IRELAND’s show jumping sensation Bertram Allen (21) flew into Ireland yesterday (Monday) from the five-star World Cup show in Bordeaux, where he claimed second place in the 1.60m Grand Prix, to collect his prize at the prestigious The Irish Field Awards at the K Club in Straffan, Co Kildare.
This is the third consecutive year that Allen, who is Ireland’s top ranked show jumping, lying in 18th place on the prestigious FEI/Longines World Rankings, has won The Irish Field Senior Show Jumper of the Year accolade. Once again, Allen posted a string of top drawer wins across Europe to take the coveted crown.
Receiving his award on the day, Allen said: “This is a lovely award to win, and now to do it three years in a row and see the other names on it, it's special, so I am delighted.”
Once receiving his award, Allen got a taxi straight to Dublin airport to head for the Hong Kong Masters.
Allen landed five-star victories all over the world in 2016, including at the prestigious Hong Kong Masters, Paris Saut Hermes and at the Global Champions Tours in Hamburg, Cannes and Monaco, just to name a few. He was a member of the winning Irish team in Furusiyya Nations Cup of St Gallen and he secured over €500,000 when part of the Global Champions League winning team, with British show jumping legend John Whitaker, in Doha last November.
Allen finished out November in style when repeating a phenomenal feat of winning three cars at the four-star show in Stockholm, Sweden, the highlight being the Grand Prix win aboard the brilliant Molly Malone V. He continues to grow his top string of horses and picked up yet another five-star victory at London Olympia with High Valley at the end of December.
He was joined at the event by fellow international rider and award winner Rio Olympic dressage rider, Judy Reynolds from Kildare, who also flew in for the event from her business base in Germany. Judy scooped The Irish Field Dressage Rider of the Year award for the third time and is also credited with taking Dressage to new heights in Ireland in what was a record-breaking year for her and her horse Vancouver K on the top international dressage circuit in 2016. Highlights include a top 10 finish in the FEI World Cup in Sweden last April; qualifying for the Rio Olympic individual final and winning four Grand Prix titles in a row in the USA at the end of 2016.
Reynolds set an Irish dressage record in March when scoring 79.70% at Al Shaqab in Doha and posted an excellent fourth place finish in the World Cup qualifier at London Olympia in late December, which saw her become the first Irish rider to top the Western European Dressage World Cup League table.
Speaking of the win at the K Club and her impact on dressage, Reynolds said: "The sport has grown so much and people are now starting to believe we can do this sport at a good level in Ireland, so I am very proud of that.”
Co Kildare event rider, Camilla Speirs, was named The Irish Field Senior Event Rider of the Year on Monday. With the small but mighty Irish-bred Portersize Just A Jiff, Speirs enjoyed a great year on the tough international event circuit, posting a top 10 finish in the world famous Badminton Horse Trials where she was ninth overall and also posted a top six finish in the four-star challenge at Pau, France – one of just six four-star events in the world’s eventing calendar.
Camilla, one of the busiest and most travelled riders on the circuit last year, had the unenviable task of being travelling reserve in Rio. Although the pair were omitted from the Olympic starting line-up, Camilla and Jiffy completed the season by recording Ireland’s best results in four-star competition. Two top 10 placings at four-star level is outstanding.
THE IRISH FIELD JUNIOR AWARD WINNERS
The Junior Awards were presented to Michael Pender (show jumping) and Susie Berry (eventing).
The Irish Field Young Event Rider of the Year is Susie Berry who posted some outstanding results in the 2016 season. Susie has been a member of the Irish European event team 2012-2016 and is a rider with Piggy French Eventing.
Her great 2016 season kicked off at Great Witchingham where she and Morswood won their first international of the year by claiming the CIC* competition. That started a roll of success with Susie and her horses notching up no less than 26 top ten placings, four wins and 192 points together. Highlights included finishing 4th at Camphire CCI2* (Vanir Hello Duca), 6th at Osberton CCI2* (Morswood), 7th at Hartpury CCI2*, 5th at Blair Castle CIC3* and 10th at Blenheim CCI3*(Carsonstown Athena). Berry also travelled to Italy to represent the GAIN Horse Feeds Irish Young Riders Eventing Squad for the 2016 European Championships in Italy last September and finished 2nd in the Goldman Cup League- all this with an enforced 6 week break in June owing to a broken ankle.
Winner of The Irish Field Junior Show Jumper of the Year is Kildare teenage sensation Michael Pender (16) who is currently busily competing – and winning! - with Kilkenny international show jumper Marion Hughes in the United Arab Emirates. His mother AnneMarie will collect the award on his behalf. Despite his young age, Michael beat off some of the toughest competition in the world to win two world medals, a silver and bronze, at the World Breeding Championships for Young Horses in Lanaken, Belgium, last autumn. Michael won his medals on Irish-bred horses in the five-year-old horse classes despite stiff competition in the final from seasoned international riders.
On home turf, Michael enjoyed a successful Dublin Horse Show, winning the five-year-old championship aboard Z Seven Canya Dance and he went on to be awarded the Michael Meller Young Rider style award and the coveted RDS bursary prize. He then moved to Millstreet International Horse Show where he claimed the prestigious Boomerang Final and later returned to that venue for the Junior European Championships where he finished 12th individually.
GAIN/IRISH FIELD STAR OF THE MONTH AWARD WINNERS
In addition, all winners in the Gain Horse Feeds/The Irish Field Star of the Month were also presented with their prizes on Monday.
