Horse Sport Ireland Podcast

Achieving elite performance in equestrian sport requires a strategic, holistic approach, planning years in advance to ensure the right blend of training, physical fitness, and mental resilience is in place for both horse and rider. 
The Horse Sport Ireland High Performance Programmes are engineered to meet this immense challenge, developing a deep, sustainable pipeline of talent from youth ranks through to the senior international stage. This episode provides an essential insight into the critical non-riding training required for high performance athletes, the importance of classical training methods, and the collaborative excitement for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic cycle.
Host Melanie Young is joined by two key leaders in Irish equestrian sport: Anne Marie Dunphy, the High Performance Manager for Senior and Youth Dressage, and Simone Hession, the High Performance Manager for Para Dressage. Anne Marie is a Level 3 Dressage Coach and former international Grand Prix rider, while Simone is an HSI Level 2 Coach and a competitor of Irish-bred horses up to Grand Prix level.
THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT
Co-hosted athlete seminar for LA roadmap
Non-riding training: media and mindset
Anne Marie's journey: athlete to coach
Building team strength for European, Olympic selection
Youth and Para Dressage squad development
GUESTS DETAILS
Anne Marie Dunphy and Simone Hession are High Performance Managers at Horse Sport Ireland. Anne Marie is responsible for the Senior and Youth Dressage programmes, drawing on her experience as an international Grand Prix rider and Level 3 Coach to foster a strong youth-to-senior transition. Simone leads the Para Dressage programme, using her background as an HSI Level 2 Coach and competitive rider to focus on team support, development, and athlete communication.
Connect with Anne Maire & Simone:
Anne Marie Dunphy Website: https://www.annemariedunphy.com/contact 
Simone Hession Email: Email:[email protected]
MORE INFORMATION
Horse Sport Ireland is the national governing body for equestrian sport and the sport horse industry in Ireland, overseeing disciplines and high-performance teams, regulating athletes and horses, issuing equine passports and maintaining studbooks, and supporting breeders through national breeding services and coaching programmes.
https://www.horsesportireland.ie/ 
This podcast was produced by dustpod.io
QUOTES
Quote 1: The whole process of an Olympic Games, it's quite daunting when you step into it first. - Anne Marie Dunphy
Quote 2 : Mindset and mental fitness is a huge aspect to sport, whichever sport you're participating in. - Simone Hession
Quote 3 : The better those younger athletes get, the harder you guys at the top have to work because they'll be snapping at your heels the whole time. - Anne Marie Dunphy
Quote 4 : If everyone works together and heads down the same path, you're bound to be more successful when you get to that end goal. - Simone Hession 
KEYWORDS: 
#IrishDressage #ParaDressage #HighPerformance #EquestrianCoaching #LA2028Roadmap

The equestrian industry faces the challenge of continually producing top-tier athletes while ensuring the foundation of high-quality coaching is consistently maintained at every level, from grassroots to high performance. Without a solid system, the development of both horse and rider talent risks becoming inconsistent and insufficient to meet industry demand.
This episode dives into how the Horse Sport Ireland coaching pathways provide a long-lasting legacy of high-quality training. It explores the current structure, the shift from pure instruction to athlete-centred coaching, the crucial importance of a supportive peer network, and the essential role of coaching in rider safety and motivation. Listeners will gain insight into the vision for maintaining and improving coaching standards for the future of Irish equestrianism.
Joining host Melanie Young are John Bagnall, the Education, Coaching and Training Manager at Horse Sport Ireland, and Joanne Jarden, an HSI Level Three Eventing Coach and tutor with extensive involvement across all coaching levels.
Listen to the full episode on Horse Sport Ireland Podcast - search "Horse Sport Ireland" on your podcast app
THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT
HSI coaching pathway vision and structure
Moving from instruction to athlete-centred coaching
Value of peer networks for coach development
Importance of safety in a high-risk sport
Future plans for CPD and Level 3 courses
GUESTS DETAILS
John Bagnall is the Education, Coaching and Training Manager at Horse Sport Ireland. He is responsible for getting the HSI coaching pathway system operational and maintaining its high standard. 
Joanne Jarden is an HSI Level Three Eventing Coach and tutor, and a former Irish International Event Rider who competed to 5-Star level. She has also progressed through the Dressage Judges Exams up to List 1 Grand Prix Judging and coaches across all disciplines, helping to progress new coaches through the HSI Coaching Program.
Connect with John & Joanne:
John Bagnall Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/john-bagnall-47433922/
Joanne Jarden Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/joanne-jarden-a11a4b33/
MORE INFORMATION
Horse Sport Ireland is the national governing body for equestrian sport and the sport horse industry in Ireland, overseeing disciplines and high-performance teams, regulating athletes and horses, issuing equine passports and maintaining studbooks, and supporting breeders through national breeding services and coaching programmes.
https://www.horsesportireland.ie/ 
This podcast was produced by dustpod.io
QUOTES
We produce top quality athletes through focus on supporting coaches and to meet the demand of the industry. -  John Bagnall
You are the important foundation. If the foundation isn't right, the whole building falls down - Joanne Jarden
We're moving from away from that instruction process to understand and getting the athletes to understand the movements, understand the feel the influence that has on the horse and the relationship with the horse. -  John Bagnall
I say that rider is out on that course, on their own. You are not standing by the fence... They have to be involved. They have to be involved in their own learning and their own instruction to the horse.  - Joanne Jarden

