The year 2016 turned out to be a record-breaking one for Irish Horse World online, with our website, www.theirishfield.ie, making huge strides and establishing itself as the go-to place for breaking news, updates from the Rio Olympic Games and top-class national coverage. We have compiled the top 10 stories from 2016 for you to enjoy.
1. ADELINDE CORNELISSEN ON PARZIVAL: ‘IN ORDER TO PROTECT HIM, I GAVE UP’
AT a drama-filled Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro, there was deep disappointment for The Netherlands’ leading dressage rider Adelinde Cornelissen who had to retire on the opening day of competition when her great campaigner, the 19-year-old gelding Parzival, suffered an insect bite in his stable.
The Dutch rider took to social media to explain the reason she retired, and the story, penned by Irish Horse World editor Caitriona Murphy, evoked massive interest online across Ireland and the world.
Writing on her Facebook page, Cornelissen said: “My story...Lots has happened...
“The first days in Rio went according to plan: a relaxed flight, stabling good, training good. Parzival feels happy and fit.
“Until yesterday morning... I planned to train early on Tuesday morning, so I was at the stable at 6am. Saying good morning to Parzival, I saw the right side of his head was swollen, he had been kicking the walls.
“I took his temperature: he had a fever of over 40 degrees Celsius, but he still didn’t look sick. He was eating and drinking and while walking I had a hard time keeping up with him, as always... Jan Greve came right away and after double checking with the vets here they concluded he was bitten by an insect or spider or some sort of animal which produces toxics.”
After giving Parzival fluids, his temperature came down overnight and when a request to the FEI to swap days within the team so he could have an extra day to recover was denied, the rider was faced with difficult decisions.
She continued: “We decided I would give it a try. The fever was down, which means the toxics are out of his system. There is still a bit of swelling in the jaw, but we cooled it all the time and the swelling gets less…
“When I entered I already felt he was giving his utmost and being the fighter he is, he never gives up... But in order to protect him, I gave up. My buddy, my friend, the horse that has given everything for me his whole life does not deserve this... So I saluted and left the arena...”
Click here to read the full story
2. KEVIN THORNTON: ‘THERE IS NO WAY I WOULD EVER WHIP A HORSE TO DEATH’
IN the number two spot was the massive news story surrounding the social media allegations that Irish show jumper Kevin Thornton had whipped a horse to death while competing in Cagnes Sur Mer, France.
Speaking to Irish Horse World’s reporter Isabel Hurley, Thornton (28) completely rejected the claims and gave a detailed account of the events surrounding the sudden death of Flogas Sunset Cruise, who was owned by Ballina’s Vinnie Duffy.
Thornton said he had been riding the 10-year-old Irish Sport Horse for 15-20 minutes at the French venue when he keeled over and died. There was widespread outcry on social media following the reports that the Swiss-based rider had abused the horse.
“I’m into horses all my life. There is no way I would ever whip a horse to death. I did not do that and I never would. I’m not that person,” Thornton told The Irish Field in October.
“I took Flogas up to the big gallop where a section was open to riders. He was in a normal bit, he acted up at the entrance, I hit him once or twice to get him moving forward. That was the first time he had ever been hit. He bolted off around the gallops. I tried to hold him and stay calm.
“I hunted him on a bit when he slowed and threw the reins at him, turned him around and back towards the gate where a lad was waiting for me with a dressage stick. I normally only ever rode him with a dressage stick at home. He nearly jumped on top of the lad. We got down to the other arena. He was not breathing heavy or fast. He felt very weird under me, I got off and as I did so he keeled over.”
Hurley also spoke to the well-known Ballina owner and sport horse producer, Vinnie Duffy, who said he stood by Thornton and was ‘”devastated” the young rider was being vilified online.
Click here to read Thornton's full statement
3. MHS GOING GLOBAL SOLD TO GREEK SHIPPING HEIRESS ATHINA ONASSIS
CAITRIONA Murphy was responsible for breaking the third most read story to the world just last month, confirming that MHS Going Global had been sold to Greek shipping heiress and show jumper Athina Onassis in a multi-million euro deal.
MHS Going Global, the most high profile Irish-bred show jumper of the modern era, was jointly owned by Canadian Lee Kruger and Greg Broderick, who produced the gelding from the age of five right up to last summer’s Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
Onassis and her advisers, Jan Tops and wife Edwina Alexander Tops, flew into Ireland on a private jet to view and ride the Irish Sport Horse, who was bred by the late Ita Brennan, at Broderick’s Ballypatrick Stables near Thurles in Co Tipperary.
