Showjumpers disqualified from Rio GCT event

SHOW jumper Billy Twomey said a “few scrapes and cuts” to his horse Romanov were the reason he was disqualified from the €1 million Global Champions Tour contest at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Sunday.

The Nottinghamshire-based Corkman was one of three riders barred from the competition as a result of hypersensitivity to their horses’ legs, along with Tipperary rider Denis Lynch, who was set to ride All Inclusive NRW, and France’s Simon Delestre on Vancouver DML.

The world governing body, the Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI) yesterday stressed there was no suggestion of “malpractice” on the part of the riders.