Breeding

Susan Finnerty

SILAGE-cutting was abandoned by the Kells family during the Rio Olympics as they followed the progress of US team horse Mighty Nice. And when the Ard Ohio 12-year-old, ridden by Philip Dutton, won a bronze medal, it also helped clinch the gelding’s second place result in the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFSH) rankings this year.

Then named Over The Vee, he first featured in The Irish Horse in Mary Davison’s reports when the June Burgess-owned gelding shone with Seamus Hayes in the FEHL series and later Joseph Murphy before the horse’s sale to the States.

Equine interest

“I’ve always had an interest in horses and my father was of the generation that worked the farm with horses,” said his breeder William Kells, whose eight-year-old grand-daughter Danielle started riding lessons this year.

“The silage should have taken a day, it took nearly a week because we were watching the Olympics!” laughs his son, Richard.

William bought Mighty Nice’s dam Sarazen at the local mart and the 30-year-old mare, said to be by Penistone, is still on his beef and dairy farm.

She caught the eye of local vet, the late Brian Wall (uncle of Horse Sport Ireland chairman Prof Pat Wall).

“He spotted her in the yard and said that mare could be covered by any stallion and throw a good foal,” William recalled.

He also has Mighty Nice’s full-sister Corradorns Miss Ohio and her smart Creevagh Ferro filly is amongst next Friday’s foal entries at Cavan, where Mighty Nice was sold as a foal.

Incidentally, Sarazen, Corradorns Miss Ohio and Creevagh Ferro were all show jumped by Robert Murdy, who breaks in William’s youngsters.

His story is one that many Irish farmer-breeders can identify with and has the dream bonus of breeding an Olympic medal winner.

“It’s all still sinking in,” says the Cavan farmer-breeder who will travel to Geneva next month to receive the WBFSH event breeders award for Mighty Nice.