Emer Bermingham

PRIVATE equestrian centres have identified the National Horse Sports Arena in Abbotstown as a business threat, saying they are losing out to the state-owned centre.

Opened in October 2013, the National Horse Sports Arena is expanding its activities and local equestrian businesses in the catchment area say this practice is putting them under financial strain.

The National Horse Sports Arena now runs showjumping events on Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday evenings as well as combined training.

Abbotstown’s original business plan, which was prepared by Horse Sport Ireland in 2012, stated that “the opportunity exists to generate income by opening the equestrian facilities (hourly hire) to the public under ‘pay as you go’ offer”.

It was also proposed that the infrastructure would provide Olympic standard training facilities for the HSI high performance programme.

Abbotstown is now also hosting events organised by HSI affiliates or individuals.

In a request made under the Freedom of Information Act 2014 seeking the terms under which the National Horse Arena was set up and currently operates, The Irish Field learned that a local business was refused information regarding access to copies of the company’s annual business plans under Section 36 (1) (b) of the 2014 Act.

Ciaran Glynn of Killossery Lodge Stud, Swords, Co Dublin, said: “As a long established local show centre in north Co Dublin, we find it very disappointing that the National Horse Arena is now running commercial shows on as many as three days a week. Like many small equestrian centres in Ireland, we rely on revenue generated from our shows to help us to pay our bills, and if there is anything left over, we put it back into the development of the centre.

“It was my understanding when the National Horse Arena was first announced, that it was going to be a training facility both for HSI squads, and also for private ‘pay as you go’ hire. I did not realise at the time, that commercial shows were going to be run there, particularly as it is a taxpayer-funded facility which is now taking business from smaller equestrian centres, like ours, within the area.

“The irony of this is that I find myself now in competition with a facility which I helped to fund as a taxpayer. We have been a family run business for more than 20 years and we have been running shows for almost 15 years now. I find it very hard to accept that the National Horse Arena can come into the market, having been built and maintained using government money, and just bulldoze longstanding local businesses.”

Brian Duff from Broadmeadows EC in Ashbourne, Co Meath, added: “I am all in favour of a high performance facility that can help develop the sport but the National Sports Arena has diversified from their mandate and are now targeting those competitors involved in recreational sport or at the lower end of the scale of competition, ie Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday jumping is in direct competition with local businesses.

“The question needs to be asked should a high performance facility be running these type of competitions, is this not taking from the purpose of which it was set up?

“If they decided to run a two or three-star show, I would welcome this as this is what top performance facilities are meant to host. It is not a level playing field as they have been government-funded and I feel that they are also undercutting business in the area and yes, it is affecting my business. If this is meant to be a high performance facility for top athletes, we must question how they keep the surface at the very highest standard if they are running events there for horses and ponies at least three times a week.”