NOW that the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFSH) top breeders, studbooks, horses and sires results are known, how, in the closing stages of 2023, do those results compare with Hippomundo’s prize money-based rankings?

To recap Irish results in the WBFSH rankings, it was an outstanding year. The Irish Sport Horse (ISH) studbook retained its leading eventing studbook title for a second successive year and continued its upward climb amongst the top show jumping studbooks to finish sixth.

Two top-six places was the best result recorded by the ISH studbook in the WBFSH rankings this millennium. Not only that, three Irish Sport Horses - Ballaghmor Class (second) and Rehy DJ (fourth) and Pacino Amiro (fourth) - finished amongst the top-five WBFSH ranked eventing and show jumping rankings.

Britain's Oliver Townend and Ballaghmor Class in action at the 2018 Mitsubishi Badminton Horse Trials \ Radka Preislerova

The top half-dozen from any WBFSH member studbook count towards its final rankings and all six of the ISH event horses were placed in the top-20 after their FEI points from the WBFSH calendar year were totted up.

This group, led by Ballaghmor Class and Rehy DJ, also numbered Black Ice (11th), Cavalier Crystal and Oughterard Cooley (equal 17th) and HSH Blake (20th).

Yasmin Ingham riding Rehy DJ in the CCI5*L at Luhmuhlen 2023 \ EquusPix

In show jumping, equally competitive results were recorded by the ISH six, with five of this group in the WBFSH top-100 horses: Pacino Amiro, James Kann Cruz (12th), Up Too Jacco Blue (28th), Rincoola Milsean (48th) and GRS Lady Amaro (81st) with the sixth horse - BP Wakita (120th) - close behind.

On to the recently-released WBFSH sire rankings, where O.B.O.S. Quality 004 (second) and Puissance (eighth) appeared in the eventing sires top-10. The highest Irish-based show jumping stallion was Pacino (41st), who jumped 40 places since the 2022 rankings.

The top WBFSH horses? Easy Game (TRAK. Dressage), Galileo Nieuwmoed (KWPN. Eventing) and Donatello D’Auge (SF. Show jumping) and there was little change with the other two studbook titleholders: KWPN (dressage) and Selle Français (show jumping) ending the year in first place.

Similarly, there were no major surprises or changes in the WBFSH sire rankings with Diamant de Semilly (show jumping), his son Diarado (eventing) and Johnson TN (dressage) at the top of their respective leaderboards.

One of the most intriguing facts from the WBFSH sire rankings was the sight of three Irish-born horses: Up Too Jacco Blue (Chacco-Blue), James Kann Cruz (Kannan) and Colorado Blue (Jaguar Mail) rating as the top offspring of their respective sires. Again, this underlines the success of their respective breeders: Mark Sherry, Patrick Connolly and Kate Jarvey.

Austin O'Connor and Colorado Blue take on the cross-country on their way to winning the Mars Maryland CCI5*- L \ Shannon Brinkman

So, in the closing stages of the final Hippomundo results of this year, how do Irish breeders and their horses compare with their WBFSH results?

Unbroken run

The 2023 eventing season has all but wrapped up, five-star events and major prize money-wise and it’s a similar good news story for the Irish Sport Horse. The studbook is well on target to retaining its unbroken run as Hippomundo’s leading eventing studbook since these rankings began in 2015.

Even better, Ballaghmor Class and Colorado Blue’s five-star win apiece and top-three placings see the pair at the top of the eventing horse leaderboard.

Third in Hippomundo’s mid-year rankings, after his runner-up place at Badminton, Ballaghmor Class’s promotion is due to his win in September at the other British five-star event: Burghley. This was the Courage II grey’s second Burghley win with Oliver Townend, after their 2017 triumph.

Take-home pay for Ballaghmor Class this year amounted to €194,523. Next in line, on €145,387, is another Limerick-bred, Colorado Blue, registered with Sport Horse Breeding (GB).

He lies just ahead of Badminton winner Lordships Graffalo (Grafenstolz), who finishes third in the Hippomundo event horse rankings on €142,242.

The Salty Syndicate-owned Colorado Blue and Austin O’Connor had that historic win at Maryland International, the new kid on the five-star block, in October. His Badminton third place to Lordships Graffalo and Ballaghmor Class was another important result for the Jaguar Mail grey.

With a win and top-three placings at five-star level apiece, this pair has more than earned their highest earner places in the Hippomundo rankings.

Any other Irish-bred in the current top-10? No, although Cavalier Crystal (€53,721. Jack of Diamonds. Thomas Horgan) is just on the top-10 pack heels in 11th place.