These monthly winners, (who are voted by the public online), are:
January 2016: Aisling Byrne
February 2016: Clem McMahon
March 2016: Alexander Butler
April 2016: Conor McMahon
May 2016: Ger O’Neill
June 2016: Bertram Allen
July 2016: Billy Twomey
August 2016: Zara Nelson
September 2016: Laura Glynn
October 2016: Cian O’Connor
November 2016: Bertram Allen
December 2016: Judy Reynolds
GAIN/Irish Field Star of the Month 2016 winners
January: AISLING BYRNE – SHOW JUMPER
Aisling Byrne scored a huge win at Liverpool International Horse Show when took the amateur show jumping championship at Echo arena. She also scored two runner-up finishes on the opening day at Liverpool. She finished second with Wellview Classic Dream in the 1.25 two-phase amateur class. Byrne also finished second in a 1.15m two-phase class with Deau in Liverpool.
February: CLEM MCMAHON – SHOW JUMPER
Clem McMahon had a successful January when he started off his year when a number of his young horses dominated the young horse classes at the Mediterranean Equestrian tour in Oliva in Spain.
McMahon recorded a series of good placings over the course of the tour, which included a second, third and fifth place finish with Indian River Van Perschroeven. He also had a win with the six-year-old class with Kalimero.
March: ALEXANDER BUTLER – SHOW JUMPER
Alexander Butler enjoyed a series of series of strong results in March, making his presence felt during last year’s spring European tour.
At Vilamoura, Butler and the Irish-bred stallion Hallowberry Cruz won a world ranking show jumping class from an enormous field of 86 starters which yielded just six clears.
April: CONOR MCMAHON – SHOW JUMPER
At just 16, Conor McMahon became the youngest winner of the two-star Grand Prix at the Millstreet CSI** Welcome Tour Grand Prix at the Green Glens arena in April 2016.
Later in the month, McMahon was also best placed of the young riders at the Spring Tour final in Maryville when partnering Castle Quarter’s Stable’s, Golden Arrow II O.L to a clear in 45.94 for eventual fourth place
May: GER O’NEILL – SHOW JUMPER
Ger O’Neill claimed a victory in second round of the Horseware/TRM National Grand Prix at Barnadown on Dondoctro Ryal K, after finishing third in Thomastown a week earlier.
A week later O’Neill was off the mark again, this time at Balmoral International when he won the Clive Richardson two-phase competition on Dree Boeken’s Grossos Roeschen. O’Neill and the 13-year-old Grosso Z mare set a time of 34.86 over the second half of the 1.40m course which no other combination could challenge.
June: BERTRAM ALLEN – SHOW JUMPER
Allen racked up a number of five-star wins following the disappointment of not being selected to represent Ireland at the Rio Olympic Games.
The 21-year-old posted a thrilling win amid a thunderstorm with Quiet Easy in the five-star GCT show in Cannes, France, sharing equal first place with Germany’s David Will on Mic Mac du Tillard (ISH) in the 1.45m opener in 26.36 seconds. Allen also shone on Molly Malone V to win at the five-star show in Villach Treffen, Austria.
July: BILLY TWOMEY – SHOW JUMPER
Billy Twomey enjoyed an outstanding week the Dublin Horse Show when he was crowned leading Irish international show jumper.
He also nabbed another second place in the Speed Championship on Ardcolum Duke. Out of 12 competitions, Twomey placed in the top 10 in six of them.
August: ZARA NELSON – EVENTER
Zara Nelson and the Irish Sport Horse/Connemara cross Millridge Buachaill Bui were the stand-out Irish performers on the individual rankings at the European Championships in Aarhus, Denmark
Earlier this year, Nelson and Millridge Buachaill Bui led the Berney Bros CCI* for ponies from pillar to post at the Tattersalls International Horse Trials
September: LAURA GLYNN – BREEDER
Laura Glynn and her husband Frank have had a whirlwind couple of weeks, with horses from their Killossery Lodge Stud, Rolestown, North County Dublin, making headlines worldwide. Killossery Kaiden saw off all 263 challengers in the six-year-old division of the FEI World Breeding Jumping Championships for Young Horses at Lanaken. Kilossery Karma, achieved the highest price of €18,000 at the Goresbridge Supreme Sale of Show jumping Foals in Barnadown
October: CIAN O’CONNOR – SHOW JUMPER
Cian O’Connor had a whirlwind couple of weeks. He scored a big win in Birmingham’s Horse Of The Year Show, where he was crowned leading show jumper of the year, after winning the Grand Prix.
O’Connor and Good Luck took fifth place in the prestigious LA Masters, winning close to $23,000.
November: BERTRAM ALLEN – SHOW JUMPER
Allen had a successful run at Doha starting with Global Champions League. Allen and John Whitaker (60) won the first GCL title in a bid to secure the majority of the €4.5m bonus on offer.
Allen and Molly Malone stormed to victory at Stockholm in Sweden, with the young show jumper adding a staggering ninth car to his collection.
December: JUDY REYNOLDS – DRESSAGE RIDER
Kildare Olympian Judy Reynolds soared to the head of the Western European Dressage World Cup League with a fantastic fourth place in the fifth leg of the FEI World Cup qualifiers at Olympia in London. Reynolds’ gruelling journey towards earning an individual slot at the Rio Olympics saw her steadily climb the world rankings, and at the Games in Brazil she delivered a record-breaking performance by becoming the first Irish rider to qualify for the individual final since the freestyle format was introduced.