KEYWORDS: #EquestrianCoaching #HSICoachingPathway #HorseSportIreland #GrassrootsDevelopment #RiderSafety

Mary Walsh chairs RDA Ireland—nearly 60 years, 40 groups, 400 riders weekly, zero paid executives, volunteer-led providing riding/therapy to adults/children with challenges. 
From beginning with the organisation 30 years ago, progressed from volunteer to area rep to welfare officer (delivers Sport Ireland safeguarding) to chairperson.
Also Michael Fox whose autistic son Leo (no family horse background) seeing quick results—20-message text exchange never texted before, writing poetry school, saying feels "calm" on Henry never used that term, holding cabbage for Henry despite severe ARFID requiring covering vegetables at the supermarket. 
Listen to the full episode on Horse Sport Ireland Podcast - search "Horse Sport Ireland" on your podcast app
Keywords: #equineTherapy #RDAIreland #horseHeartbeat #autismSupport #volunteerImpact

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

Horse's heartbeat synchronises with rider's creating zen calming effect for everyone
Six year old profoundly autistic non-verbal girl now sleeping talking after sessions
Leo holding cabbage for Henry overcoming ARFID food phobia through horse feeding
Forty groups, four hundred riders, nearly sixty years, zero paid executives
Sponsor rider two hundred euros yearly enabling secondary school improved centre access
GUEST DETAILS

Mary Walsh is Chairperson of RDA Ireland, a volunteer-led organization operating nearly 60 years providing riding therapy to 400 riders weekly across 40 groups with zero paid executives.
Founding member of Cavan group 30 years ago, she progressed from volunteer to area rep to welfare officer (delivers Sport Ireland safeguarding courses) before becoming chairperson. 
Her most powerful story: a six-year-old profoundly autistic non-verbal girl who never slept one night in six years now sleeps every night, talks, and wears a bobbin after RDA sessions—transforming her exhausted single mother's life completely.
CONNECT WITH MARY

RDA Ireland: rdaireland.org
Instagram and Facebook: Search RDA Ireland
Interactive map on website showing 40 centres nationwide
Volunteer, donate, or sponsor a rider (€200/year

MORE INFORMATION

Horse Sport Ireland is the national governing body for equestrian sport and the sport horse industry in Ireland, overseeing disciplines and high-performance teams, regulating athletes and horses, issuing equine passports and maintaining studbooks, and supporting breeders through national breeding services and coaching programmes.
https://www.horsesportireland.ie/ 
This podcast was produced by dustpod.io
QUOTES

Quote 1: The horse's heartbeat and theirs synchronises, so that's actually very calming for them. Even if I have a volunteer walking beside or leading a horse, the same thing happens, and you're just so zen. It's so good." - Mary Walsh
Quote 2 : "We have a little girl, six, profoundly autistic, rolled around the muck in the yard on the first day. This girl is six. She has never slept one night in six years.' After three sessions with us, she's sleeping three nights. After another few sessions, sleeping every night. Her mom grabs me crying: 'You cannot believe I've slept for the first time in six years.' - Mary Walsh
Quote 3: "So much happened in such a short space of time after he started equine therapy. My sister in law received a really long text exchange from him, maybe 20 messages. I hadn't even known him to send any text messages apart from game screenshots. - Michael Fox
Quote 4: "He's got ARFID—avoidant resistant food intake disorder. Extremely limited diet, almost a fear of foods. He won't touch vegetables. If we're in the supermarket, we have to separate them and cover them. But he will hold it when he's feeding Henry. To be able to cross that barrier that allows him to hold a piece of cabbage, a carrot, because it's for Henry, all of a sudden it's not a problem anymore. You would never think that horse riding would be a route to help him deal with a fear of certain foods." - Michael Fox

