THE FEI World Breeding Jumping Championships for Young Horses takes place from September 21st- 25th in Lanaken, Belgium.

Ireland will be well-represented throughout the event and Waterford show jumper, Paddy O’Donnell, will be riding the home-bred of small-time breeder Ray Brown from Co Westmeath.

Now owned by Wexford Equestrian Centre’s Patrick and Orla Peare, the horse WEC Mermus Rua (Mermus R) is due to compete in the seven-year-old class at Lanaken.

This is an incredible achievement for anyone involved in equestrian breeding and the fact that Ray Brown only stepped onto the breeding scene for the first time 14 years ago, makes the accomplishment even more impressive.

First mare

When telling the story of how he acquired his first mare, Ray Brown declared: “I was standing outside a paddock of 20 horses and she was the only one that came up to me. It just turned out that she was the same mare the lady I was purchasing her off had assigned for me. The mare picked me.”

The mare was a Dutch Warmblood and the first progeny Ray bred from her now currently events at two-star level in America. Due to the mare’s breeding, Ray complimented her by sending her to well-bred stallions with lots of blood.

DRS Chattanooga, the dam of Lanaken candidate WEC Mermus Rua, was the third foal Ray bred from the mare. As a three-year-old, DRS Chattanooga showed plenty of promise loose jumping when an unfortunate shoulder injury, during the breaking process, saw her retiring early. Ray kept the mare and put her in foal to Justin Burke’s Mermus R to produce WEC Mermus Rua. “Justin Burke was very good to me and he is a very fair man, people like Justin are very important to small breeders like myself.”

From the field

Patrick Peare acquired WEC Mermus Rua as a foal, purchasing him straight from the field. Patrick and his wife Orla purchased every foal Ray bred from DRS Chattanooga thereafter and eventually purchased the mare to breed from themselves.

“They always kept in touch with me in relation to his progress and they are fantastic people to be involved with. We are all traveling over to Lanaken in the same car and staying in the same accommodation. I feel very lucky. I also have to pay a special mention to my neighbour Eugene Boland who has allowed me to keep my horses on his land making all of this possible.”