IRELAND’S WORLD EQUESTRIAN GAMES CAMPAIGN BEGINS ON MONDAY

24 August 2014, 19:52

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IRELAND kicks off its campaign at the World Equestrian Games (WEG) at Caen in France tomorrow (Monday) with 21 riders competing across five disciplines – Dressage, Endurance, Para Dressage, Eventing and Jumping.

First up in the international schedule is Dressage, which begins at 7.15 am with the Team Grand Prix. Ireland is represented by James Connor with his own Casino Royal, Anna Merveldt on Eva Zanelli’s Vancouver, Judy Reynolds with Joe and Kathleen Reynolds’s Vancouver K, and Roland Tong with Sarah Wrigley’s Pompidou.The Team Grand Prix runs over two days, and the Irish Chef d’Equipe is Amanda Renouard.

Ireland previously fielded dressage teams at the World Equestrian Games in 1998 (Rome) and 2002 (Jerez de la Frontera).

Para Dressage begins at 8am with the first Team Test, which has four sessions and also finishes on Tuesday. The Irish contingent for the discipline is Breda Bernie on Donal Healy and Valerie Healy’s Irish Sport Horse Master Mexico, James Dwyer with Patrick Dwyer’s Orlando, Helen Kearney on Mary Kearney and Heike Holstein’s Irish Sport Horse Mister Cool, and Kate Kerr-Horan with Broomfield Farm’s Arlande. The Irish Chef d’Equipe is Dara Kearney.

James Dwyer and Helen Kearney were members of Ireland’s Bronze medal-winning team at the London Paralympics in 2012, with Kearney also adding an Individual Silver and one Freestyle Bronze to her medal haul.

Irish participation in the games at Normandy continues with Eventing and Endurance, which begin on Thursday, while Jumping is scheduled to begin on September 2nd.

The Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games™ 2014 in Normandy brings together close to 1,000 riders and 1,000 horses from 74 nations for 15 days of world-class competition. The World Equestrian Games take place every four years, halfway between sets of consecutive Summer Olympic Games, and are administered by the world governing body, the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI).