Young Equine National Championships for Kildalton College in South Kilkenny

The 2024 Young Breeders National Championships will be hosted at Teagasc Kildalton Agricultural College, on Saturday, March 23.

Jointly supported by Teagasc and Horse Sport Ireland, and funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine under ‘national breeding services,’ the aim is to host an event merging both competition and education.

Some really nice prizes are on offer with support from DAFM, and ‘The Equine Warehouse’.

What is involved?
Multiple Choice Theory – 20 questions covering Breeding/Reproduction, Feeding and Nutrition; Stable Management; Health and Welfare; and Sport.

Conformation and Athleticism Assessment – The scores and comments on two prejudgement horses are provided by the judges for both sections in advance of competition judging.

In Hand Presentation – there is a set format for the presentation. A practice presentation with feedback from judges is possible before the marked presentation.

Highly respected and experienced industry professionals will share their insights and knowledge on the topics of conformation and athleticism assessment, relating to potential for sport, breeding and market melting education with competition.

It is not a requirement to be an active breeder to partake in the championships.
Competitors are aged 16 to 26 years of age.

The results of the Championships will be used to identify a panel from which two teams of four will be selected to represent the ‘Irish Sport Horse Studbook’ at the ‘World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses Young Breeders World Championships’ July 4-6 2024 at Stutteri Ask, Denmark.

As current World Champion titleholders, ISH Studbook look forward to taking up the challenge again in July.
The young breeders programme has established itself as a mechanism for young people with aspirations to learn more about traits, which are both successful in competition horses and valued by the marketplace, by harnessing the input of expert breeders, riders and producers while accessing high quality demonstration farms and equines nationally.

An online information session will be provided on March 14 for those interested. Registrations close on Sunday March 17.
Further information is available at https://www.teagasc.ie/rural-economy/rural-development/equine/young-breeders-programme/