The team competition was a nail-biting affair that saw Great Britain and Ireland forced into a jump-off, as after three rounds of Jumping to decide the team medals, both nations remained on a score of zero. Tensions were high as Britain’s quartet of Hollie Gerken (Galaxy V), Darcy Breen (One Saharah), Nellie Lock (Catho Van De Langvelden Z) and Sophia Rogers (Neil 55) went head-to-head with Ruben Foley (Wineport Q Junior), Sam Widger (Western Ranger), Charlie Flynn (HK Zena) and Lily Tunney (Fireman) in a dramatic finish to the team competition which went down to the wire with the medals decided by the last athlete out on track.

Ireland’s Ruben Foley opened the jump-off with a quick clear round in 40.24 seconds. Hollie Gerken, a member of Great Britain’s gold medal winning team in 2024, looked to have locked in a perfect start for Great Britain as she stopped the clock in 39.79 seconds but agonisingly the final fence fell leaving the door ajar for Ireland. Sam Widger delivered a sensational clear in 39.69 to maintain the advantage for Ireland but Darcy Breen responded with another quick clear in 40.59 to keep the pressure on.

Third out for Ireland Charlie Flynn lowered a fence in 42.24 giving Great Britain a chance to level up the scores. Nellie Lock sacrificed speed for accuracy to secure a crucial second clear for Great Britain in a steadier time of 44.21 piling the pressure on Ireland’s anchorman Lily Tunney. Tunney delivered another fast round in 40.82 but critically the plank fell, leaving Great Britain knowing that a clear round from their final athlete would secure gold. With a team gold medal from 2024 already on her mantelpiece, Sophia Rogers knew exactly what she had to do to clinch the title for her team once again. Disregarding the clock and the inevitable pressure, she delivered a cool and calm clear in 46.39 to secure gold for Great Britain.

Ireland had to settle for silver despite a series of sterling performances whilst Belgium’s team of Clémentine Lux (Eoghan De Seguret), Elise Thirion (Dance Floor Du Cauroy), Niels Van Rossem (Tesla Van Het Klavertje) and Robin Vermeir (Kristal Sparkle Van Begeveld) took the Bronze medal with a team score of just 4 faults over the three rounds of Jumping.

Individual

Twenty-Six combinations representing ten nations came forward to contest the individual Final which was run over two rounds with fences standing at 1.35m. Carrying forward their scores from the team competition, combinations had already faced three rounds of Jumping over 1.30m tracks earlier in the week and started the individual final in reverse order of standings.

Such was the standard of competition and calibre of athlete, that seven combinations came into the individual final with clean sheets having remained faultless over the first three rounds of competition. Three of these athletes were representing Great Britain, three Ireland and one Belgium. 

Cédric Longis (FRA) set a true championship test for the opening round with his track featuring an airy wall at fence one, a narrow style at fence three, a combination comprising a triple bar on two strides to a vertical and one stride to an oxer and a hugely influential line of a 1.35m oxer over a water tray set on a short seven-stride distance to the open water and an eight-stride related distance to a vertical- oxer double. Many faulted at the water having failed to rebalance and generate enough impulsion to clear the tape or at the double that followed it having carried too much momentum forward.

Twentieth into the arena, it was Great Britain’s Double Team Gold Medallist Sophia Rogers aboard the British bred Neil 55 who answered all of Longis’s questions to produce the first clear round. The first of the athletes coming in on a score of zero she set the standard for the remaining six combinations. Only two more athletes could match her as fellow team mate Darcy Breen and Irish Individual Cian McMunn delivered the only other clears in round one.

Twenty combinations returned to face round two, a completely new 1.35m track featuring three doubles, which included a one-strided double of verticals with a delicate plank at part A and a two-strided double of oxers. Six combinations returned clean sheets this time round but critically, only two of those came from athletes still on a zero score. Producing their fifth faultless rounds of the championships, Darcy Breen and Cian McMunn had guaranteed themselves at least a silver medal but once again a jump-off was required to split Great Britain and Ireland.

An identical battle transpired to decide the bronze medal as Ireland’s Charlie Flynn and Great Britain’s Sophia Rogers had both lowered just one fence apiece in the individual final, so once again only a jump-off could split them. Charlie was first to jump-off and set a blistering standard with HK Zena to leave all the fences intact and stop the clock in 38.76 seconds. Sophia set sail producing another foot perfect round, albeit in a fractionally slower time of 39.41 to miss out on the podium by the narrowest of margins whilst Charlie Flynn secured the individual bronze medal.

Cian McMunn opened proceedings in the battle for Gold with a slick round in 39.25 seconds to produce his sixth flawless round of the Championships with the French bred Esperando SK to lay down the gauntlet for Darcy Breen. With nothing to lose and knowing she could trust her game mare implicitly, Darcy set off at speed but when the first part of the double fell, the results were decided and this time it was Great Britain who had to settle for silver and Ireland took gold, and the greatest form of redemption for Cian McMunn who missed out on Ireland’s Team medal having been selected as their individual athlete.

Cian was understandably delighted to be crowned Individual FEI Jumping European Champion and remained incredibly humble and gracious of his place on the squad. When asked if he was frustrated to have not got a place on the team he responded:

 

“It was my Chef d’Equipe’s own decision so I really couldn’t do much about it but I trusted him… I’m not frustrated at all”.

 

Cian McMunn

(IRL)

 

Irish Chef d’Equipe Denis Flannelly was full of praise for his athletes and the support team around them: “This is just incredible. Cian and Charlie have jumped spectacularly well all week. When the pressure was really on they showed how much it meant to them by keeping their composure and jumping two quick clear rounds. 

“They’re both fantastic young men and deserve every success- I’m so proud of them. It was a great achievement to win team silver here on Friday and I think secretly, the lads had that extra bit of determination to not let being beaten in a jump-off happen again!” Flannelly joked. 

“They’ve produced the goods and guaranteed Gold and Bronze medals, it’s amazing” he concluded.

FULL RESULTS