European Eventing Championships underway today at Strzegom in Poland

The Irish Eventing team get their campaign underway today at the 2017 European Eventing Championships at Strzegom in Poland. The first of two days of Dressage starts at 9.15am Irish time.

From left, Sarah Ennis, Joseph Murphy, Eoin Thompson, Business manager TRM, Sally Corscadden, team manager, Trish Ryan and Michael Ryan at the recent senior Eventing final training for the European Championships at Dollanstown in Kilcock, Co Meath (Photo: David Maher/Sportsfile)

Michael Ryan will be first to go for Sally Corscadden’s team and enters the arena at 9.43am riding Dunlough Striker (ISH). He will be followed by Joseph Murphy with Sportsfield Othello (ISH) at 1.28pm. Irish individual rider Patricia Ryan with Dunrath Eclipse (ISH) will perform her test at 3pm. Ireland’s remaining two team members, Sarah Ennis (Horseware Stellor Rebound (ISH), and Austin O’Connor (Kilpatrick Knight (ISH)(TIH), will start their Dressage tests on Friday.

The 2017 European Eventing Championships will continue with the Cross Country phase on Saturday, followed by Show Jumping on Sunday.

Ireland are among 19 nations represented, at what is the first senior Eventing Championships to be held at the Stragona Equestrian Center in Strzegom (POL) and the first one in Eastern Europe since Bialy Bor (POL) in 1986.

The German team is bidding for a fourth successive European team gold medal and world number one Michael Jung, whose extraordinary winning run began in Luhmühlen (GER) in 2011 with the great La Biosthetique Sam, will again be one of the favourites to take the individual title and, in the process, make Eventing history.

You can watch live on FEITV with updates on all Irish scores on Team Ireland Equestrian.