THE last of this year’s World Cup competitions will see three Irish riders lining out at the Christmas show in Olympia, London at the weekend.
Cork’s Billy Twomey, who beat the world’s top riders to win the Rolex Top Ten Final at Paris earlier this month, travels to Olympia with Romanov, Tin Tin, Tinka’s Serenade and Wings Sublieme, while Co. Down’s Dermott Lennon arrives with Arsalla, Hallmark Elite and the Irish-bred Loughview Lou-Lou.
Meath’s Cian O’Connor, who is competing at London by personal invite, takes Blue Loyd 12, Everything, O’Connell Street and Uniek II.
In the five-star dressage competitions at Olympia, Dane Rawlins competes for Ireland with Sydney.
Ireland’s highest-placed rider in the World Cup rankings is Denis Lynch, at equal fifth, but he will not be appearing at Olympia, electing instead to join Jessica Kurten and Mark McAuley at the five-star show in La Coruna, Spain, where he intends to compete in Saturday’s Grand Prix and then fly to the four-star event at Frankfurt, where he will have three other horses waiting for him, and compete there in Sunday’s Grand Prix.
The 2011/2012 Rolex FEI World Cup jumping final takes place in the Netherlands in April next year.