Tipperary's Tom Wachman helps Ireland to Nations Cup glory in France

A brilliant performance from Tom Wachman from Goolds Cross, Cashel, helped Ireland to a superb victory in the five-star Nations Cup at La Baule in France.

20-year-old Tom began the week in winning form, after he guided the nine-year-old mare Hawaii to victory in the opening two phase competition at La Baule, beating a field of 67 competitors with a clear second phase time of 29.57 seconds.

Ireland faced a tough test in the feature La Baule Nations Cup on Friday, where a top class international field had assembled. At the finish, though, it was the Irish who emerged as winners for the third time in history, with a team that included a mixture of youth and experience.

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Wexford’s Bertram Allen got Ireland off to the perfect start when he jumped clear as the first rider to enter the arena with the nine-year-old gelding Qonquest De Rigo.

Kilkenny’s Seamus Hughes Kennedy and ESI Rocky (ISH), bred in Stoneyford, Co Kilkenny at Ennisnag Stud, were next to go for Ireland and they delivered another textbook clear to keep Ireland on a zero score.

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Tipperary’s Tom Wachman with Tabasco De Toxandria Z then picked up eight faults, but that could be discarded when anchor rider Cian O’Connor jumped clear with the 14-year-old gelding Bentley De Sury.

That left Ireland on a zero score at the halfway stage and in a tie for the lead with Belgium.

The second round saw Bertram Allen once again jump clear, while Nicola Philippaerts matched that score for Belgium to keep the two nations out in front.

Seamus Hughes Kennedy then added another Irish clear, and when 20-year-old Tom Wachman also jumped clear second time out, Ireland were guaranteed to finish on a zero score without the need for Cian O’Connor to jump in the second round.

With Peter Devos having one fence down in his second round, Belgium’s final rider, Gilles Thomas, had to jump clear to force a jump-off with Ireland. Thomas picked up four faults at the second fence in what was an otherwise perfect round, and that meant Ireland were clear winners as the only team to finish on a zero score.

Belgium finished second on four faults, while Brazil took third place on the podium with eight faults. Sweden finished fourth, with Britain fifth and Switzerland sixth of the ten teams that lined out.

Irish team manager Michael Blake explained how winning La Baule was something he had on his radar for some time.
“We came here with high expectations, but when we saw the start list it kind of put us back in our box a bit,” Blake said.
“But we knew how good we were and if we kept jumping clear, Belgium would have to do the same and so would everyone else.

“It’s been a while since we won here so I am really happy. It’s been a great week, we won a Nations Cup on Sunday in Canada and here today so a good week.

“This (La Baule) was on my bucket list for many years and I never managed to get it done. I put the best possible team I could put together here today.

“Bertram had a young horse and Cian an older horse and then the two kids (Seamus and Tom) in the middle - they were phenomenal”.

While Tom Wachman was in action in La Baule, his older brother Max Wachman (22) was competing at another five-star French show in Cannes.

A clear round from Max and the 10-year-old stallion Fancy De Kergane helped St Tropez Pirates to victory in the Cannes leg of the Global Champions League on Thursday. They denied the home team Cannes Stars a win by just over a second in a nail-biting showdown to claim victory at GCL Cannes, taking their second podium place in two weeks.

Irish Horse Board Director General Alison Corbally added:
“This was a fantastic performance from the Irish team in La Baule, with Tipperary’s Tom Wachman playing a vital role in the win. It was an incredible weekend for the Wachman family, with Tom scoring two wins in La Baule while his brother Max was also in top form in Cannes at the Global Champions Tour fixture”.