WITH preparations going full steam ahead for the Irish Masters show at Emerald International, the FEI has confirmed that the Mucklon, Co Kildare venue is in line to host three new international-level shows in 2015.

The new entrant onto the Irish show jumping scene, spearheaded by show jumper James Buckley and his team, are waiting approval for a two-star interntaional show to run in March 24th-29th next year, followed by a three-star show on June 2nd-7th and a two-star show on November 10th-15th, 2015.

For now though, the focus is on the upcoming Irish Masters show, which takes place over three days from November 14th-16th.

James Buckley is joined on the Emerald International team by his father Noel and brother Michael, as well as Pippa McDonald Clinch, Noel Boyle and Caroline Teltsch.

Work on the facility is nearing completion, with three outdoor arenas now finished and ready for jumping, while work is ongoing on the two indoor arenas have commenced. All arenas have the top of the range ‘cushion track elite’ surface with white silica sand, the first time this has been used in Ireland.

At 6,950 square metres, the indoor facility at Emerald International is the largest seated equestrian facility available to the public in Ireland. There are five designated boxes for sponsors with private seating.

“We intend to bring to the Irish equestrian world events and training that has not been widely available before. We have used only the best surfaces and are working alongside Equestrian Surfaces Ireland to ensure all of our surfaces are produced and maintained to the very highest standards,” said James Buckley.

Among the many attractions at the upcoming Irish Masters show will be a series of masterclasses with top level riders, including event riders Sarah Ennis, Nicola Ennis and Katie O’Sullivan who will cover training exercises for all three phases of eventing on Friday, November 14th.

On Saturday, November 15th, show jumpers Tholm Keene and Derek McConnell will host a stallion production master class and Greg Broderick and Ger O’Neill will host a young horse production masterclass, which will be repeated again on Sunday, November 16th.

Among the top show jumping competitions throughout the three days will be the Equestrian Surfaces Ireland Invitational Championship, a 1.40m Grand Prix class with a €6,000 prize fund. The top 15 riders in Ireland, as ranked by Showjumping Ireland, are automatically qualified for this class, while the remaining 10 starting places are secured by invitation only from Emerald International.

On Saturday, the classes include the CT PR & Event Management Ltd €3,000 five-year-old final, the €3,000 Accumulator, the €5,000 Emerald International Irish Masters Qualifier and the €3,000 Puissance.

Sunday will feature the €3,000 Bourn Sport Horses six-year-old final, the seven-year-old final, the fancy dress 1.30m speed class and the €2,000 Jim Derwin Equestrian Young Rider 1.35m competition.

The Sunday evening highlight will be the €15,000 Emerald International Irish Masters Grand Prix.

There were four qualification opportunities for the age classes, the first of which has already taken place at Barnadown. The remaining qualifiers will take place at Emerald International on Wednesday, October 22nd and Wednesday, October 29th, as well as at Cavan on the week preceeding the Masters show.

Among the other highlights at the show will be a pairs relay class between senior and pony riders, with the senior riders so far confirmed as Tholm Keane, Derek McConnell, Neal Fearon, Francis Connors, Gerard O’Neill, Nicola FitzGibbon, Paddy O’Donnell, Jack Doyle and Damien Griffin.

Senior riders will jump a course of 1.20m, while pony riders will jump 80-90cms.

To be in with a chance of pairing up with a senior rider, email your details to pippa@emeraldinternational.ie.

Tickets are now on sale for the November Masters show from ticketmaster.ie, costing €20 per adult and €15 per child. During a show with masterclasses there will be a small charge for seating (which is included in the €20 adult/€15 child price from Ticketmaster). This cost will ensure the reservation of designated seats for the whole day to view all the activities. There will also be designated free seating for owners and riders.

Meanwhile, a new restaurant seating up to 150 people and giving great views of the international arena has now been built and will be open for the Irish Masters Show. A full carvery, along with snacks and refreshments, will be on offer during all shows held at the venue. On both Sunday, October 19th and Sunday, October 26th, the venue will host outdoor show jumping classes ranging from 80cms up to 1.30m.

For more information on Emerald International, go to www.emeraldinternational.ie and check it out on Facebook and Twitter.