Horse Sport Ireland chooses not to send a team to Tokyo

milliepops

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It's going to be an interesting year. it's sad for the qualified Irish riders. There's been such a lot of shuffling around because of riders not qualified or teams not wanting to go in the circumstances. it's giving amazing opportunities to some other folk though who are getting the options handed down to them as spaces open up though, one of the riders based where I train is off to Toyko and I am so so so so chuffed for her, her trainer and the groom who looks after the horse, it's wonderful.
 

teapot

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its not about costs. The riders themselves have spent thousands competing to be qualified, out of their own pocket!

Qualifying is one thing, the costs of going to any championships abroad, especially ones that involve flying and quarantine are astronomical.
 

Tiddlypom

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Qualifying is one thing, the costs of going to any championships abroad, especially ones that involve flying and quarantine are astronomical.
I was wondering that too, but if the flights and quarantine were prebooked (they'd have to be, wouldn't they?), would there be any refund?

It does seem tight on the riders who qualified.
 

paddi22

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The HSI budget is SO tight. the cost of sending people is astronomical. it's purely a budgetary thing. three of the four team can't compete so rest wouldn't have a chance. harsh but true. and that money can be better used to fund training and support for a wide amount of riders throughout year instead.
 

teapot

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I was wondering that too, but if the flights and quarantine were prebooked (they'd have to be, wouldn't they?), would there be any refund?

It does seem tight on the riders who qualified.
But those costs would have been ok with different riders?

xposted paddi

Depends on what their funding is like and whether it's results driven? If they go to Tokyo, come 8th say, and that reduces next round of funding, will it have been worth spending the millions going out in the first place. Mllions that could be spent elsewhere... Chicken and egg.
 

paddi22

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100% what teapot says. HSI have to get the funding and a lot of it is results-based. it's tax-payers money and it has to be justified by a team having a good shot. their budget is tight at the best of times, the amount of fund raising was exhausting last time to get the teams over. it would be absolutely throwing money away to send over a team that didn't have a good shot. that money would subsidise so many other things.
 

m1stify

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100% what teapot says. HSI have to get the funding and a lot of it is results-based. it's tax-payers money and it has to be justified by a team having a good shot. their budget is tight at the best of times, the amount of fund raising was exhausting last time to get the teams over. it would be absolutely throwing money away to send over a team that didn't have a good shot. that money would subsidise so many other things.
I really don't agree. The money is there. These riders deserver to go just as much as anybody. No extra money will be given to grass roots riders. Even with Judy & JP, the team would have had no chance whatsoever. So basing this decision on the reason that they were not going to come anywhere is ridiculous, as the team were not going to come anywhere anyway.
 

shortstuff99

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I do find it a very strange response from HSI. Yes they probably aren't going to score as high as the original team, but so what? There are going to be plenty of nations there scoring similar marks, and lets be frank, the original team was never really going to win a medal so what is the problem?

Surely it should be sending the message of how great it was to qualify, rather then if you're not good enough you get nothing,
 

LegOn

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Its absolutely nothing to do with budget as far as I can see - HSI havent even put their hands into their pockets at all! The biggest problem is the High Performance Coach being allowed to make a decision on riders than he doesnt train and has never seen ride, that they arent good enough! They achieved Olympic Qualification standards... OLPYMIC!!! And yet he decides his standards are higher and he isnt 'allowing' them compete under his name because of that. How about you actual do your job and train them & support them & give them everything they need to get there.

Its absolutely awful - we want to cheer on the Irish team & they are just destroying the sport and making us look like idiots on a global stage instead of making it a wonderful underdog story - no one every seen Cool Runnings or Eddie the Eagle!!!!
 
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