After last week’s European Championships in dressage and show jumping, the spotlight this week turns on the eventing equivalent, with Germany staging the battle for medals at Luhmühlen.

The Irish show jumping team will be vying with nine other nations for an Olympic place when they head to the European Championships in Rotterdam next month.

Last Friday, the Ukrainian show jumping team contested a Tokyo 2020 qualifier in Budapest and amassed a total of 41 faults.

This weekend Ireland’s show jumping team face their second of four Nations Cup qualifiers when they travel to the Baltic venue of Sopot for the Nations Cup of Poland.

New Zealander Tim Price has topped the latest FEI world eventing rankings just days after winning the George Mernagh Memorial CCI4*-S at Tattersalls International Horse Trials in Co Meath, while Ireland’s Elizabeth Power has made a significant climb following her fourth-place finish in the Irish Field CCI4*-L at the same meeting.

The world governing body of equestrian sport, the FEI, says that there has been strong interest in the bidding process to stage the 2022 World Championships, with a global spread of potential hosts across four continents which includes venues in 20 different countries.

Qatar stays in focus this week with a second successive five-star fixture in Doha following on from last weekend’s opening round of the Global Champions Tour.

The world governing body of equestrian sport (FEI) has given a three-month timescale for bids to host the next world championships in 2022 and has said it will accept representations from venues interested in staging standalone events as well as those who would be prepared to host all seven equestrian disciplines at once.

Irish show jumper Cian O’Connor has been elected to represent the world’s show jumpers on the Jumping Committee of the FEI, equestrian sport’s world governing body, it was announced this week.

There were some positive moves for Irish riders in the latest Longines rankings issued by the world governing body, the FEI, yesterday.

Just in time for Christmas, the Belgian Competition Authority lobbed an unwelcome ‘present’ at both equestrian sport’s world governing body, the FEI, and the privately run Global Champions Tour/Global Champions League (GCT/GCL).

Now that the Global Champions Tour has concluded for another year, the FEI World Cup series provides the main international show jumping focus in the months ahead.

Ireland are set to field their strongest show jumping team of the season so far for the Swedish Nations Cup at Falsterbo on Friday.

Cian O’Connor is hoping the celebrations that greeted the arrival on Wednesday of a second child, Cara Louise, to him and his wife Ruth will continue this weekend at the Global Champions Tour (GCT) final in Doha, Qatar.

Kevin Thornton is confident an autopsy on the horse Flogas Sunset Cruise will exonerate him of any wrongdoing.

“I know there is room for improvement and I am confident I can achieve it.”

Daniel McConnell looks at some of the scandals that have blighted Irish athletes over the years.

It emerged this week that de facto Ukrainian show jumping team owner Oleksandr Onyshchenko has sold 44 of his horses to Germany’s Paul Schockemohle.

Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) has not deviated from its assertion that MHS Going Global is eligible for the Olympics, and it is hopeful that it has “clarified” a query from the Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI) regarding the ownership of the horse ridden by Greg Broderick.

The International Equestrian Federation (FEI) yesterday listed Greg Broderick and MHS Going Global among the nominations for Ireland’s sole show jumping slot at the Olympics, but it is examining the horse’s eligibility amid speculation it may not comply with a rule on ownership.

Horse Sport Ireland last night rubbished speculation that the show jumping horse MHS Going Global is ineligible to represent Ireland in the Olympics.

Cian O’Connor declared on Facebook this week that he think’s “Ireland will win” today’s Furusiyya nations cup in St Gallen, Switzerland.

Cian O’Connor continued to demonstrate the Olympic credentials of Good Luck on Saturday, the pair finishing fourth in the five-star grand prix at the Winter Equestrian Festival in Florida.

Horse Sport Ireland has not ruled out taking the case involving Cian O’Connor to the Swiss federal courts.

Irish show jumper Bertram Allen last night said he was “devastated’ after winning the grand prix at London’s Olympia, only to be disqualified when a spot of blood was found on the right flank of his mount Quiet Easy.

Cian O’Connor was tight-lipped last night as he flew out of Lausanne, Switzerland, following his appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in a bid to secure a place for the Irish show jumping team in next year’s Olympics.

Bertram Allen won three cars in Sweden a fortnight ago, but he knows he will require a Rolls Royce performance this weekend at the Geneva, Switzerland, this weekend if he is to drive off with any of the riches on offer.

Dermott Lennon placed second in the World Cup qualifier in Toronto, Canada, a fortnight ago with Loughview Lou Lou.

Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) has lodged an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) regarding the debacle at last month’s European Championships that saw Cian O’Connor impeded in his round and Ireland denied a place in next year’s Olympics.

Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) is confident it has a “valid” case as it prepares to file an appeal to the Federation Equestre International (FEI) Tribunal by today regarding the debacle at the European Championships that saw Cian O’Connor impeded in his round and Ireland denied a place in next year’s Olympics.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has ruled out any chance of an extra place being created for Ireland in the show jumping competition at next year’s Games in Rio de Janeiro.