Kenny leads the way in Swedish five-star event
Offaly's Darragh Kenny led home Cian O’Connor in a 1.50m speed class to complete an Irish 1-2 at the five-star show in Falsterbo, Sweden yesterday afternoon (Thursday).
The pair form half of the Underwriting Exchange Irish Show Jumping team competing selected by Michael Blake to compete in the Nations Cup today (Friday). A very strong Irish team is completed by Conor Swail and O’Connor’s teammate on the squad bound for the Paris Olympics, Daniel Coyle.
Thursday's action was about individual competition with Tokyo Olympian Kenny and his horse Chic Chic coming out marginally on top.
“It’s a good positive start to the show,” said a happy Kenny afterwards. “I was delighted with my horse, he jumped well and it was great to start with a win.
“It certainly puts you in a positive frame of mind to begin like that and with Cian in second too, hopefully it’s a good omen ahead of the Nations Cup.
“It’s a busy part of the season for me. I go to Dinard’s five-star show next week, then return to America for two weeks and then it’ll be back to Ireland for the Dublin Horse Show, which is always a season highlight. But for now, this was a great start here in Falsterbo and hopefully we can keep it going,” Kenny added.
A field of 57 came through the gates into the international arena in Falsterbo, with 13 obstacles comprising 16 jumping efforts to navigate.
O’Connor, the Meath-based native of Kill, Co. Kildare, entered the fray before Kenny on board Eve d’Ouilly. The Karlswood Stables supremo and his ten-year-old mare, owned in partnership with Nicole Walker, were outstanding from start to finish, jumping clear and setting a competitive mark of 69.81 seconds to beat.
It was a target which was beyond all bar one duo, that of Kenny and Chic Chic.
Kenny, the Florida-based show jumping star from Belmont, sauntered onto the stage with the 14-year-old stallion he co-owns with Vlock Show Stables, Chic Chic.
Once more, they were foot perfect but crucially found some slightly quicker turns to inch a slice a little over two-tenths of a second off the time set by O’Connor and Eve d’Ouilly, stopping the clock on 69.59.
The only pair that threatened to break-up the green-jacketed dominance were Martin Fuchs (Switzerland) and Bastille. They gave it a real good shot too, dipping under the 70-second mark, on 69.99 to claim the final podium position.
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