Carey cautious ahead of Rome recovery mission
Bidding to help Ireland haul itself off the bottom of the League following a disastrous start when last in the opening leg in La Baule, Carey knows a repeat is possible, particularly as our heavy hitters remain unavailable. However, he said the team would not go down without a fight.
“We know we are the underdogs and are up against it, but we are not completely dismissing our chances. Our aim is for a good placing and to get on the scoreboard. We will all be trying hard to ride well. Obviously, we are not favourites to win, we came here knowing that, but it’s not unrealistic to expect a result,” he said.
Captain Carey lines out as anchorman with the 13-year-old Clover Hill gelding Killossery - “I jumped him [yesterday] and I’m happy with him” - and he is joined on the squad by fellow army officer Captain Gerry Flynn (Bornacoola) and La Baule combatants Harry Marshall (Ado Annie) and Denis Lynch (Domingo). Robert Splaine (Clarion Hotels Coolcorron Cool Diamond) is the reserve rider.
But, if Carey was circumspect, then chef d’equipe Liam Buckley was unequivocal as he learned Ireland were drawn sixth of the nine teams.
“We are not here to do anything but win. We have some good riders, they all jumped well today and we expect a good placing tomorrow if not a win,” said the Leinster representative on the Show Jumping Association of Ireland’s International Affairs Committee.
Lynch and Domingo gave hope last night, when jumping double clear to place fifth in the big 1.50m class.
However, the talk in Rome is about the strength of the German team and, with the US looking for a second win in a row, the Irish could find it’s not all la dolce vita in the Piazza di Sienna.
CIAN O’CONNOR yesterday said he “took comfort” from aspects of the FEI’s explanation as to how it made its decision in his Olympics drugs case, but he reiterated it is time to look to the future.
The FEI published what it terms the “motivated decision” of its judicial committee this week and the 25-year-old rider said: “Vets are allowed to administer treatment outside of competition, but the onus on the rider is to ensure the drugs have left the horse’s system in times of competition, so this has been a learning experience for me.
“I’m glad at the end of the judicial process that the committee have found I did not deliberately set out to dope the horse and that no advantage was gained by me. I take comfort in that, but rules are rules and zero tolerance applies. Obviously, this has been hard to swallow, but I’m a young man with a long career ahead of me, so I must move forward,” said O’Connor, who had to relinquish his Olympic gold medal as a result of the positive findings in Waterford Crystal.
The FEI document says urine and blood samples were sealed in three security bags. One contained a bottle of urine, one contained a tube of blood and one contained a bottle of urine and two tubes of blood.
As is well documented, among the more bizarre aspects of the case was the theft of the B urine sample, which is still under investigation.
The FEI publication also notes that its lab in Paris opened and tested a blood sample from Waterford Crystal without notification as it “sometimes performs internal testing on new drugs found in horses”. The new drug was zuclopenthixol and the screening test was done to determine if the drug could be found in blood. The blood sample was resealed after the test.
Also of interest was that an expert from Utrecht University used by the FEI consulted renowned US scientist Dr Thomas Tobin on the withdrawal times of fluphenazine and zuclopenthixol. She was unaware Dr Tobin had been retained by O’Connor.
O’Connor’s vet James Sheeran used zuclopenthixol and fluphenazine as the alternative would be to drug Waterford Crystal twice daily for six days of hydrotherapy treatment. The horse is “not easy to handle and not easy to inject medication to”, said the report. Sheeran testified he told O’Connor: “I am going to give an anxiety controlling drug that I think will be absolutely fine ... I have given it in the past.”
Interestingly, the FEI cited the Court of Arbitration for Sport in saying O’Connor’s admission he had administered drugs “is sufficient evidence for a doping offence”.
The FEI report can be seen on www.horsesport.org, legal section.
SARAH-KATE QUINLIVAN had little trouble in claiming maximum points in the grand prix at a rescheduled Coilóg last Sunday. One of 16 to match Killian Clarke’s first-round course, the Kanturk rider went on to produce the best of only four double clears. But it was her time of 44.44 seconds on Newmarket Girl that saw her stand out, with her nearest challenger Brian Duff almost 2.5 seconds adrift on Colette B, one of two he had in the jump-off. Richie Moloney and Millfall Hill were next best, followed by former national grand prix champion Peter Smyth on the ex-trotter Zara’s Pride.
Quinlivan’s win puts her fifth in the IJM TimberFrame League on 10 points, with Cian O’Connor still heading the leaderboard on 22 points.
Meanwhile, Sunday’s Rolestown Show is the latest to be hit by the bad weather, wet ground conditions necessitating its transfer to Kill Equestrian Centre tomorrow. The show features a round of the IJM TimberFrame Grand Prix League.
IRELAND’S show jumpers finished equal fourth in the Samsung Nations Cup in Copenhagen, Denmark, last weekend.
Conor Swail (Conduct) Marie Burke (Chippison), Shane Breen (World Cruise) and Clem McMahon (Hermes de Reve) all put up four faults in round one to see the team languishing eighth of 13 teams. However, clear rounds from McMahon and Breen allied to four faults from Swail in the three-rider second phase saw the team promoted to fourth. The competition was won by Germany following a jump-off against Sweden after the two teams finished on an equal score.
THE Show Jumping Association of Ireland (SJAI) has confirmed it is continuing its investigation into a complaint against show jumper Harry Marshall. Th Antrim man was cited after an alleged verbal exchange with a steward at Louth show a number of weeks ago.
A hearing took place last week in the SJAI headquarters in Goffs, Co Kildare, at which Marshall was present. The SJAI said no decision was arrived at and it hopes to have another hearing shortly.
EMILY TURKINGTON qualified her second pony for the Dublin Horse Show when riding Temper Tantrums to victory in the 128cms class at Newcastle West, Co Limerick, last weekend.
The Co Down rider previously qualified My Little Sweetheart at the Connaught Qualifiers.
The 138cms winner was Fermanagh’s Kelly Taggart on Trendy Royale, ahead of Antrim’s Conor Drain on Marskyse Sam.
Galway’s Jessica Burke, aboard Claremont Sam, came out tops in the 148cms A competition.
