Text © World of Showjumping

AAs the final pair to compete in Friday’s CSIO5* 1.60m Nations Cup of Ireland for the Underwriting Exchange’s Aga Khan Trophy at the 2024 RDS Dublin Horse Show, Team USA’s McLain Ward and 16-year-old Callas (Casall x Coriano) sealed the deal for Robert Ridland’s quartet who topped the podium.

With a double clear along with Spencer Smith and Keeneland (Carmena Z x Quattro B), Lucy Davis and Ben 431 (Sylvain x Quincy Jones) and Aaron Vale on Carissimo 25 (Cascadello x Clinton), Ward and Callas kept the American score at four and secured victory ahead of Michael Blake’s Irish team – consisting of Darragh Kenny and VDL Cartello (Cartani 4 x Lord), Mark McAuley and GRS Lady Amaro (Amaretto d’Arco x Over The River), Denis Lynch and Vistogrand (Fantaland x Mr Visto) and Cian O’Connor on Fancy de Kergane (Berdenn de Kergane x Cor de Hus) – who finished in second place with eight faults.

Di Lampard’s British quartet – consisting of Ben Maher and Exit Remo (San Remo x Ferro), Tim Gredley and Medoc de Toxandria (Der Senaat 111 x Kelvin de Sainte Hermelle), Jodie Hall McAteer and Hardessa (Berlin x Kashmir van Schuttershof) and Matthew Sampson on Daniel (Heartbreaker x San Patrignano Mister) – finished third with a total of twelve faults.

Seven teams – USA, Belgium, Great Britain, Switzerland, Netherlands, Sweden and France – were invited to compete against the Irish in Dublin in one of the most traditional Nations Cups on the international tour. The course, designed by Irish course designer Alan Wade, comprised twelve obstacles and fifteen trials and the questions began early with a triple combination of oxer, oxer and vertical at obstacle number four, followed by open water at obstacle number eight – where Frenchmen Julien Gonin and Valou du Lys (Calvaro FC x Galoubet A) parted ways – and as it was the second elimination for Henk Nooren’s team, the French were no longer in the running for the second round.

The American team had completed the first round clean and were in the lead at the start of the second round, with the hosts hot on their heels with three clear rounds. The last pair to go for the home team, Cian O’Connor and Fancy de Kergane kept Irish hopes alive with a clean round, giving Michael Blake’s team a total of eight penalties – and leaving American finishers McLain Ward and Callas no room for error. A clean round from Ward would have given the Americans the Aga Khan trophy, while a knocked down fence would have led to a jump-off against the Irish. But Ward and Callas are used to pressure and produced one of their typically stylish rounds, securing victory for the Stars and Stripes and relegating the boys in green to second place, with Great Britain third, Belgium fourth and Switzerland fifth.

“They were incredible. No question about it. Spencer led the way, McLain sealed the deal and the other two were fantastic – Spencer’s double clear right at the start takes the pressure off everyone, which is a positive when everything is so competitive. Lucy is riding almost like she did four years ago before she took a break from the sport – she’s fought her way back to that level and the more she gets to know this horse, the better the partnership will be,” said Chef d’Equipe Robert Ridland in a press release from US Equestrian News. “Aaron is so close to getting everything nearly perfect with Carissimo and you know McLain is McLain – he’s always there for us when we need him. There was a big momentum change here after the Olympics and everyone really stepped up. This is a special event and a Nations Cup like no other, so it feels good to win it again. The crowd is incredible and so supportive of the US team – it really is one of the best competitions in the world.”