Broderick refused to be drawn on the sale price, saying only that, based on his performances, MHS Going Global was one of the top five horses in the world. However it is believed that MHS Going Global could have been sold for in the region of €10-12 million, which would make him not only the most expensive show jumping horse ever sold out of Ireland but also one of the most expensive in the world.
A keen show jumper, Athina Onassis is well known in both show jumping and society circles, being the one surviving descendent of the Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis. She is also the sole heir to the fortune of Aristotle’s daughter Christina, who was her mother. Her inheritance was the subject of intense speculation but believed to be in excess of $1 billion and include gold bars, a baby food factory, as well as Skorpios island.
Read the full breaking news story here
4. TRIBUTES FLOOD IN FOR CLAIRE LOWE, TRAGICALLY KILLED IN A RIDING ACCIDENT
CAITRIONA Murphy reported on the tragic death of Claire Lowe who sadly died in October following a fall out hunting.
Lowe was the owner and operator of Mill House Equestrian Centre in Saintfield, Co Down and was out hunting in the New Line area of Ballygowan with the North Down Foxhounds when she fell from her horse.
It is understood that Claire’s mount cleanly jumped a wall of approximately 80cms in height but pecked on landing, tipping his rider out of the saddle. She was immediately attended to by fellow hunt followers, who administered CPR and called for a rapid response paramedic from the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service. The paramedic attended to the rider but was unable to save her and she died from her injuries.
It was described as a “freak hunting accident” and dozens of people paid tribute to Lowe on social media, including the Connemara Pony Breeders’ Society, who said they were “deeply saddened by the news of the tragic loss of Claire Lowe. Claire was a CPBS ridden and working hunter judge. Our deepest sympathies go out to Claire’s family and friends. Rest in peace.”
Click here to read the full story
5. TOP FRENCH RIDER PENELOPE LEPREVOST AT CENTRE OF STORM
TOP French show jumper Penelope Leprevost was at the centre of an FEI investigation after disturbing footage of an incident in the warm-up ring at Gothenburg’s World Cup Finals caused a storm on social media.
Video clips in circulation on social media showed Leprevost warming up Vagabond de la Pomme during the concluding rounds, when the stallion stumbled very badly, hitting the sand with his nose, prompting what appeared to be rough riding in response from the rider.
FEI officials on duty at the warm-up area reported the incident to the FEI chief stewart and the horse was checked out to the satisfaction of FEI veterinary officials.
Leprevost later expressed her sincere regret and apologies for the incident. “I am deeply sorry that I over-reacted and was too strong with my horse and I want to express my sincere apologies. I place great importance on the trust and co-operation between myself and my horses. I also have the greatest respect for their state of mind and their physical well-being,” she said on her Facebook page.
Click here to watch a video of the incident
6. GREG BRODERICK: I AM OVER THE MOON BUT I FEEL FOR BERTRAM
CAITRIONA Murphy spoke to a delighted Greg Broderick immediately after he was given the nod to represent Ireland as the sole show jumping athlete at the Rio Olympic Games.
Coming in at number six on the most read list, Broderick told Irish Horse World that he was over the moon after receiving the call from Robert Splaine but felt for Bertram Allen, who won the individual spot for Ireland.
“I really feel for Bertram, he is an absolute gentleman,” said the Tipperary rider. “I am very good friends with Bertram and I was certainly hoping in St Gallen last week that things would go his way.
“He called me this morning and I called him after I got the news. He wished me well and he was very supportive. He was very disappointed, naturally enough, but he took it well. We weren’t on the phone for long but he wished me well. It was very diplomatic of him under the circumstances.
“Lee (Kruger – owner of MHS Going Global) is very fond of Bertram and his family in general. Bertram earned the place for Ireland and Lee was hoping he would get it. We were certainly not trying to take the place from him but then Going Global came out and jumped fantastically well.”
Broderick continued: “If Bertram had been selected, we would all have been behind him 110%. Everybody at the show last week was hoping it would go his way.”
Click here to read Broderick's comments
7. SOCIAL MEDIA STORM: SUPPORT FLOODS IN FOR GREG BRODERICK
GREG Broderick was once again the subject of the seventh most eagerly read online story of the year. Caitriona Murphy penned the article about the masses of support which flooded in for the Olympic rider after he was heavily criticised in an article online following his exit from the Games.
