SIX riders have qualified for the new Elementary class at the Irish Pony Club Equieire National Dressage Championships, which are taking place in CoilÓg on Tuesday, March 31st, at the start of the schools’ Easter break.

Joining the Bray Branch’s Emily Grimes and Killinick’s Keira Crowther, who qualified at Marlton early last month, are Kildare Hunt Branch members Annabelle Dunne and Holly Browne and the Meaths’ Clodagh McGauran and Grace Hanna. The quartet secured their place in the final by scoring a minimum of 61% when performing the UK Pony Club Open Championships test 2018.

Sixteen-year-old Dunne did so at the Dressage Ireland South East Region show on Saturday, February 21st at Sika Equestrian in Co Wicklow. There, the chairperson of DI, Mark Ruddock, a List 1 judge with British Dressage, awarded Annabelle a score of 69.22 for her test on her mother Helen’s seven-year-old skewbald gelding HFS Rock Shandy. Crowther also competed, scoring 68.59 on Tomoka Spots.

The following day it was on to the Dressage Ireland Leinster Region show at CoilÓg, where all four combinations who met their engagements were awarded qualifying scores by DI List 3A judge Bernie Webb, who had Dunne and HFS Rock Shandy in third place on 63.75.

Webb’s winner on 66.25 was Holly Browne riding Jeanette Dunne’s nine-year-old Connemara gelding Manusmore Result (I Love You Melody - Manusmore Dasher, by Derrymore Duncan). Clodagh McGauran finished second on the 10-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare Pippas Harlequin Lady (62.75), with Grace Hanna qualifying in fourth on the seven-year-old ISH mare Grantstown Imperial (62.97).

All details regarding the classes being offered and the tests to be ridden at the National Dressage Championships can be found on the IPC’s Facebook page. Entries close at 23.56 on Thursday, March 19th.