What does it take to bounce back from major disappointment and win a five star just weeks later? 
Four-time Olympian Austin O'Connor joins host Melanie Young to discuss resilience, strategic decision-making, and the team behind his success with top horse Colorado Blue. From comparing four different Olympic experiences to explaining why Burghley 2024 required choosing five-star competition over European Championships, Austin provides honest insights into elite eventing. 
We also hear from Francesca Denning, his competition groom, about the behind-the-scenes work that makes championship performances possible—from quarantine logistics to keeping a grey horse pristine white.
THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT
How resilience is the strongest word in sport
The evolution of four Olympic experiences from Sydney to Paris
Why Colorado Blue's temperament and competitive heart make him exceptional
The vital role of competition groom Francesca Denning 
Strategic decision-making around targeting five stars versus team championships

GUEST DETAILS
Austin O'Connor is a four-time Irish Olympic eventing rider who has represented Ireland at Sydney 2000, Beijing 2008, Tokyo 2020, and Paris 2024.
Austin grew up in a dealing and riding school environment in County Cork, which led him naturally into eventing, particularly drawn by the adrenaline of cross country. His top horse, Colorado Blue (known as "Salty"), was born in County Limerick and is sired by Jagermell out of a proven dam line.
Austin is known for his strategic approach to competition planning and his close-knit team approach, including his wife Amy and competition groom Francesca Denning.
Francesca Denning is Austin O'Connor's competition groom for Colorado Blue, a role she's held since Tokyo 2020. She previously worked for Austin early in her career after university and spent several years grooming for Lucy Jackson, where she developed her competition grooming expertise.
MORE INFORMATION
Horse Sport Ireland is the national governing body for equestrian sport and the sport horse industry in Ireland, overseeing disciplines and high-performance teams, regulating athletes and horses, issuing equine passports and maintaining studbooks, and supporting breeders through national breeding services and coaching programmes. https://www.horsesportireland.ie/
This podcast was produced by dustpod.io
QUOTES
You know that's sport. There's certainly more downs than ups at the end of the day. Yeah, we did have to pick ourselves up. - Austin O'Connor
Paris and Versailles was probably the most special. The setting, the French crowds and everything just made that extremely special. It was as close to playing in Old Trafford as you get in the eventing world. It felt like a new beginning really, getting there with a great group of riders. - Austin O'Connor
The strongest word in sport is resilience. If you don't have it, you're not going anywhere. You just sort of pick yourself up and look forward or go and get a different job. - Austin O'Connor
KEYWORDS
#eventing #Olympics #horsesport #resilience #fivestar

Horse breeding demands massive financial investment and years of patience before seeing any return, making it one of the most challenging aspects of equestrian sport.
Ballypatrick Stables has cracked the code on successful breeding operations, producing 60-70 foals annually through innovative embryo transfer techniques. In this podcast, we’ll discover the critical importance of starting with quality mares, the strategic decision-making behind retaining versus selling young horses, and how X-ray evaluations can identify future champions early. 
Our guest Cheryl Broderick, Ireland's leading breeder and co-owner of Ballypatrick Stables, reveals insider secrets about breeding for international markets, the role of young horse classes in development, and how proper teamwork between breeding and sporting operations creates a winning formula.
We also speak with Ballypatrick rider Niamh McEvoy about her rise to National Champion status and five-star success at Dublin Horse Show.
THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT
Breeding and Business of Ballypatrick Stables
Development of Breeding Facilities
Strategies and Market Demands
Training and Development of Young Horses
Breeding Initiatives

GUEST DETAILS
Cheryl Broderick is the head of the breeding department at Ballypatrick Stables in Thurles, County Tipperary. She has been at the helm of the breeding operation for many years overseeing all aspects from embryo transfers to the mares' foaling season. Ballypatrick has been in the Broderick family for five generations and Cheryl works alongside her brother Greg Broderick, an Olympic show jumper and coach. 
Niamh McEvoy is a 20-year-old Irish showjumper who has been working full-time at Ballypatrick Stables for three years. Niamh has quickly risen to become one of Ireland's most promising young equestrian talents.
MORE INFORMATION
Find details on a range of government-funded initiatives available in 2025 to support Irish sport horse breeders, owners, and producers at all stages of equine development at this page on our website.
https://www.horsesportireland.ie/initiatives/breeding-grants-schemes/
This podcast was produced by dustpod.io
QUOTES
There is a whole big catalogue from the best mares in the world. If you get a filly or buy into a yearling and start that way, the first investment will be the hardest, but she will repay you down the road. – Cheryl Broderick
We breed an average of 60 to 70 folds a year. Very few of our own mares carry their own foals, it's mostly based on embryo transfer.  There are a lot of different dynamics in the in the breeding business now. – Cheryl Broderick
I have 62 frozen embryos in the tank from our best mares and some of those could give you several frozen embryos in one season. – Cheryl Broderick
KEYWORDS
#Breeding #embryo #mares #BallypatrickStables #pedigrees #stallions #equestrian