IRELAND’S eventing team’s standout result at the FEI World Championships last week was in securing Olympic qualification, just as their fifth-place result at Pratoni four years ago did likewise for the Paris Olympics.

Los Angeles place securely booked, what were the main talking points from the pedigrees and studbooks viewpoint? Well, if the 2022 World Championships belonged to the Selle Français studbook, this was the championship of the Holsteiner Verband and German breeders.

Four Holsteiner horses in the top 10 (compared to one - the individual 10th-placed McClaren at Pratoni) this time around, then an individual bronze medallist horse London 52 (HOLST).

Above Laura Collett’s 17-year-old and Ros Canter’s remarkable Lordships Graffalo in silver medal place, was the GOAT [Greatest Of All Time]: Michael Jung and his 18-year-old veteran fischerChipmunk FRH.

The strong performance by the Holsteiner Verband has already altered Hippomundo’s weekly-updated rankings, as the German studbook has now dislodged the Irish Sport Horse (ISH) from its regular top perch.

While the Aachen effect won’t be known until the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFSH) rankings are updated at the end of August, the WBFSH’s latest July set showed the German studbook still in second place to the long-standing Irish studbook leader.

Those June rankings showed the ISH studbook leading the Holsteiner Verband by 82 points (WBFSH rankings are based on FEI points won by the top-six performers from member studbooks). July’s results had an increased 112-point buffer zone between the ISH and Holsteiner pair, which could all change post-Aachen and the autumn five-star events.

In the individual horse rankings, the World Championships prize money has shaken up Hippomundo’s eventing rankings, which normally remain relatively static between the now half-dozen five-star events around the globe, compared to the fast-paced show jumping circuit.

On the Individual Medal Podium, L-R, Rosalind Canter (silver medal), Michael Jung (gold medal) and Laura Collett (bronze medal) at the FEI Eventing World Championship - Individual Competition at Aachen 2026 \ FEI/Benjamin Clark

Chipmunk the leapfrog

Lordships Graffalo’s individual silver (€28,200) and share of the gold-medal team pot (€11,620) has added a total of €39,820 to his 2026 earnings of €183,498 from just three starts this year.

Diabalo 556, best-placed of the US world championship team with Will Coleman after their fourth-place finish, has consolidated his runner-up place in the current Hippomundo rankings, while Tim Price’s ride Falco also retains third place.

The top-10 new face is fischerChipmunk, who has leapfrogged up to fourth place, ahead of the Irish Sport Horse mare Annaghmore Valoner (Coroner - Annaghmore Lady Valier, by Black Walter. Breeder: Sinead Healion).

Prior to their impressive Aachen result, fischerChipmunk had banked a mere €2,670 from his three outings this summer to his Hippomundo account of €488,543. His 2026 prize money was mainly picked up from a winning Nations Cup appearance with Jung at Marbach CSIO4*-NC back in May, on the German ace’s Black Forest doorstep.

So, fischerChipmunk is one addition to Hippomundo’s top 10 in fourth, then Annaghmore Valoner moves to fifth place, ahead of ISH compatriot, HSH Blake (Tolan R - Doughiska Lass, by Kannan. Breeder: Justin Burke).

Although Caroline Pamukcu and HSH Blake’s elimination on cross-country day is a score the American team would rather chalk up to experience, their place on the bronze medal team still earned the pair €5,600 for their appearance.

Likewise, Flash Cooley (CSF Mr Kroon - Castlefield Ruby, by OBOS Quality 004. Breeder: Jim O’Neill) and Gemma Stevens had the same fate on cross-country day, but still claimed €11,620 as their share of the victorious British gold medal team.

Incidentally, Flash Cooley, currently ranked 20th and 31st respectively in the WBFSH and Hippomundo event horse rankings, was the sole Irish Sport Horse on the British team at these world championships.

Austin O'Connor and Colorado Blue in action at the World Championships in Aachen \ Tomas Holcbecher

Irish connections

Four years ago, it was Off The Record (VDL Arkansas - Drumagoland Bay, by Ard Ohio. Breeder: Peter G Brady) that flew the ISH flag on the American team in Italy, watched on by his proud Cavan breeder. There, he and Will Coleman finished in individual seventh and were on the silver medal team.

Cooley Nutcracker (Tolan R - Ballyshan Cleopatra, by Cobra. Breeder: Gary Doherty) was the US team’s saving grace at the latest championships, finishing 13th individually with Boyd Martin.

There was no Irish-bred or born event horse in the Aachen top 10. The closest claim is courtesy of the 12th-placed Chicko (Lougherne Corea - Rock Limited Edition, by Limmerick. Breeder: John Reid), registered with BE/SIES (Breeders Elite Studbook for Irish and European Sporthorses).

