HAVING won gold and silver in the six-year-old class, Belgium’s Lara de Liedekerke-Meier and Ireland’s Ian Cassells returned for the seven-year-old prize-giving ceremony but this time the pair had to settle for silver and bronze behind Britain’s Tom McEwen.

The Gloucestershire-based rider, who was third after dressage, claimed gold on the Irish Sport Horse gelding Brookfield Danny De Muze whose total of 29.6 including 0.4 for time across the country. Disappointingly for De Liedekerke-Meier, who led from Thursday’s opening session of dressage on Helios and was clear within the time across the country, the Hanoverian gelding just managed to get through the treble at seven but took out the following oxer for a three-phase score of 32.3.

Cassells won his second medal of the day on Nuala McDonald’s Noa W who was 30th after dressage on 32.8. On an unusually grief-filled cross-country day, the combination jumped up to seventh when home clear within the time and, despite being a second over on Sunday, they moved up to third on 33.2.

Among those in the 70-runner field who failed to complete over Pierre Michelet’s cross-country track on Saturday were England-based American Hallie Coon and this year’s Millstreet CCIYH2*-S winner Boleybawn Oliva, who were second after dressage, Britain’s Emily Young-Jamieson (La Vita 44) and France’s Thomas Carlile (Iam du Loir) who were lying co-third going into this phase, and the German pair of Julia Krajewski (Intouchable Tonic) and Mathies Rüder (Hjoptimus) who were co-third following the first phase.

“Antonia Ward competed this fellow for Nuala a few times in 2023 and throughout 2024 and I took over at the start of this season,” said Cassells of the KWPN-registered Noa W who is by Baltic VDL out of the Indoctro mare Gucretia. “He too has come on leaps and bounds since competing in his first 2*-L at Ballindenisk in April. He jumped a double clear at Millstreet and when we moved him up to 3* at Lisgarvan.

“He, too, only got to do dressage at Ballindenisk in September but coped well with the cross-country here.

"He’s not the easiest but I’d like to think he’d be one for the eight and nine-year-old class at Blenheim next year and then we will be into the next Olympic cycle.

“I was delighted with the way both horses coped with the long journey, the boat trip and the massive crowd on cross-country day. They both settled well and you’d hope the experience stands to them in the long term; there’s always an incredible atmosphere here.”

Cassells drove the two horses over to Le Lion himself, accompanied by his groom for the past five years Leanne Foster, arriving there on the morning of Monday week last and back home on last Monday night. They also kindly brought out items for the Irish Horse Board stand.

The highest-placed Irish rider, apart from Cassells, was Co Wexford’s Paddy Byrne who finished eighth on the Irish Sport Horse gelding Belline Castle Onr Candy. On an emotional weekend for owner Richard Ames, the Sligo Candy Boy chesnut completed on a total of 37.8 which included 0.8 of a show jumping time fault. Noel Dunne picked up a small number of time penalties in both jumping phases to finish 13th on another son of Sligo Candy Boy, Jenny Curley’s ISH gelding Kief Rhapsody of Belline (39.7), with Sam Watson rounding up the top 20 on Ballybolger Goldman who lowered three of the show jumping fences for a total of 45.3. The dun ISH gelding by Tullabeg Fusion is owned by the rider’s wife Hannah Watson and Lesley Crampton.