Lanaken 2016 World Breeding & Belgium Championships, Killossery Kaiden & Ger O’Neill. Ph. Sportfot
With a maturity that belied his years, Killossery Kaiden bounced around the jumpoff of the FEI World Young Horse Breeding Championships at Lanaken in September, becoming the only horse to jump double clear in his division to earn the title of 6-Year-Old World Champion.
The Irish Sport Horse gelding by Lux Z, with an offset snip on his bay nose, set the large contingent of Irish supporters at the Lanaken ingate alight when he became the best 6-year-old in the world, at the reins of Irish rider Ger O’Neill.
“We were happy that there were only nine of us in the jumpoff, but the second round was really big, like a grand prix,” O’Neill said. “He’s really a fighter, and his spirit really came out in the jumpoff. My chef d’equipe said that if I jumped a clear round I was going to get a medal, and with the pressure to go really fast off, I was pretty sure he’d go double clear.”
Killossery Kaiden proved himself well during a fantastic season that culminated with the win at Lanaken. Earlier in the season, the pair won the first 6-Year-Old qualifier at the Royal Dublin Horse Show and went on to win the Horse Sport of Ireland league for 6-Year-Olds.
O’Neill is well versed in starting the careers of top horses; he had a hand in developing Eric Lamaze’s former mount Zigali PS and Paul Estermann’s veteran partner Castlefield Eclipse.
Killossery Kaiden has been based at the same yard in County Kilkenny, Ireland that those horses spent during the beginning of their careers. Bred by Laura and Frank Glynn of Killossery Lodge Stud, Killossery Kaiden was sent to O’Neill to be guided through his six-year-old year. The results they had together were better than
“I think that he has a big future ahead of him,” O’Neill said. “He’ll definitely be a Nations Cup horse; he looks like a championship horse. He’s laid back about everything, but his eyes are always open.”
O’Neill works with KM Sport Horses, which owns Killossery Kaiden and many of O’Neill’s other mounts. Like most professionals in Ireland, he has been following the events of the Goresbridge Supreme Sale of Showjumpers for the last two years, and when it was revealed that Killossery Kaiden would headline the annual sport horse auction in its third year, he couldn’t object.
I don’t believe he’s achieved all that he’s capable of yet,”
“The timing is right. You’d love to keep him obviously, and keep him in the yard every day, but I really believe this horse will go on to great things. I don’t believe he’s achieved all that he’s capable of, yet,” O’Neill said. “And there’s a great selection of horses in the sale. It’s really something now, with the Irish breeding system being so much better now. Ireland is starting to come back on the map and the auction is a great showcase for us.”
More information about Killossery Kaiden along with details of the November 15 Goresbridge Supreme Sale of Showjumpers can be found at this link. Live and phone-in bidding is available during the Sale, which will be held in Wexford, Ireland.