Wins for Ireland in Geneva
Saturday, 9 December 2006 16:32Cian O'Connor racked up his second win at the World Cup show in Geneva, Switzerland on Saturday afternoon with a victory in the special feature speed class.
Riding the mare Zanoubia, with whom Meath-based O'Connor had recorded his first win of the weekend on Thursday, the class involved both senior riders and pony riders competing against the clock. The pony riders kept their saddles and had a shorter course in order to handicap the older competitors, who rode bareback.
O'Connor won the competition just .05 of a second ahead of Swiss rider Celine Caramello.
Clonmel-born John Hickey is the sole Irish campaigner at Poznan in Poland this weekend, and has racked up two good finishes with the seven year-old Cool Hill, which is out of a Clover Hill mare, Westgate.
On Saturday, the 40-year-old rider, who is now based in Sweden,
had a second place on the horse in the Youngster Tour, but took first in the Friday class. On Sunday Hickey competes Cool Hill in
the Youngster Tour Final at the Polish two-star World Cup show.
Meanhile Cameron Hanley won the Young Horse Final at Geneva, Switzerland, with his seven year-old grey Holsteiner on Saturday morning.
Up against a formidable array of international riders, 33 year-old
Hanley managed to put the stallion across the finishing line just
under a second ahead of Switzerland's Pius Schwizer in the nine horse jump-off.
Ireland's Jessica Kurten was not so fortunate with her new mare
Castle Forbes La Vie Du Fraignea, incurring a single time fault
that prevented the combination from entering the jump-off.
