The Irish show jumper, Seamus Hughes Kennedy, has said goodbye to his 10-year-old gelding, ESI Rocky (Stakkato Gold x For Pleasure). In the future, the gelding will compete with Anastasia Nielsen in the saddle. The rider recently lost her top horse, Beau van de Hagenhorst, after an accident in the ring.
Kennedy and ESI Rocky last competed internationally earlier this summer during the Dublin Horse Show. Earlier this year, the duo was also part of the winning Irish team in the 1.60m CSIO5* Nations Cup of La Baule (FRA). The combination also finished fourth in the CSIO5* Grand Prix at this competition.
This year, the duo also took fourth place in the CSIO5* Grand Prix of Rome (ITA). In the summer, they also represented Ireland at the European Championships in A Coruna, where the pair finished with only one time penalty throughout the entire championship.
The record of Kennedy and the gelding also includes the individual European Championship Gold with the Young Riders in 2023.
