CO Down’s Conor Swail was a very happy man at the weekend, as he claimed victory in the five-star 1.60m ATCO Queen Elizabeth II Cup at Spruce Meadows in Canada on Saturday night – a trophy that had previously eluded him.

Swail and the 17-year-old gelding Count Me In were best of the 40 starters and took home the top prize of over €225,000. Competitors had to complete two rounds, after which only four combinations remained clear and proceeded to the third-round jump-off, where Swail jumped clear again in a time of 39.29 seconds. Canada’s Amy Millar was closest to catching them, with a jump-off time of 40.85, which secured them second place. They were the only two combinations to finish the three rounds on a zero score.