KENNY AND PICOLO RECORD SECOND WIN AT FIVE STAR SPRUCE MEADOWS

OFFALY’S Darragh Kenny racked up his second win last night (Friday) at the five-star Spruce Meadows show in Calgary, Canada, while Co. Down’s Conor Swail placed second in the feature class of the day.

Kenny, who had a win on Thursday with the Diamant De Semilly gelding Picolo, repeated the formula with the same horse in Friday’s 1m45 Jump-Off class, seeing off challenges from a very strong field of Canadian and American international riders.

Afterwards the 26 year-old Belmont native said: “I knew there were a lot of people in the jump-off that were very fast. I had to go early in the jump-off. He’s a very capable horse, he’s very fast. I thought I’d just go for it and leave the door closed. Lucky enough, that worked out for me.”

Meanwhile Swail, who had placed third behind Kenny on Thursday with Game Ready, brought out Susan and Ariel Grange’s mare Martha Louise for the big Winning Round class at Calgary, but was narrowly beaten in the ten-horse jump off by Mexico’s Jaime Azcarraga with the chestnut stallion Matador.

Darragh Kenny and Picolo at Spruce Meadows