Cathal Daniels and Rioghan Rua make easy work of the final line. Photo by Tilly Berendt.
Just one more week until eventing begins anew in the U.S. and our Nupafeed Weekend Winners column returns to business as usual. In the interim, however, the EquiRatings Horse of the Year prize is one that diehard eventing fans all over the world anxiously await at the end of each season. True to the concept of fan engagement, EquiRatings involves a social media vote each year to help decide the eventual winner. The tournament style voting pits top horses against one another, making for a truly agonizing decision on the part of the voters. Just look at the agony pulled from the comments on each poll!
“How can you pitch these pair of amazing horses against each other???!!!”
“This is like choosing between oxygen and food.”
“Man, this one is just mean.”
“No, this is too much stress for Boxing Day. We’re all too fragile.”
The final round of voting pitted Ingrid Klimke’s SAP Hale Bob OLD against Cathal Daniels’ Rioghan Rua. But, one horse must prevail over the rest, and the eventual crowned #ERHOTY19 is none other than the red princess, Rioghan Rua, piloted for Ireland by the immensely talented Cathal Daniels.
She has done it. In the fifth year of #ERHOTY we have our first ever Irish winner – Rioghan Rua. A hugely popular mare,…
Posted by EquiRatings on Monday, December 30, 2019
Rioghan Rua needs little introduction. The 13 year old Irish Sport Horse mare (Highland Destiny x Jack of Diamonds) owned and bred by Margaret and Frank Kinsella has spent her entire FEI career with Cathal and burst onto the five-star radar with a top-15 placing at Pau in 2016. The pair followed this up with a smashing Badminton debut, making short work of a demanding cross country course despite the mare’s diminutive size. Rioghan Rua and Cathal Daniels went on to represent Ireland at WEG in 2018 and capped off an incredible 2019 season with an Under 25 CCI4*-L win at Bramham and an individual bronze at the European Eventing Championships at Luhmühlen in August.
Cathal Daniels and Rioghan Rua speed across the finish. Photo by William Carey.
We’ve certainly not seen the last (or, likely, the greatest) from this Irish super-duo, and we’re equally thrilled to see the chestnut mare well represented with such a classic example of where pure heart, determination, grit, and talent can get you. We wish Cathal and the newly crowned #ERHOTY19 the best of luck as the 2020 season draws closer! Go Eventing.