Harry Meade and Cavalier Crystal (ISH) finished third at the Defender Burghley Horse Trials in 2023 \ EquusPix Photography

There are half a dozen more Irish Sport Horses in the current top-30, including Maryland International third-placed Cooley Rosalent (18th. €42,446. Valent. JW Rosbotham), Oughterard Sky Boy (21st. €36,217. Puissance. Gerard Lynch), Maja’s Hope (23rd. €32,444. Porter Rhodes. Jack Murphy), Capel’s Hollow Drift (26th. €25,445. Shannondale Sarco. Jenny Glynn), Greenacres Special Cavalier (28th. €22,968. Cavalier Royale. Michael Callery) and Rehy DJ (29th. €21,544. Tinarana’s Inspector. Noel Russell).

Off The Record (31st. €21,009. VDL Arkansas. Peter Brady) and Cooley Nutcracker (32nd. €20,469. Tolan R. Gary Doherty) complete the top-10 Irish Sport Horses eventers.

Show me the money

So, a slight change of ISH cast members from the WBFSH final rankings, although the combined results mean the ISH studbook is well on course to claim a second top eventing studbook title at the year’s end.

It’s always interesting to compare the variation in prize money between sports with eventing, bar at five-star level, lagging well behind the two other Olympic sports of dressage and show jumping.

Take, for example, the ISH and KWPN studbooks, the current eventing and show jumping leaders in Hippomundo’s title race.

To date, Irish Sport Horses have won under one million euros (€928,720) in eventing prize money. Compare that to over €21 million (€21,664, 556) amassed by the KWPN’s force of show jumping horses. So the top-ranked show jumping studbook’s horses have earned over 20 times the sum of the leading eventing studbook. The money, if not all the honour and glory, is in show jumping.

While checking for an example of what the 500th-ranked event horse might have earned in 2023, Diamond Mistress was spotted in 502nd place. A great example, as she is another bred by Kate Jarvey whose best ambassador, Colorado Blue is some 500 places above.

Just a six-year-old, the Diarado x Master Imp mare has earned €1,082 with Sian Coleman in 2023. That figure includes the princely sum of €40 earned for Diamond Mistress’ 25th place in the six-year-old championship at the WBFSH young event horse championships at Le Lion d’Angers.

Sian Coleman and Diamond Mistress competing in the 2022 Stepping Stones League \ Tadhg Ryan Bit-Media

Colorado Blue is 15 years old. Diamond Mistress is a novice in comparison and her earnings will increase as she progresses up the ranks.

However, she’s a great case example after the far-seeing and pragmatic words of wisdom from both Kate Jarvey and Austin O’Connor at the Irish Horse Board marketing and promotion conference last week. Then, both spoke about the long road in breeding event horses, the comparative little financial reward for owners of event horses, compensated by a great owner culture and the necessity for rider-producers to rely on sales, not prize money, to continue in the sport.

Jumping the rankings

Again, there’s a slight variation between the Hippomundo and WBFSH rankings in the show jumping studbook results.

The top-ranked WBFSH studbook, the Selle Français, lies in second place in Hippomundo’s latest show jumping rankings.

It’s a close-run race between the Dutch and French studbooks though, as the Selle Français total stands at €21,277,318. With some lucrative classes still remaining this year, this could be a tight finish.

Belgium’s BWP studbook rounds off the current top-three on a total of €17,769,773.

And the ISH studbook? Another top-10 place as Irish-breds have won over five million euros (€5,192,091) to date in 2023. This figure places the Irish studbook in eighth place after the KWPN, Selle Français, BWP, Zangersheide, Holsteiner, Oldenburg Springpferd and Westphalian registries.

The Hannoverian and Belgium’s second studbook, the sBs, round off the top-10.

However, the ISH studbook rates second after the Westphalians for the highest average earned per horse amongst the top-10 show jumping studbooks.

In total, 992 Irish Sport Horses have so far earned an average of €5,672, a figure that places the ISH studbook second to the Westphalian studbook. This German studbook’s 1,178 horses have won an average of €7,157, boosted by the presence of two Westphalians - Checker 47 and Zineday - in the top-three show jumping horses.

Each of the leading studbook pair of the KWPN and Selle Français have over 6,000 horses registered on the Hippomundo database. This gives an indication of the super strike rate of Irish Sport Horses.

Strike rates

Eventing’s strike rate by the number of horses per studbook should also be mentioned. The Deutches Sportpferd studbook, founded 20 years ago, is an amalgamation of several German studbooks, including the central state’s Thuringen studbook. And this studbook holds the honour of the best strike rate amongst the Hippomundo top-10 event horses: four horses registered, one winner, which yields a staggering strike rate of €132,521 per horse.

How? Mai Baum, Tamra Smith’s Lexington five-star winner. It’s a prime example of the complexities of rankings and reading between the statistics.

The Thuringen studbook outlier politely set aside, which other eventing studbook had the best strike rate? Sport Horse Breeding (GB) due mainly to the phenomenal year by Colorado Blue and Lordships Graffalo.

The SHB (GB) strike rate stands at €2,092 from just 207 horses. The ISH studbook has by far the highest number of eventing horses (1,260) registered on the Hippomundo database and the Selle Français (624) and KWPN (513) are the only others to come close.

