Ireland won the Second Division Longines EEF Nations Cup at Peelbergen in Holland yesterday, but the country’s Olympic Dressage dream seems to be dashed following the withdrawal of three potential team members. Her Lusitano gelding Esporim has recovered from an injury sustained earlier this year but won’t be match-fit in time for the Games. At the European Championships in Rotterdam in 2019, the three riders joined with Heike Holstein and her mare Sambuca to clinch Ireland’s first Olympic Dressage qualification slot, but there is now much speculation that the team will be withdrawn. Horse Sport Ireland CEO Joe Reynolds said: “We’ve lost three horses so we don’t have a team. Two riders remain qualified – Heike Holstein and Dane Rawlins – and Alex Baker is part-qualified, so participation is under consideration by the Board of Horse Sport Ireland and the Olympic Federation of Ireland.”

Source: Irish Independent June 05, 2021 01:35 UTC