IRISH Olympic show jumper Darragh Kenny has been granted permission to return to competition on February 12th after a four-month provisional suspension. Having been a member of the team which finished fourth at last year’s European show jumping championships at A Coruna in Spain, Kenny was notified of a positive result for a prohibited medication under anti-doping regulations. He later confirmed that this medication was part of a prescribed treatment plan for managing attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Kenny was suspended from competition last October 13th, and at the time he said: “I am cooperating fully with the FEI and the International Testing Agency to clarify the circumstances surrounding this case. I want to emphasise that I never intended to gain any competitive advantage. My sole aim was to address a medical condition under professional guidance. I am deeply grateful to my National Federation, my sponsors, owners, clients and the broader equestrian community for their support through this process.”

In an update, the FEI published that a final agreement on Kenny’s case was reached on January 15th, and that his suspension will end on February 12th. Meanwhile, Bertram Allen has been enjoying an excellent run of form on horses previously campaigned by Kenny. With Kenny’s European championship ride Eddy Blue, Allen won the Adequan WEF Challenge Round 3 in Florida last week, while on board Zero K he also topped a 1.50m speed class at the same show.