 6/7 year olds; developing collection and introducing flying changes with both Dressage and Jumping horses; and FEI Dressage Levels – Dressage Demonstrations with Ireland’s leading youth and senior athletes. The cost is €35 per person. Two CPD points to all HSI Accredited Coaches. To book, visit horsesportireland.ie

HSI dressage series final

THE final of the 2023 Horse Sport Ireland Dressage Autumn Development Series, run in conjunction with the Department for Food, Agriculture and the Marine, takes place tomorrow, Sunday, at CoilÓg in Co Kildare.

Following four qualifying rounds, two of which were held in the Northern Region of Dressage Ireland, there is a total of 22 entries for the four horse classes, while there are four entries in the five-year-old pony class. None were received for the six and seven-year-old pony class. All HSI classes are being judged by Hanneke Gerritsen from The Netherlands and Ireland’s Bernie Foley. The HSI final is being hosted by the Leinster Region of Dressage Ireland and has been incorporated into the fourth leg of the region’s Ark Equine Derby autumn/winter league. All entries and times can be found on the DI website, where the results will be uploaded throughout tomorrow.

Ashford Group expands

ASHFORD Farm’s Enda Carroll is expanding

the Ashford Group. Together with one of his business partners, the Irish entrepreneur is planning to build a flagship equestrian facility in the Algarve. The new venture will be a pre-eminent equestrian facility that caters for Grand Prix riders, but is accessible to all. It will feature top-quality accommodation and amenities for horse, rider and the equestrian community. Plans for the 80-hectare site are in the development stage and the team is working on the infrastructure and permits.

Eventing Ireland survey

FOR those who were unable to attend the three Strategic Plan Meetings which took place during the summer, Eventing Ireland is now inviting members to have their say via an online survey.

The key questions discussed at the meetings are included in the survey, which can be completed by visiting: surveymonkey.com/r/TXD9CHV

The deadline for the survey will be 5pm on Monday, November 13th. This will then give Eventing Ireland time to collate responses and include in a draft Strategic Plan that will be shared with members by the end of the year.