Splaine points to strategy as reason for no show in Rotterdam
It is the second show of the eight Furusiyya Series nations cups in Europe Division One that Ireland will miss after Rome, plus there will be no team at the Swedish leg in Falsterbo, and Hickstead, England.
Ireland show jumping manager Robert Splaine said it was part of a strategy and fundamental to this was the timing, in particular, of three of Ireland’s four point-gaining nations cups contests: Lummen, Belgium (April 30), La Baule, France (May 15), and St Gallen, Switzerland (June 5), with Rome sandwiched in on May 22. Ireland’s next outing is at Dublin Horse Show in August.
Following Ireland’s poor display last year, Splaine did not have the luxury of selecting his points-gaining shows this year. However, countries do compete in Furusiyya competitions with no opportunity for points, for example Belgium and Switzerland today, while in St Gallen, the Netherlands, Italy and Great Britain battled solely for prestige and prizemoney.
Splaine said, though, the overarching factor determining nations cup participation for Ireland was identifying and fielding the best team for the European Championships.
“Firstly, it is important to remember that we were allocated our four-point gaining shows by the FEI. It was a hectic schedule early on and you have to take into context the whole year and, in particular, putting out the best team at the European Championships, where we hope to qualify a team for the Olympics,” said Splaine yesterday.
“Rome came close after La Baule and immediately before St Gallen, so, strategically the Italian nations cup was not well placed.
“Similarly, with Rotterdam: It didn’t fall right, but we do have two individual riders there, as there were in Rome and will be in Falsterbo.
“We did, in fact, apply for Falsterbo and we did not get it. It is up to the show organisers.
“Instead, I opted for Mannheim in Germany, and that serves the same purpose. Last year we did Aachen, but this is not on this year due to it staging the European Championships.”
With a maximum of eight countries allowed in the nations cup, the RDS yesterday said two teams not in line for points, France and Sweden, had their request to participate at this year’s Dublin Horse Show rejected, along with Brazil. Getting the nod instead are the Netherlands and Germany, along with the USA, while Italy, Britain, Spain and Switzerland will join Ireland in the battle for points.
The question is: Should Europe Division One teams be given priority if seeking access to a show? Splaine saw nothing wrong in shows having the say on what countries are represented in the nations cup, including denying Europe Division 1 countries a place.
“A country can decide to request an invitation to a show or not and shows are entitled to decide who they accept. It is not unusual.”
He also forcibly rejected that Ireland not fielding teams at half of the series had been determined by cost.
“Not at all. Absolutely not. Of course, budgets are finite and we have to work within those parameters and there is a limit to what we can do, but we are satisfied we are taking the best possible strategic approach. All steps lead to the European Championships and the approach adopted is conducive to fielding our best possible side at the Europeans. Strategically, I’m satisfied. We had to deal with what we got from the FEI and make our plans around it. I’m reasonably satisfied that we are making progress in the right direction.”
He also said horses and riders on the periphery had ample opportunity for exposure, while he also pointed out that many of the Irish riders were based in the US.
“We have the correct formula to offer the exposure to all combinations that are under consideration for the championships. We also have taken in the US nations cups earlier in the year at Ocala and Wellington. By virtue of having so many riders in the US, we are rather exclusive among the European nations in that we give greater importance to these shows as pointers towards horse/rider combinations with potential. I also consider the summer series in Calgary in Canada as significant.”
Bertram Allen will bring some added bite to the final of The Underwriting Exchange Jumping In The City Series at Shelbourne Park next Friday.
The world number five will line up against Olympic bronze medallist Cian O’Connor, former world champion Dermott Lennon and Tipperary’s Greg Broderick.
Michael Ryan and Fraser Duffy will be among the home favourites for this weekend’s two-star Kilguilkey House International Horse Trials.
The event was voted the best two-star of the 2014 in an online poll of Eventing Ireland members and this year Danny and Michelle Dulohery have commissioned Olympic course designer Mike Etherington-Smith to put his stamp on the track. The event, sponsored by Fernhill Sport Horses, begins tomorrow with dressage and show jumping, followed on Sunday by the cross-country.
Meanwhile, Wexford’s Michael O’Toole tackles the German four-star event at Luhmuhlen with Greenfort Endeavour this weekend.
