Ireland has revealed a strong line-up for of the 2019 European Eventing Championships.
The squad features a mix of Olympians and World medallists, who will compete in Luhmühlen, Germany, from 29 August to 1 September.
Three of the four riders who helped Ireland to team silver at the 2018 World Equestrian Games (WEG) in Tryon are on the squad.
These are Sam Watson riding Imperial Sky or Tullabeg Flamenco, Cathal Daniels on Rioghan Rua, and Sarah Ennis with Woodcourt Garrison.
They are joined by Clare Abbott and her Rio 2016 Olympic ride Euro Prince, and Ciaran Glynn aboard November Night.
Horse Sport Ireland’s high performance eventing director, Sally Corscadden, said this year has been about building on Ireland’s Tryon success, where it was the first Irish sports team to secure Olympic qualification.
“The bar in European eventing is set very high, so we are sending experienced combinations to represent Team Ireland at the Europeans,” she said.
“We can be full of confidence going to Luhmühlen with four-star international wins from European squad member Sam Watson and a great team result last weekend at our home Nations Cup in Camphire [where Ireland finished second].
“Fellow European squad members Ciaran Glynn and Clare Abbott produced top-class performances in Badminton, and Sarah Ennis — part of the silver medal-winning WEG team — is a proven championship rider.
“We are in the lucky position to have our full WEG management team accompanying us to the Europeans, with the new addition of Grant Wilson, replacing Ian Fearon as showjumping coach.”
The full squad is as follows:
- Clare Abbott riding Cormac McKay’s Euro Prince
- Cathal Daniels riding Frank and Margaret Kinsella’s Rioghan Rua
- Sarah Ennis riding Breda Kennedy’s Woodcourt Garrison
- Ciaran Glynn riding Susanna Franke and Peter Cole’s November Night
- Sam Watson riding Cathy Byrne & Hannah Watson’s Imperial Sky orVahe Bogossian’s Tullabeg Flamenco
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