AUSTIN O’Connor has become the first Irish event rider in 58 years to win a five-star eventing competition after an outstanding performance at the prestigious Maryland five-star in Fairhill, USA.

He is also the first ever Irish rider to win a five-star on American soil.

Mallow man O’Connor and the Kate Jarvey-bred Colorado Blue were crowned champions last Sunday evening, following in the footsteps of Major Eddie Boylan and Durlas Eile who won the five-star Badminton Horse Trials in 1965.

The win follows a podium placing at Badminton Horse Trials earlier this year where they finished third in the tough conditions with the fastest cross-country time of the day. It was the first time in over 40 years an Irish athlete had achieved the feat.

The 48-year-old and ‘Salty’, bred by long-time supporter of Irish eventing, Kate Jarvey, have been going from strength to strength recently – the striking 14-year-old grey gelding were Ireland’s highest placed combination at the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games.

A delighted Austin O'Connor on Colorado Blue after they show jumped clear inside the time, taking them to five-star victory at Maryland \ Shannon Brinkman Photography

They also helped Ireland secure qualification for the Paris Olympics as part of the team at the World Championship in Pratoni, Italy, in September 2022, as well as that Badminton podium finish.

The combination lay in 12th place after the opening dressage phase on Friday with 33.7 and climbed eight places to fourth after a brilliant cross-country performance on Saturday where they added just 1.2 time penalties.

Challenging course

Ian Stark’s cross-country course proved challenging with nine combinations not completing and only one combination – Mia Farley and Phelps – coming home clear inside the optimum time. O’Connor’s was the second fastest round of the day.

With the riders then show jumping in reverse order the pressure was on and clear rounds were few and far between with no rider jumping clear inside the time allowed.

A tense but thankfully clear show jumping round (thanks to ‘Salty’ recovering well from a hairy moment) produced the only clear inside the time allowed, and this saw them climb from overnight fourth place to take the massive victory on a final score of 34.9.

Following her excellent cross-country Farley dropped from third place to fifth with two fences down. William Fox-Pitt had one fence down to finish just behind O’Connor on 35.3 with Grafennacht. Oliver Townend was the final rider into the arena riding the Irish Sport Horse Cooley Rosalent (Valent) bred by JW Rosbotham but an unfortunate two fences down dropped him from first to third. Another Irish-bred, Greenacres Special Cavalier bred by Michael Callery, finished sixth with Caroline Powell (NZL).

Austin O'Connor and Colorado Blue at the 2023 Burghley Horse Trials \ Nigel Goddard

Life’s work

Speaking afterwards, an emotional O’Connor revealed that a five-star win was something he thought he might never achieve.

“People like me – we’re not supposed to win five-stars, but it’s just happened, I think,” he said.

“It’s the end result of a lifetime’s work really. Ultimately it’s all about the horse – he is unbelievable, he’s been a champion for years and privately I was prepared to give him to somebody better because I thought he deserved to win a five-star and I didn’t think I could win one with him, but here we are.”

“What an amazing achievement for Austin O’Connor and Salty [Colorado Blue] - it is so well deserved for them both and breeder Kate Jarvey from Mellon Stud in Limerick,” Irish Horse Board Director General Alison Corbally said.

“A five-star win is the pinnacle for any eventing rider and Austin has bridged a 58-year-gap to join an elite group of Irish five-star winning Eventing riders. Congratulations also to JW Rosbotham, breeder of the third place finisher Cooley Rosalent (ISH) and Michael Callery, the breeder of Greenacres Special Cavalier (ISH) who finished sixth.”

Unorthodox

It was an unorthodox route to the win at Maryland, but following an unlucky 20 penalties and retiring early on the cross country at the CCI5* Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials in September, O’Connor changed his plans. The stage was set and he was making the trip across the Atlantic with the goal of bringing home another big result.

“We went to Burghley and things just didn’t go right – that was that,” O’Connor said. “So we took the gamble to go to Maryland and I suppose it worked.

“One of the main committee members at Maryland, Tim Gardner, spoke to me at Burghley. He said ‘come on, head up and get over to Maryland’ and that’s what put the idea into our head, to be fair.

“We were close enough after the dressage and then I was really encouraged when we walked the cross country and knew it was a real, proper, five star,” O’Connor added.

“There was the obvious disadvantage of having to go first cross country, I was the pathfinder. But we roll with the punches and I stuck to the plan.

“Ultimately, he jumped a beautiful round and it was enough to give us the win.

“I hope now that this can give eventing in Ireland a boost. The Badminton was a great result and I hope this shines a light on eventing and shows the public that we are a force to be reckoned with in this sport too.”

Colorado Blue (SHBGB) is a 2009 gelding by Jaguar Mail (SF) out of Rock Me Baby (AES), by Rock King (WNTR) owned in partnership between O’Connor and The Salty Syndicate.