FORMER contributor to The Irish Field, Stanislaus Lynch from Ballyjamesduff, Co Cavan, is the only Irish writer to be awarded two Olympic Diplomas, London Games in 1948 and Helsinki Games in 1952 for Epic Literature. He is to be honoured at a special evening Lecture in Cavan County Museum in Ballyjamesduff next Thursday, February 21st at 8pm.

Speakers will include the former chairman of Horse Sport Ireland, Professor Patrick Wall, equestrian photojournalist and author Noel Mullins, as well as farmer, horse producer and member of the Ballymacad Hunt Paul Keogan, horse producer and the longest serving steward at the Dublin Horse Show, Hugh Leonard, and veteran equestrian journalist and broadcaster Michael Slavin.

Stanislaus Lynch was a master of the English language and was the author of six outstanding books in prose and poetry on equestrianism and the countryside that were published in Ireland, Great Britain and the USA and illustrated by some of the most gifted equestrian artists at the time - Tom Carr, Michael Lyne and Olive Whitmore.

All his books are now out of print, but one of his books, In Search of the Kerry Beagle, which he wrote some 70 years ago, was recently published in 2017. His poems have also been incorporated into Anthologies, A Thousand Years of Irish Poetry, The Fox-Hunters Bedside Book and Concord of Harps. He was a correspondent for The Irish Field and many other equestrian publications in Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand and the United States of America.

BREEDER

Lynch was also a broadcaster and commentated on the Dublin Horse Show for many years, featuring also on literary programmes on both RTE and the BBC. He was a breeder of Irish Draught horses and Connemara Ponies and was the first person to export large consignments to America starting with shipping 54 Connemara Ponies in 1959 to Georgia in the USA.

He also presented a Connemara Pony to film director Walt Disney who was filming Darby O’Gill and The Little People in Ireland.

When the Irish Tourist Board was promoting equestrian holidays abroad, Lynch, who owned two riding schools himself in Castleknock and Mosney, was their Inspector of Riding Establishments. He delivered papers on The Part of the Irish Farmer in Equestrian Tourism and The Use of Rural Space to a UNESCO Conference in Paris in 1966 to an audience from 44 nations.