One place behind Chicko and Alex Hua Tian (competing as an individual for China) was the aforementioned Cooley Nutcracker. Another Irish connection in the top-20 horses was Austin O’Connor’s evergreen Colorado Blue, foaled in Co Limerick at Mellon Stud and bred by Kate Jarvey. They placed 19th individually last weekend and were also on the fifth-placed Irish world championships team in Pratoni in 2022.

Eleventh-placed Aoife Clark’s horse at Aachen - Full Monty de Lacense - was the sole Selle Français in the top 20 at these championships. A considerable change from just four years ago, when there were three in the top 10 on the final day, including individual gold and silver medal horses, Banzai du Loire and Amande de B’Neville.

Quite a sea change too from Tryon, where there were five Irish-breds on Team GB and Team Ireland’s gold and silver medal teams at the 2018 championships.

Quarrycrest Echo (Clover Echo - Royal China, by Cavalier Royale. Breeder: John Dooley) and Arctic Soul xx (Luso - Dream Cocktail, by Roi Danzig. Breeder: Michael Whitty) lined out on the British team.

On the Irish team, we saw Horseware Ardagh Highlight (Puissance - Gentle Servant, by Kings Servant. Breeder: Teresa Walsh), Horseware Stellor Rebound (VDL Ricochet. Breeder: Rhona Barnwell) and Rioghan Rua (Jack of Diamonds - Highland Destiny, by Flagmount King. Breeder: Margaret Kinsella) win silver.

Padraig McCarthy and MGH Zabaione on the cross-country course at the World Championships in Aachen \ Tomas Holcbecher

Tolan R tally

Six Irish Sport Horses were still on the start list by last Sunday, including Padraig McCarthy on his home-bred MGH Zabaione (24th) and Ian Cassells with Millridge Atlantis (29th), both on the Irish team that confirmed their Los Angeles tickets.

Apart from the stalwart Colorado Blue, which other horses were on the Irish team at Pratoni four years ago? Padraig McCarthy had the Westphalian-bred Fallulah, Susie Berry competed Monbeg By Design (Pacino - Eskerhills Lexis, by Puissance. Breeder: Fiona Molloy) and, of course, Sam Watson was aboard the Traditional Irish Horse, SAP Talisman (Puissance - Ali Row, by Ali Royal. Breeder: Rosemary Ponsonby).

No sightings of any Traditional Irish Horses in this year’s world championships, which is a concern, as is indeed the quiet showing of Irish Sport Horses of any denomination.

Four years ago, French breeding dominated the world eventing championships, this time around, it’s German bloodlines galore, particularly those of the Holsteiner breed.

That strong German presence continues in the sire rankings. Three German-breds: Diarado (HOLST), Birkhof’s Grafenstolz (TRAK) and Cardenio (HOLST) are Hippomundo’s top-three eventing stallions post-Aachen.

Two more Holsteiners - Contendro I (fifth) and Carambole (10th) - also fill up the top 10.

The good news is Tolan R ranks fourth and the thoroughbred Coroner is in sixth place. While the late Coroner’s result is courtesy of his daughter Annaghmore Valoner - one of only two progeny on the Hippomundo database - the Dutch-bred Tolan R, brought to Ireland by Alan Robertson, has 20.

And these include three selected for Aachen: the US pair of Cooley Nutcracker and HSH Blake, plus Cecelia Lad (Tolan R - Renkum Lass, by Renkum Englishman. Breeder: James Rogan). This 11-year-old rounded off the 59 finishers at the 2026 championship with Italy’s Andrea Cincinnati.

Tight at the top

Any thoroughbred runners at Aachen? Same number as Tolan R offspring: three. Humble Glory (14th), the globetrotting Artist (26th) and Seattle Park (36th), with Sophia Hill (AUS), Monica Spencer (NZL) and Jillian Giessens (NED) respectively.

Thoroughbreds remain in ninth place in Hippomundo’s studbook rankings, sandwiched in between the AWHA (Australian Warmblood Horse Association) and Australian Warmblood studbooks, post-Adelaide CCI5*-L.

Climbing up the leaderboard, the Anglo European Studbook (AES) lies in seventh place, after the KWPN (sixth), Selle Français (fifth), Hannoverian Verband (fourth), Sport Horse Breeding (GB) in third and then the Irish Sport Horse in second and new leaders, the Holsteiner Verband at the top.

Much between them? No, the German studbook currently leads on €396,941, the ISH tally is €383,417 and then there is a substantial gap, by eventing prize money standards, to the third and fourth-placed studbooks.

Lordships Graffalo’s latest Badminton win has boosted the SHB(GB) studbook to €259,957 to the narrowest of leads ahead of the Hannoverian Verband (€258,241). A win and/or top-10 result by any of these studbooks’ horses in the two autumn five-stars, Burghley and Pau, could well see another reshuffle across Hippomundo and the WBFSH eventing leaderboards.

