THE Irish para dressage squad for the upcoming FEI European Championships in Riesenbeck, Germany, taking place from September 4th to the 10th, has been named.

The travelling squad, in alphabetical order, is: Jessica McKenna and Davidoff 188; Michael Murphy and Cleverboy; Katie Reilly and Impulz W; and Sarah Slattery and Savona. The two reserve riders are Helen Kearney with Tjornelys Zensation and Michael Murphy with Dark Diamond.

Speaking about the announcement, para dressage High Performance director Debora Pijpers, said: “It has been exciting for me to see this year that several new promising CPEDI3* combinations have entered the Irish para dressage stage. The selected combinations for the European Championships are a mix of seasoned experience in Michael Murphy, and upcoming pathway athletes in Jessica McKenna, Sarah Slattery and Katie Reilly.

“Our official goal is a top 11 finish with the team, but our High Performance heart drives us to go after the challenging task of wanting to acquire a team qualification slot for the Paralympic Games.

“Our main focus will be on training individual improvements per rider and on creating such a team environment and management that we enable each individual athlete to perform at their best. If we achieve that, I am very happy! I am grateful for the support of HSI, Sport Ireland and Para Equestrian Ireland: together we will continue to build on a structured programme to provide a solid basis for performances.”

Dressage long list

Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) also confirmed the horse and rider combinations nominated for the 2023 European Dressage Championship in Riesenbeck, Germany.

Eleven combinations have met the qualification criteria for the upcoming Europeans – the highest number of Irish athletes ever to do so for a championship – and dressage High Performance director Anne Marie Dunphy has named the eight nominated entries as follows:

Jennifer Harnett (Pilates Amsterdam’s Eximio); Sorrell Klatzko (Turbo); Abigail Lyle (Farrell and Giraldo); Anna Merveldt (Esporim); Fenella Quinn (Hawtins Delicato); Judy Reynolds (For Fun 51, Rockman Royal NG and Faisao); Carolyn Mellor (Gouverneur M); and Dane Rawlins (Espoire).

Dunphy said: “I’m delighted to be in the position that we have this many athletes qualified for the championship. It shows the increased strength and depth of Irish dressage and I’m really looking forward to Riesenbeck.”

The final squad of four to represent Ireland in Riesenbeck next month, plus non-travelling reserves, will be announced ahead of the definite entries.

Jumping nominated entries

The nominated entry list for the upcoming FEI Jumping European Championship 2023 in Milan, Italy, was published on the FEI website this week. Chef d’equipe Michael Blake has nominated eight riders for the event taking place from August 29th to September 3rd.

They are Trevor Breen (Highland President); Daniel Coyle (Gisborne VDL and Legacy); Michael Duffy (Cinca 3), Denis Lynch (Brooklyn Heights and Vistogrand); Eoin McMahon (Mila); Mikey Pender (HHS Calais); Jack Ryan (BBS McGregor) and Shane Sweetnam (James Kann Cruz).

The definite entry list will be available on August 7th. Ireland have the luxury of Olympic qualification secured from last year’s FEI World Championships in Herning where they finished fourth.

The FEI Eventing European Championships begins on Wednesday at Haras du Pin in France. A preview of the Irish team can be found on page 87.