Masters coverage 'opportunity to showcase Irish talent'
Greg Broderick competes in the Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) Masters at Emerald International Equestrian Centre in Kildare. Photo: Sportsfile
Irish showjumping is getting a huge boost with live coverage on RTÉ2 of the Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) Masters at Emerald International Equestrian Centre in Kildare today at 6.30pm.
Many top riders based abroad have returned home for the event including Denis Lynch, Shane Breen, Michael Duffy and Richard Howley, and all the big names on the national circuit have signed up including 2002 World Champion Dermott Lennon, 2016 Olympian Greg Broderick and 2020 National Champion Captain Geoff Curran. Rising stars Kate Derwin and Jason Foley will be looking for a share of the €23,000 prize fund and the winner will drive away in a brand new Overlander 2-Stall Horse Truck.
Eventer Cathal Daniels, who took individual bronze at last year's European Championships, also competes.
"People still talk about the times when show jumping was on live television back in the '80s at Millstreet and Salthill, and for many people that was their first taste of our sport," said HSI acting CEO Joe Reynolds.
"This is an opportunity to showcase to the Irish public our exceptionally talented group of Irish riders who are regularly winning competitions on the international stage. It is also a chance to give people a taste of what is in store next year when, for the first time in history, Ireland will be represented at the Olympic Games in Tokyo by full teams in dressage, jumping and eventing," he added.
Interviews with members of the dressage and eventing teams that qualified for Tokyo will also be included in the two-and-a-half-hour programme. Covid-19 protocols will be in place with testing of all riders coming from abroad.