Aachen was a lucky hunting ground for the Irish Olympic dream, just as it was for Ben Along Time 20 years ago. No individual medal for an Irish Sport Horse at these championships, but the Olympic flame is now well and truly lit.

Ian Cassells and Millridge Atlantis on the cross-country course at the World Championships in Aachen \ Tomas Holcbecher

Next week: World championship show jumping bloodlines

By the numbers

3 – top-10 horses from Pratoni repeated that same result in Aachen: Lordships Graffalo (individual fourth in 2022), fischerChipmunk (fifth) and Zaragoza (sixth).

2 – German-bred individual medal-winning horses: fischerChipmunk FRH and London 52.

1 – Irish Sport Horse in the individual top 20 at Aachen: Cooley Nutcracker (13th).

Did you know?

  • Ben Along Time (Cavalier Royale - Campaigner’s Dream, by Campaigner. Breeder: Ann Marie Jamieson. Rider: Clayton Fredericks (AUS)) retains his record as the most recent Irish Sport Horse to win a world championship individual eventing medal. He won silver at the 2006 World Equestrian Games, also held in Aachen.
  • Chicko’s family includes Jim Newsam’s five-star horse Magennis, Heike Holstein’s Tokyo Olympics dressage mare Sambuca and the Anglo European Studbook-approved stallion The Actor.
  • There’s an Irish connection to the consistent Zaragoza, again placed in the top 10 at the World Championships. By the Cor de la Bryere grandson Cevin Z, Zaragoza’s dam is the Irish Sport Horse mare Saracen’s Pride, by the thoroughbred sire Saracen Hill. She was bred in England by Jane Young and was competed at her second world championships by French rider, Gaspard Maksud. The pair finished best of the French team in fifth place.
  • FRH - fischerChipmunk’s suffix is an abbreviation for ‘Supporters’ Club for Hanoverian Sports Horses’, founded in 1985.
  • A quick look at the pre-Aachen Hippomundo show jumping rankings shows one of the championships’ hot favourites - United Touch S - at the top (€872,750). Next is FEI World Cup champion Greya (€708,185), followed by Steve Guerdat’s recent Rolex Grand Prix winner at Dublin: Albfuehrens Iashin Sitte (€630,455). Highest-earning Irish Sport Horse? Not surprisingly, it’s Falsterbo Grand Prix winner James Kann Cruz (Kannan - CSF Telly Cruz. Breeder: Patrick Connolly) on €426,308, which earns him 13th place currently.
  • London 52’s breeder Ocke Riewerts was at Aachen to watch him and Laura Collett compete there. Laura has now booked his ‘next London 52’, a similarly-bred Landos x Quinar foal due on his farm next year. Smooth work, Herr Riewerts!

    • Aachen individual medallists

    Gold - fischerChipmunk FRH (HANN) by Contendro I (HOLST) - Havanna (HANN), by Heraldik (TB). Breeder: Hilmer Meyer-Kulenkampf. Rider: Michael Jung (GER).

    Silver - Lordships Graffalo (SHBGB), by Birkhof’s Grafenstolz TSF (TRAK) - Cornish Queen (SHBGB), by Rock King (WNTR). Breeder: Pennie Wallace/Lordships Stud. Rider: Ros Canter (GBR).

    Bronze - London 52 (HOLST), by Landos (HOLST) - Vernante (HOLST), by Quinar (HOLST). Breeder: Ocke Riewerts. Rider: Laura Collett (GBR).

    Top 10 by studbook

    1 – fischerChipmunk FRH (HANN)

    2 – Lordships Graffalo (SHBGB)

    3 – London 52 (HOLST)

    4 – Diabalo 556 (HOLST)

    5 – Zaragoza (AES)

    6 – Vassily de Lassos (SF)

    7 – JL Dublin (HOLST)

    8 – Alertamalib’or (AA)

    9 – Carlitos Quidditch K (HOLST)

    10 – Je’Vall (KWPN)

    Team Ireland – fourth

    COLORADO BLUE (SHB(GB) by Jaguar Mail (SF) - Rock Me Baby (AES), by Rock King (SHB(GB)). Breeder: Kate Jarvey. Rider: Austin O’Connor.

    FULL MONTY DE LACENSE (SF). Quickly de Kreisker (SF) - Lola de la Cense (SF), by Vesontio du Mesnil (SF). Breeder: SCEA Du Nouron. Rider: Aoife Clark.

    MGH ZABAIONE (ISH) by Zavall VDL (KWPN) - Viancara (KWPN), by Acobat II (HOLST). Breeder/Rider: Padraig McCarthy.

    MILLRIDGE ATLANTIS (ISH) by Dinan Cascaletto (ISH) - Kereen Sue (ISH) by Warrenstown You 2 (ISH). Breeder: Sean McLoughlin. Rider: Ian Cassells.