“CLIFDEN is the Olympics for Connemara ponies,” said GAA legend Joe Connolly during the official opening last Wednesday of the 97th annual Connemara Pony Breeders Society (CPBS) show at Clifden.

That first Clifden red is a milestone for many Connemara owners and the two youngest exhibitors to add their names to that hallowed list are Joseph McCann and Edel Nee, winners of this year’s young handler classes.