Billy Twomey, Shane Breen, McLain Ward, Albert Voorn, Kevin Babington and Darragh Kerins were among the hundreds who took to social media to condemn the piece posted on Facebook by former Horse Sport Ireland press officer Colin McClelland.
US Olympic gold medallist McLain Ward, who employs Broderick’s cousin Oliver McCarthy, wrote: “With no offence to any other Irish rider, I think Greg is a world class rider. Going Global is a horse any top rider would love to ride at a championships and their faults this week were very minor. I have no doubt Greg will be very successful in the future. Maybe the bigger problem is promoting articles like this instead of being a team. I for one respect Greg a great deal.”
Ireland’s Olympic bronze medallist Cian O’Connor wrote: “As one of the riders who has dealt with and worked closely with Colin for many years when he worked for HSI as press officer, I always have found him sensible and measured but the whole tone of his article below is quite simply out of order.”
McClelland replied to the criticism of his article on social media by saying his intention was not to launch a personal attack of any of the riders but to point out that fundamental mistakes made by the governing body when selecting some of the combinations who went to Rio.
Click here for the full article
8. SHOW JUMPING STALLION BACK HOME AFTER THEFT ORDEAL
IRISH Horse World reporter Judith Faherty’s story about a Connemara show jumping pony stallion stolen from his stable in Co Galway comes in at number eight on the list.
A day of high drama back in February ended well when the well-known show jumping stallion Silver Shadow was returned to his owners after he was reported stolen from his stable in Rockwood, Claregalway, sparking off a Garda investigation into his whereabouts.
The alert was first raised when a nearby neighbor of his owner, veterinary surgeon Philip McManus, spotted unusual activity in the yard and contacted McManus immediately. A jeep and trailer were spotted leaving the yard with the pony on board but by the time he reached home, his beloved pony had disappeared.
News of the 17-year-old stallion’s disappearance spread like wildfire on social media, but events moved rapidly throughout the morning, leading to the safe recovery of the pony, who was unharmed, in a disused stable at a remote location nearby.
It was an anxious day for McManus and co-owner Liam Diamond, who said they would no longer take any risks with the security of the animal.
9. BERTRAM ALLEN SECURES IRELAND’S ONLY INDIVIDUAL OLYMPIC SHOW JUMPING PLACE
IN early March it was confirmed that Ireland had secured just one individual show jumping slot for the Rio Olympic Games through the efforts of the then world number nine Bertram Allen.
The individual show jumping place was confirmed by the international equestrian governing body, the FEI, following the March 6th cut-off date for the Olympic rankings. Ireland was allocated the place as a result of Bertram Allen’s Olympic ranking but there was widespread disappointment when Denis Lynch just missing out on securing a second slot for Ireland.
Of course we now know that Horse Sport Ireland and Robert Splaine choose Greg Broderick ahead of Allen to represent Ireland in Rio.
Under Olympic rules, individual places are allocated to the country of the rider who secures the place rather than to the rider.
http://www.theirishfield.ie/bertram-allen-secures-ireland-s-only-individual-olympic-show-jumping-place-202783/
10. POSTMORTEM RESULTS ON FLOGAS SUNSET CRUISE INCONCLUSIVE
FOLLOWING on from number two on the list, Kevin Thornton once again made headlines in October when the provisional post mortem results carried out on his horse Flogas Sunset Cruise, who dropped dead at Cagnes Sur Mer, found no evidence of whip or spur marks.
However, there was no clear conclusive cause of death such as a heart attack or a brain hemorrhage uncovered and so further tests, including blood and tissue analysis, are still underway. Dr Peter Cronau, a German veterinary expert attended the postmortem in Lyon on behalf of Kevin Thornton.
Isabel Hurley spoke to Dr Monika Gattiker, Zurich-based attorney-at-law representing Thornton, who told The Irish Field: “There was no evidence of whip marks or sweat marks on the horse at the autopsy. This is very important for Kevin Thornton, alleged to have whipped this horse excessively and causing its death. This is not the case and this is proven to be the case with these results from Dr Cronau.”
The Irish Field also learned that no autopsy was planned by the FEI until Kevin Thornton’s legal representative insisted that one be held and that they have an independent witness there on their behalf to see it.
In early November the FEI opened a case against Thornton over the alleged abuse, to which he again stressed his innocence in response.