The in-form Darragh Kenny finished fifth in Sunday's €1 million Rolex Grand Prix at the World Equestrian Festival in Aachen with Jack Snyder's Babalou 41.
The Co Offaly native was one of seven riders to go clear in the first two rounds of the German leg of the Rolex grand slam of show jumping but, in a time of 48.04 seconds, had a fence down in the third for earnings of €60,000. The USA’s Kent Farrington claimed the €330,000 first prize with the faster of two triple clears on Gazelle (43.98) while Germany’s Daniel Deusser finished second on Scuderia 1918 Tobago Z (44.35).
Three Irish riders progressed to the jump-off round of Sunday's five-star Grand Prix at Ascona in Switzerland where double clears from Co Cork's Billy Twomey on Chat Botte ED (39.74) and Tipperary-born Denis Lynch with GC Chopin's Bushi (41.15) saw them finish fourth and fifth behind Belgium's Jos Verlooy riding Caracas (37.73).
Across the Atlantic, Kilkenny’s Willie Tynan saw off four American rivals in a five-strong jump-off to win Sunday’s 1.45m Grand Prix at the Flintfields Horse Park near Michigan with the nine-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare Fancy Girl.
Derry's Jordan Coyle concluded his week at the three-star show in Ottawa, Canada with a second-place finish in Sunday's 1.50m Grand Prix with Niclas Haking's 12-year-old Anglo European stallion Picador.
Local rider Elizabeth Power won both Grand Prix competitions over the weekend at the Tattersalls July Show in Co Meath with her own Doonaveeragh O One.
Having narrowly landed The Underwriting Exchange national 1.40m Grand Prix on Saturday, Power and the 18-year-old High Roller gelding came out again 24 hours later to comfortably claim the TRM/HSI New Heights champions series 1.50m Grand Prix by a near four-second margin.
This coming week, Power will be in eventing mode as she due to ride five horses at the Sema Lease Camphire international horse trials in Co Waterford. There are seven international classes on the schedule including the Irish leg of eventing’s Nations’ Cup in which Belgium, Italy, The Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland will be fighting it out to be the highest-placed team to gain an Olympic qualification. There are two masterclass competitions for four and five-year-old horses.
Sunday’s show jumping programme at Tattersalls also included the finals of the Irish Sport Horse Studbook series for young horses.
The recent Hickstead Derby-winning rider, Co Kildare's Mikey Pender, took the honours in the seven-year-old final on the Heritage Fortunus gelding HHS Fast Forward which was bred by his owner, Marion Hughes, out of the Cavalier Royale mare, China Cavalier. The six-year-old final went to the Flex A Bill gelding Dawsons Flex, ridden by Jason Foley for John Kearney, while Barry O'Connor's Emerald van't Ruytershof mare, Madges Lane Emma, landed the five-year-old final under Oisin Aylward.
In the showing section, the Connolly’s Red Mills champion of champions final, which was conducted in driving rain, was won by Nicola Perrin riding John Stafford’s home-bred five-year-old Rosheen Yeats gelding Major Malone. PJ Casey filled the reserve slot with the best four-year-old, Thady Lynch’s Natal gelding, Killycloghan Supreme Time.
