WITH Hippomundo’s 2021 results now complete, there was upbeat news for Irish breeding in these prizemoney-based rankings.

The Irish Sport Horse (ISH) eventing studbook continues to retain its top place and Cavan breeder Peter Brady finished the year as the highest-ranked Irish breeder with his Aachen winner Off The Record (fourth), best of the Irish-bred event horses.

VDL Arkansas, Courage II and Ramiro B feature amongst the top-10 eventing sires, compared to just one in 2020 when Inocent (KWPN) was the sole Irish-based sire.

In show jumping, the Judy Murphy-bred Javas Miss Jordan’s winning streak on the North American circuit netted her connections €223,775, while the late Ita Brennan was the most successful of the Irish show jumping breeders. Eight Mill House Stud-breds, headed by HHS Calais, earned a combined €348,984.

The ISH studbook moved up one place from 11th last year to match its 10th place result in the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFSH) 2021 show jumping rankings. Incidentally, this group of 765 Irish-breds (the smallest number within the top-10 show jumping studbooks) ranked fourth when comparing the average prize money earned per horse (€3,639).

Belgium’s BWP (€4,708) enjoyed the best prize money strike rate for its 3,399 performers, followed by the Westfalian (€3,720) and Holsteiner (€3,666) studbooks.

Monaco (€854,654) and Harrie Smolders recent run of runner-up places at Prague, Geneva and London sealed the KWPN gelding’s top-earning horse title. While prize money in 2021 didn’t quite bounce back to pre-Covid opportunities (2019’s top earner H&M Christian K won €1,350,616 that year), the fact that many of the major Grand Prix and Global Champions Tour fixtures returned is a huge boost to the sport.

Similarly, lucrative five-star results, such as the new Maryland International, won by top earner On Cue (€101,168) had a significant impact on the eventing horse, sire and studbook rankings. Both Sport Horse Breeding (GB) and Anglo European Studbook (AES) benefitted from the performance of British-breds such as Chilli Knight and On Cue.

Again, as a prize money and fixture comparison, 2019’s top event horse was the Kate Jackson-bred Vanir Kamira (€172,782).

No prize money, only honour and glory, on offer at the Olympics. Sambuca (SIES. Samarant x Limmerick), Heike Holstein’s home-bred mare at Tokyo is once again the leading Irish-bred dressage horse.

TSF Dalera (TRAK. Easy Game x Handryk. €125,340) is the only horse to notch up a double in both the Hippomundo and WBFSH rankings. Unsurprisingly, she leads Hippomundo’s top dressage horses followed by Bohemian (WESTF. Bordeaux 28 x Samarant. €62,115) and Hermes (Easy Game x Flemmingh. €62,115).

In fourth place is Weihegold (OLD. Blue Hors Don Schufro x Sandro Hit. €60,993). She topped the pre-Covid rankings of 2019 with €170,490.

Rankings often require context when analysing their true value; foal crops, number of competition age offspring, opportunities and owners. Once again, the Hippomundo rankings will give breeders information in abundance.

Hippomundo’s Top 10 of 2021

Show jumping horses: Monaco (HOLST. Cassini II x Contender. €854,654); the previous year’s poll topper Killer Queen (BWP. Eldorado van de Zeshoek x For Pleasure. €840,488); King Edward (BWP. Edward 28 x Feo. €811,531); Explosion W (Chacco-Blue x Baloubet du Rouet. €759,707); Elektric Blue P (DSP. Eldorado van de Zeshoek TN x For Pleasure. €734,401); VDL Cartello (HOLST. Cartani 4 x Lord. €729,757); Venard de Cerisy (SF. Open Up Semilly x Djalisco du Guet. €716,782); Gazelle (BWP. Kashmir van Schuttershof x Indoctro. €670,234); Katanga van het Dingeshof (BWP. VDL Cardento x Tornedo FCS. €599,831) and Nevados (PZHK. Calvados Z x Romauldo. €592,725).

