LIKE many extraordinary and exceptionally talented people, Michael Blake is difficult to categorise. While he is known to all as the dedicated and hard-working chef d’equipe of our senior international show jumping team, perhaps it is less well known that he rode and won his first point-to-point at age 15.

By his early 20s, Blake became master and huntsman of the local hunt, The East Clare Harriers, and currently holds the world record for Bareback Puissance. When quizzed about his background, you’ll find Michael Blake is a tenor of operatic standard. In short, he is a modern day Renaissance Man.