A LEADING breeder’s award on the way for Justin Burke; two Irish Sport Horses - HSH Blake and James Kann Cruz - are the top-ranked and number two horses in eventing and show jumping; Patrick Connolly is the second-highest ranked show jumping breeder and a reclaimed title are among the standouts from the just-released WBFSH rankings.
The World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFSH) eventing studbook rankings came down to a tight race after the Holsteiner Verband overtook its Irish rivals in the penultimate August rankings. Bidding for a treble, the German studbook was thwarted by the Irish Sport Horse studbook after a strong showing by Irish-breds at Burghley CCI5*-L.
No win there, but their four top-10 Burghley results, including third place for the WBFSH’s new eventing horse leader, HSH Blake, saw the ISH studbook (1,454 points) reclaim the title, last won in 2023. The Holsteiner Verband (1,373) and Sport Horse Breeding (GB) (1,247) complete the top three.
HSH Blake’s strong finish means his breeder, Justin Burke, will receive the Longines WBFSH Breeders’ Award early in 2027. Two more Irish Sport Horses are in the WBFSH top 10: Cooley Park Muze (Seventh. Pollux de Muze. Breeder: John Connolly) in seventh place and another by HSH Blake’s sire: Cooley Nutcracker (10th. Tolan R. Breeder: Gary Doherty).
Brookfield Quality (OBOS Quality. Sean Kelly), Tullabeg Platinum (Dignified van’t Zorgvliet. Nicholas Cousins) and Shanroe Cooley (Dallas VDL. Anthony Smyth) complete the winning ISH event horse team.
The other WBFSH top-10 event horses are Diabalo (HOLST. Second), Treworra (SHB(GB). Third), Lordships Graffalo (SHB(GB). Fourth), Filao de Perle (SF. Fifth), Zaragoza (AES. Sixth), Chicko (BE/SEIS. Eighth) and Vasilly de Lassos (SF. Ninth).
Meanwhile, fellow Galwegian Patrick Connolly came close to matching Burke’s result, jumping from sixth to second in the show jumping breeders’ final standings, due to the Kannan gelding’s outstanding year.
Seventh in August, the ISH studbook has held that place in the final show jumping rankings of the WBFSH calendar year (October - October). Alongside James Kann Cruz are his five ISH teammates: Clonterm Obolensky (22nd. Cornet Obolensky. Breeder: Brian Duff), My Clementine (37th. OBOS Quality 004. David Prentice), BH Gringos Legacy (50th. Tullibard Benny’s Legacy. Kieran Phelan), ESI Rocky (81st. Stakkato Gold. Ennisnag Stud) and a second Ennisnag Stud-bred: ESI Ali (153rd. Stakkato Gold).
The WBFSH top-10 ranked show jumping horses of 2026 are Bull Run’s Jireh (HOLST), James Kann Cruz (ISH), Impress-K Van’t Kattenheye Z (ZANG), Otello de Guldenboom (BWP), Gangster Montdesir (SF), Coriaan van Klapscheut (ZANG), Dynastie de Beaufour (SF), Greya (OS), Golden Boy DK (SF) and Itchcock Des Dames (sBs).
Full WBFSH rankings analysis next week.
Building something special
Justin Burke and Patrick Connolly, two County Galway breeders based just 35 kilometres apart, have achieved a remarkable feat in the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFSH) rankings.
The Federation is in town this week for its General Assembly, and the timing is perfect, as the Irish Sport Horse (ISH) eventing studbook has regained its long-held top spot in the WBFSH rankings.
On top of that, HSH Blake, bred by Burke, tops the individual eventing horse rankings and the Connolly-bred James Kann Cruz has leapfrogged from 44th place last year to second place in 2026.
It’s only the third time in WBFSH rankings history that an Irish Sport Horse has ranked number one overall. Ringwood Cockatoo was first 20 years ago, followed by Mr Medicott in 2012, both event horses and both Traditional Irish Horses. And now HSH Blake.
“I bought his mother, a Kannan mare in 2007. I was milking cows back at that time, but I sold the cows and wanted to get some Connemaras. I went to a friend of Dad’s and he said, ‘I don’t have Connemaras, but I know where there’s some mares for sale. I ended up buying a bundle of mares; she was one of them, and that’s how we started,” said Justin, explaining how Doughiska Lass, by the same sire as James Kann Cruz, ended up at his Galwaybay Stud.
“She’s still with me here, she produced two Tolan R embryos last year and she’s going for ICSI next week.”
Alan Robertson brought Tolan R (Namelus R x Aramis) to Ireland from the Netherlands, and he is the sire of two top-10 event horses in this year’s rankings, including Cooley Nutcracker. “A beautiful black horse, he stood at Drumhowan Stud when I had a share in him, as I had two stallions down here,” added Justin.
HSH Blake (originally Galwaybay Blake) was sold as a foal to Mary Mangan, from Conna. “Jimmy, her husband, used to train a few horses for Dad, so that’s how that came about. Mary wanted a blood-type foal and she produced him herself, placing fourth in the Young Event Horse Series four-year-old final at Dublin Horse Show.
“He was just something special as a foal, a poser and he was always really, really friendly.”
Sold to the US, through Kelley Hutchinson, HSH Blake and Caroline Pamakcu went on to win individual gold at the 2023 Pan American Games, were on the seventh-placed US team at the Paris Olympics, finished second at Kentucky CCI5*-L this spring and then their third place at Burghley CCI5*-L helped clinch his, Burke’s and the Irish Sport Horse titles in the rankings.
“There’s not a lot of money in eventing; it’s total prestige,” said Justin, comparing the prize money between equestrian sports. “He’s been very lucky, the people and home he went to. They have [HSH] Connor (Connor x Mermus R) as well, another four-star horse that I bred.”
Just weeks ago, Galwaybay Esmeralda (Emerald x Mermus R) was fourth in the seven-year-old final at the FEI WBFSH young show jumping horses championship at Lanaken with Jude Burgess (GB).
“It’s been a brilliant couple of weeks. I’ve been so lucky with horses. Unbelievable. They’ve totally transformed everything for me.
"I’ll put it all back though to where they’re sold or who they go to. When Luibanta BH went to the right house, she became the number one Irish Sport Horse in the world. It’s all to do with how they’re produced and where they go.”
Like Patrick Connolly, Justin has previously finished as the top Irish breeder in the WBFSH rankings, when Luibanta BH (Luidam) was the best-ranked Irish Sport Horse in 2018 and 2020. James Kann Cruz produced that same WBFSH result for his breeder in 2022 and 2024.
“We’re [the Galway pair] only smallholders in comparison to the number of foals some of the big European studs produce. The job is easy now because the horses sell themselves. The first 10 years are slave work; you need to dig in, but you need the mares, you need the mare line, and to get them to the right home. Take less money, if you have to, but get them into the right home.
“What’s this [ISH success] going to mean with this? That we’ll hopefully be able to get more people to come over and buy Irish horses.”