SVEN HADLEY TRANSPORT & SELF HIRE CONNAUGHT GRAND PRIX LEAGUE
WITHOUT a doubt, Ireland is renowned for producing horses and riders. Testament to that is the success in Lanaken and major championships where Irish horses and riders have delivered gold and silver medal success on the world stage.
On the national circuit, competitions such as the Irish Sport Horse Studbook Showjumping Series, SJI National Grand Prix and the New Heights Development Series help in the production of horses and riders. However, alongside these, the regional leagues also offer much in terms of development of the sport and help support the industry and local shows.
The Connaught League came into existence over 13 years ago when a group of owners, riders and centres outside of the regional committee came together in a bid to to develop showjumping in the region.
Amongst those at the forefront were Vinny Duffy, Padraic Corcoran, Charlie Shaw and Tiernan Gill. Charlie Shaw and his wife Dorothy were instrumental in giving the league a structure. Once the league was set up, it was handed over to the SJI regional committee to continue and advance. The league was introduced to give opportunities to riders to get to the next level and to act as a stepping stone to the National Grand Prix League.
MOVING UP
This league also gave riders the opportunity to hold on to horses and move up the ranks. Damien Griffin and Tabby proved a real example of how successful the league has been in doing this. Griffin and Tabby were prolific winners in the league before stepping up to national success, which in 2017, included a win in the Derby in Cavan and in Millstreet CSI2* to name but a few.
The league started as a 1.30m class and proved very successful with numbers ranging from 50-70 per class. It was so successful that the organisers decided to move it up to 1.35m and introduce a 1.25m class, which is now the Eurohome.ie step up league. This was followed afterward by the introduction of the 1.15m which is now the Hygeia 1.15 development league.
In a bid to help young riders move through the ranks, a young rider section was later included. The league has also proved popular with venues and many there is always a great interest from the various major centres to host a round. The prize fund is not to be frowned upon with €3,000 on offer for each leg of the league and a total league prize fund between €3,000 to €5,000.
The 2017 winner was Raphael Lee, the overall winner and the winner of the Young Rider section.
Lee won the league riding his uncle John Lee’s horse Captain Marko.
A three-time winner of the league, Jessica Burke spoke about what makes the lead so important to her: “This league allows me to educate my young horses and has also helped me as a rider. They are very competitive and the jump-offs are fast, so it keeps you in tune as a rider, while teaching the horses.
"The 1.35m element prepares the horses for the Grands Prix without frightening them and the 1.15m and 1.25m helps me educate my younger horses and the foreign breds who would not necessarily get to compete in too many age classes on the circuit.
“The classes are usually in the main arena which, again, is good exposure for horses. There is a really good standard in the leagues and it needs to be maintained.”