EVENT horse owner and former international rider Paula Stammschroer bridged a lengthy gap when attending last week’s FEI world breeding championships for young event horses at Le Lion d’Angers in western France.

“I was here 27 years ago which was the year before I got married,” said Paula. “It’s an amazing event and the organisers and volunteers are so helpful. They are not at all officious and make everything so easy for spectators of which there were thousands.

“The food stands are fantastic – especially if you like oysters – and, of course, you get to see some lovely horses. The cross-country fences are works of art and you can only really appreciate the effort that goes into them when you attend the event in person.”

Paula was accompanied to this year’s event by her daughter Stephanie, who now runs her own yard at home in Co Meath, and they stayed in a nearby chateau. On her previous visit to the championships, Paula, then Connon, stayed on a boat on the river. “I travelled out with the late George Mernagh and Madelaine Gervais and who was also there was Caroline Bjoerk, then Sharp. I wasn’t riding and was made chef for the week!”

Among those the Stammschroers met at this year’s event were British event rider Nicola Wilson and her husband Alastair, with whom Stephanie was based last year, John and Ger Lyttle and their son Charlie and Wexford-based Victoire von Schoen whose sister Catherine owns the OBOS Quality 004 mare LEB Empress on whom Cathal Daniels finished best of the Irish in the seven-year-old championship.

The Stammschroers watched the final of the French three-year-old young event horse championship in the company of Thomas Duggan who, as ever, was seeking ideas to further improve Millstreet. He would have been delighted to see Kevin McNab claim the seven-year-old gold medal on Scuderia 1918’s Cute Girl as the Australian Olympian won the CCI4*-S at Millstreet this year with Scuderia 1918 A Best Friend on whom he is competing in the CCI5*-L at Pau this weekend.