A week of wins for the Breen Team

This week, the Breen Team headed to the 5* Nations Cup show at Abu Dhabi. With Shane, Trevor and David on the Irish team and Georgia selected for the British team, it was sure to be one for the books!

The team kicked things off strong, with multiple clear rounds being jumped on the Thursday. Shane on Lady Star van Doperheide contributed to the tally in the 5* 1.50 with Z7 Ipswich warming up with a clear round in the 5* 1.45. Vistogrand stepped up to jump his first 5* 1.50 and he stunned the crowds with his talent, effortlessly clearing all the fences. David piloted the 8-year-old Elmira Mail around the 2* 1.40 for a 10th place and team-mate Trevor went one better finishing in 9th place aboard Toyger in the same class. Trevor also brought home an 8th place in the 5* 1.50 on Germaine W in an impressive 5* debut. The star of the day though was Georgia, piloting Z7 Caretina to a 6th place in the 5* 1.45 and making the first podium finish of the week with a 3rd place with Can Ya Makan in the 2* 1.40 – a sign of good things to come!


Friday was when the wins started to rev up. Shane and Z7 Regal Don stepped up to the challenge in the 2* 1.40 to take home the gold medal position with David coming 6th in the same class on Elmira Mail. These two horses are surely destined to become superstars – we are excited to see what the future holds for them. In the 5* 1.45, Georgia and Z7 Caretina slotted into 13th place whilst Vistogrand and Shane sped to 4th place, collecting more ribbons to take home. Then it was the 5* President of the UAE Cup Grand Prix, and it was the turn of Shane and Z7 Ipswich to take home first place. In a nail-biting class that kept us guessing right until the end, Shane and Ipswich proved to be the best in the class with a quick double clear, beating the next competitor by 0.44 seconds! We are looking like we are starting the year as we mean to go on – winning 5* Grand Prix’s!

On Saturday, Trevor was the one to bring home a win. The younger Breen brother piloted the 9-year-old Toyger around a tough 2* Grand Prix to be one of only two double clears in the class! This was an impressive feat as this was Toyger’s first Grand Prix after jumping his first Ranking Class the day before – what a horse for the future. Well done to Trevor and the whole team at Breen Sport Horses!

Sunday was the day everyone was waiting for – the first 5* Nations Cup of the year. With strong teams formed from all the countries, it was for sure to be an exciting class to watch. Shane, brother Trevor and two Breen alumni David Simpson and Jack Ryan made up the Irish squad whilst Breen Team member Georgia Tame was selected for GB. Shane rode Team Z7’s Z7 Ipswich for an unlucky foot in the water and then a spectacular clear round with team-mate Jack Ryan and Irish bred BBS McGregor jumping double clear. David and Breen Equestrian sourced Foudre F copied Jack’s result, giving another crucial double clear for the Irish team. Trevor was the anchor rider and with a green pole in the first round on Highland President, he brought home the last clear needed for Irleand to finish on a score of 0 and take home the WIN! Georgia and Z7 Ascot put in solid performances to help Team GB take home the bronze position – what a weekend for the Z7 horses all round!

We are so proud to be a part of this 5* Nations Cup win for Ireland and can’t wait to see what the rest of the year holds. It was even more special to be sharing the podium with family and alumni, whilst being supported by our top owners and sponsors. Thank you to everyone who makes this possible and congratulations to all involved with the win!

A weekend we will never forget, we’d like to take the time to thank Team Z7 for making all of this possible. Not only with their continued support and trust to produce and compete their talented horses to the highest levels of the sport, but to allow us to be based with them in their Dubai location is an honour. We are so lucky to be here for the winter season and makes results like these possible – thank you to the whole team at Z7 and the Sheika Maitha for entrusting us!