When it comes to prize money per horse, the ISH ranks fourth (€743), after SHB(GB), Holsteiner and Selle Français. The large volume of Irish-breds also points to many youngsters, like Diamond Mistress, making their way up through the ranks and the popularity of the Irish horse.

Converting those numbers into Ballaghmor Class levels of prize money is the challenge.

Top jumpers

Now for the top earning Irish-bred show jumping horses. The lead has swapped back and forth this year between Pacino Amiro and James Kann Cruz in the Hippomundo rankings.

Bertram Allen and Pacino Amiro on their way to helping the Miami Celtics team to win the GCL Super Cup at the Prague Playoffs \ Tomas Holcbecher

Right now, it’s the Simon Scott-bred Pacino Amiro who holds the lead, as the Pacino gelding is deservedly ranked eighth amongst the best show jumping horses in the world, having won €896,123 so far.

His place means another top-10 result for an Irish-bred. Just six horses, headed by Stargold (Oldenburg. Stakkato Gold. €1,406,251) Marcus Ehning’s Aachen and Stuttgart star performer, have earned over one million euros this year.

After Stargold, (who overtook the Hippomundo summertime leader Donatello D’Auge), the other current millionaire horses of 2023 are Checker 47 (Westfalian. Comme Il Faut. €1,283, 399), Zineday (Westphalian. Zinedine. €1,187,753), King Edward (BWP. Edward 28. €1,173,463), Donatella D’Auge (SF. Jarnac. €1,051,299) and Leone Jei (KWPN. Baltic VDL. €1,018,017).

Just behind Leone Jei and so close to the seven-figure landmark is Mila (OS. Monte Bellini. €981,543), Michael Duffy’s championship horse.

Pacino Amiro, Monaco N.O.P (KWPN. Cassini II. €843,038) and Dexter Fontenis Z (ZANG. Diarado. €722,149) complete the current top-10 show jumping horses.

Which will all change again after next weekend, that’s the caveat about the fast-paced world of the 12 months year-round international show jumping calendar.

The top-10 ISH show jumping horses in the Hippomundo rankings? There’s two more - James Kann Cruz (20th. Kannan. €506,716. Patrick Connolly) and Up Too Jacco Blue (29th. Chacco-Blue. €450,305. Mark Sherry) in the top-30.

Three Irish Sport Horses in the current top-30 show jumping big earners. That is some achievement and a goal possibly hard to envisage after the Irish post-Flexible slump in rankings.

Pacino Amiro, James Kann Cruz and Up Too Jacco Blue are three of the top-10 Irish Sport Horses. They’re joined by GRS Lady Amaro (Amaretto D’Arco. €337,164. Denis Hickey), Sea Top Blue (Chacco Blue. €156,100. James and John Meade), Rincoola Milsean (Aldatus Z. €152,020. Harold McGahern), BP Wakita (Pacino. €120,507. Greg Broderick), FTS Killossery Konfusion (SIEC Livello. €118,707. Frank and Laura Glynn), EIC Cooley Jump The Q (Pacino. €115,105. Pam Walshe) and Express Trend (Future Trend. €105,153. Liam Nicholas).

Mark Sherry and Imelda catch up with Max Kühner and Up Too Jacco Blue at the Global Champions Tour in Rome in September \ courtesy of Mark Sherry

Leading sires

Three Pacino offspring amongst the top-10 Irish-breds won’t have gone unnoticed by sharp-sighted readers. Those results place the Diamant de Semilly son in 19th place in the latest Hippomundo show jumping sire rankings.

The top-three show jumping sires? The ubiquitous Diamant de Semilly has worn down Chacco-Blue’s reign as the Selle Français stallion is top of the Hippomundo rankings, having also overtaken his German rival in the WBFSH set of results.

Kannan separates Diamant de Semilly and Chacco Blue in this Hippomundo top-three.

Are James Kann Cruz and Up Too Jacco Blue their highest earners too in these rankings? Yes. (Grégory Wathelet’s ingeniously-named Bond JamesBond de Hay is Kannan’s top earner after the Global Champions Tour final in Prague).

Hippomundo’s eventing sire results differ from the WBFSH set with Grafenstolz as the leading sire, followed by Courage II and Jaguar Mail. Diarado (fourth) and his sire Diamant de Semilly (sixth) also appear in the top-10.

Any other Irish-based sires in the top-30? The traditionally-bred Puissance (13th) is closely followed by Jack of Diamonds (14th), then there’s Shannondale Sarco (18th), Valent (19th), VDL Arkansas (21st), Royal Concorde (23rd), Tolan R (24th), Porter Rhodes (25th), Vivant van de Heffinck (26th), O.B.O.S. Quality (29th) and the omnipresent Cavalier Royale (30th).

With just four weeks of competition left, will we see any major changes to the final Hippomundo rankings? We’ll know by New Year’s Day.

Catherine Robinson and Black Ice at Kilguilkey in 2017 \ EquusPix