Irish-bred show jumpers: Javas Miss Jordan (Luidam x O.B.O.S Quality. Breeder: Judy Murphy. €223,755), Pacino Amiro (Pacino x NC Amiro. Simon Scott. €207,545), HHS Calais (Cavalier Royale x O.B.O.S Quality. Ita Brennan. €205,480), WKD Aimez Moi (Je T’Aime Flamenco. Joanne Sloan-Allen €126,432; Kilkenny (VDL Cardento x Guidam. Ita Brennan. €116,852), Lapuccino 2 (SIEC Livello. Sven Kapp. €115,302), BEC Lorenzo (SIEC Livello x Guidam. Brian Duff. €97,505), Super Chilled (Gelvin Clover. Cheryl Broderick. €83,775), Castlefield Vegas (Cassino x Lux Z. John Clarke) and HHS Fast Forward (Heritage Fortunus x Cavalier Royale. Marion Hughes. €65,672).

Show jumping studbooks: Selle Français (5,855 horses. €17,078,202 prize money won. Average prize money per horse: €2,917); KWPN (5,734. €16,611,164. €2,897); BWP (3,399. €16,003,826. €4,708); Holsteiner (2,773. €10,166,274. €3,666); Zangersheide (3,390. €8,631,991. €2,546); Oldenburger Springpferd (1,844. €5,989,892. €3,248); Hanoverian (1,419. €4,901,829. €3,454); Westfalian (1,040. €3,869,205. €3,720); sBs (914. €3,179,220. €3,478) and Irish Sport Horse (765. €2,783,893. €3,639).

Event horses: On Cue (AES. Cabri d’Elle x Primitive Rising. €101,168), Xavier Faer (SHB(GB). Catherston Liberator x Catherston Dazzler. €51,821), Falco (HANN. Cardenio 2 x Weinberg. €50,075); Off The Record (ISH. VDL Arkansas x Ard Ohio. Peter G. Brady. €46,347), Ballaghmor Class (Courage II. Noel Hickey. €45,000), Chilli Knight (SHB(GB). Chilli Morning x Rock King. €42,725; Cooley Master Class (ISH. Ramiro B x Master Imp. John Hagan), JL Dublin (HOLST. Diarado x Canto. €35,370), Charly van ter Heiden (HANN. Contendro’s Bube x Escudo II. €33,180) and Billy Walk On (AES. Billy Mexico x Golden Bash. Donal Barnwell. €31,034).

Irish-bred eventing horses: Off The Record, Ballaghmor Class, Cooley Master Class, Gortfadda Diamond (Watervalley Cool Diamond x Glacial Storm. Sean Lydon. €27,519), CHF Cooliser (Womanizer x Ramiro B. Raymond Carroll. €26,091), Brookfield Inocent (Inocent x Kings Servant. John Mulvey. €18,239), Leamore Master Plan (Master Imp x Cavalier Royale. Michael Byrne. €16,235), Grovine de Reve (Hermes de Reve x Rimilis. Paddy & Maria Raggett. €15,300), Coolparks Sarco (Shannondale Sarco x Coolcorran Cool Diamond. Michael Burke. €14,640) and John The Bull (Luidam x Houmayoun. James Byrne. €7,014).

Eventing studbooks: Irish Sport Horse (1,087 horses. €575,299 total prize money won. Average prize money per horse: €529); Holsteiner (297. €298,746. €1,006); Selle Français (573. €275,571. €481); Hannoverian (267. €205,141. €768); SHB (GB) (170. €184,405. €1,085); Anglo European Studbook (150. €171,183. €1,141); KWPN (460. €135,918. €295); Oldenburg (139. €93,178. €670); TB (404. €82,666. €205) and Westfalian (120. €47, 478. €396).

Show jumping sires: Chacco-Blue (MECKL), Diamant de Semilly (SF), VDL Cardento (HOLST), Eldorado van de Zeshoek TN (BWP), Casall ASK (HOLST), Mylord Carthago (SF), Kashmir van Schuttershof (sBs), Toulon (BWP), Cornet Obolensky (BWP) and Nabab de Reve (BWP).

Eventing sires: Cabri d’Elle (SF), Diarado (HOLST), Cardenio (HOLST), Catherston Liberator (BWBS), VDL Arkansas (KWPN), Chilli Morning (Berlin-Brand.), Birkhof’s Grafenstolz (TRAK), Courage II (HOLST), Ramiro B (BWP) and Contendro I (HOLST).

Dressage sires: Easy Game (TRAK), Quaterback (Berlin-Brand.), Bordeaux 28 (KWPN), Blue Hors Don Schufro (OLD), Sandro Hit (OLD), Spielberg (WESTF), Glock’s Johnston TN (KWPN), Furstenball (OLD), Vivaldi (KWPN) and Gio’s sire Apache (KWPN).