Exhibiting at the Show
If you have exhibited at the Show in the last two years, the Competition Schedule will be posted to you at the end of May of 2013. It is also available to download from this site or by emailing equestrian@rds.ie with your postal details.
Click here to view the 2012 Competition Schedule with the details and rules for all classes and competitions held at the Dublin Horse Show.
There are two types of equestrian competition at the Show: showing classes and showjumping.
Showing Classes
The showing classes are segmented into type of horse or pony, by weight category or age category, ridden or led, sex, age etc. You do not have to qualify at any other Show to enter the Discover Ireland Dublin Horse Show (except if you are entering the Performance Irish Draught, Breeders' Championship, Three Year Old Potential Event Horse, Three Year Old Loose Performance, Young Event Horse, Small Event Horse, Connemara Pony Breeders' Championship, Connemara Performance Hunter, Combined Training or Junior Equitation classes).
National Jumping Classes
These competitions are only open to horses and ponies which have qualified at shows run by Show Jumping Ireland (SJI). For more information see www.sji.ie
Irish-bred classes
The 2005 Show demonstrated a significant increase in the number of horses bred outside of Ireland competing at Dublin. The rationale behind the Show and its classes is to promote Irish breeding and the Irish horse and it is for this reason, in support of the Irish-bred horse, that we have introduced a restriction to a number of classes. These classes are restricted to horses foaled in Ireland with appropriate documents to support that fact. Horses entered in a class with the Irish-bred restriction must also be micro-chipped under this rule. The Irish-bred classes provide the ideal opportunity to showcase the best of Irish horses. Otherwise the Dublin Horse Show remains a truly open international show.
Class with Irish-bred restriction:
- Show Hunters (Classes 1-11)
- The Working Hunter Championship (Classes 15-17)
- Three Year Old Potential Event Horse (Class 61)
- Three Year Old Loose Performance (Class 62)
- Four & Five Year Old RDS Young Event Horse (Classes 63 & 64)
- Small Event Horse (Class 65)
- The 4 Year Old Show Jumping (Class 104), 5 Year Old Show Jumping (Class 105) and 6 Year Old Show Jumping (Class 106) classes are restricted to animals registered as being bred on the Island of Ireland and those entire animals (stallions and mares) bred outside Ireland that are registered and approved/preliminary approved, or select for breeding in an Irish Studbook (Approved by the Dept of Agriculture)
- The Racehorse to Riding Horse class is restricted to horses that have either been bred in Ireland or trained in Ireland for a minimum of one year
Other performance classes
Young Event Horse classes (Classes 63 & 64) for four and five year olds were added to the programme in 2006 and proved a great success. The classes are designed to promote potential high class event type horses and create a platform for breeders and producers to display their quality young stock. They emphasize the significance of the event horse in the Irish Sport Horse Industry and create another performance outlet for many of the young horses currently being shown in hand. There has been a marked decline in the use of the traditional breeds comprising the Irish Sport Horse over the last number of years and these classes will demonstrate the beneficial contribution of traditional breeding in the production of quality, athletic young stock.
The RDS Sportsman classes (Classes 18 & 19) were introduced in 2007. These classes are aimed at amateur or non-professional producers and have been designed to showcase and highlight the importance of the leisure horse to the Irish breeding industry. Show Hunters in Classes 1-11 are not eligible to enter this class.
Racehorse to Riding Horse - Details can be found on the website
Performance Irish Draught - Details can be found on the website
Three Year Old Potential Event Horse - Details can be found on the website
Three Year Old Loose Performance - Details can be found on the website
Young Event Horse - Details can be found on the website
Small Event Horse - Details can be found on the website
Connemara Pony Breeders' Championship - Details can be found on the website
Connemara Performance Hunter - Details can be found on the website
Combined Training - Details can be found on the website
