Table of Contents
Irish Sport Horse – Important data at a glance
- Origin: Ireland
- Main breeding area: Ireland
- Distribution: Great Britain and Ireland
- Height: 59 – 66 in
- Weight: 1322- 1653 lbs
- Appearance: A noble head with a well-proportioned body.
- Colours: All colours
- Discipline: Eventing and jumping
How tall does an Irish Sport Horse grow?
This breed reaches a height of approx. 59 to 66 inches.
Breeding history and origin
The Irish Sport Horse is a relatively young horse breed that originated in Ireland and developed from a cross between the English Thoroughbred and the Irish Draught Horse. The breed is the result of targeted breeding, which was initiated to develop a sport horse with excellent jumping ability and has successfully established itself to this day. The crossing of the two breeds was not new in Ireland, however, but had already been carried out with the Irish Hunter. Draught horse mares have always been bred to thoroughbred stallions in order to obtain a horse with the best possible suitability for hunting. Since 1945, the resulting horses with particularly promising jumping ability have been selected to be used solely for breeding Irish Sport Horses. A stud book has existed since 1970 and the main breeding area today is still in the country of origin, Ireland.
The Irish sport horse is therefore the successful result of a “utility cross”, which was created on the basis of the versatile draught horse and the fast, elegant thoroughbred. Above all, the previously proven Hunter lines brought forward horses that were considered suitable for top-level sport in show jumping and eventing due to their excellent dispositions and were therefore used for the new type of Irish horse. Strict performance criteria ensured careful selection, so that the main lines of the Irish Sport Horse can be traced back primarily to proven thoroughbreds and draughts. At the same time, however, the blood of other European breeds that have proven themselves in competitive sport has also been incorporated into the breed and can still be found today.
A clear influence from other warmblood breeds can be seen, especially in the last breeding generations. As a result, the stud book now also contains a considerable number of horses that have been produced by crossing with these European breeds. At the same time, purebred Irish Sport Horses continue to be bred, which are characterised in particular by the breed-typical traits such as athleticism, courage, intelligence and jumping ability.
Is the Irish Sport Horse a warmblood?
Due to crossbreeding with thoroughbreds, this breed is a half-breed.
The Irish Sport Horse and its appearance
The Irish Sport Horse presents itself with pronounced characteristics of the thoroughbred and the draught horse in accordance with its predominant bloodline. It reaches a height of around 59 to 66 inches, making it a medium-sized horse and usually has a noble, thoroughbred head full of expressiveness, well-placed ears and a broad forehead. The well-carried and long neck contributes to the necessary balance when jumping and cantering and merges into a broad and deep chest and sloping, short shoulders. It is also characterised by a strong back and pronounced withers, which ensure an ideal saddle position. The overall build is very muscular with a sloping, strongly muscled croup and a low-set tail. The core is also strong and harmonious, with sturdy, dry legs, well-formed hooves and elastic pasterns. In terms of coat colour, the Irish Sport Horse is mainly white, bay and chestnut in various shades, while other colours are rare.
Impressions of the Irish Sport Horse
Character traits – the Irish Sport Horse is a friendly and capable sport horse
The Irish Sport Horse has proven to be a friendly and sociable riding partner with its good-natured and honest character. It is characterized by a robust constitution, high endurance and a pronounced willingness to perform. With its good and intelligent nature, balanced temperament and high performance, it is ideal for jumping and eventing. In addition, the Irish Sport Horse is a comparatively late maturing but long-lived horse that gets relatively old.
What does an Irish sport horse look like?
Well proportioned, dry limbs, a noble head and well-developed withers with an ideal saddle position.
Possible uses of the Irish Sport Horse
As the Irish Sport Horse is according to its breeding goal a sport horse with a pronounced jumping disposition, it is mainly used in the disciplines of show jumping and eventing. It is particularly suitable for these two areas of use in both competition and leisure riding. In some cases, the Irish Sport Horse also finds its way into dressage with the appropriate training.
Irish sport horses have been producing remarkable successes at the highest level in every riding discipline for many years. Since 1994, the studbook has consistently topped the rankings of the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses (WBFSH). Despite its sporting success at international level, the Irish Sport Horse is also an excellent leisure horse. With its predisposition to assist the rider at all times, the breed is very popular not only with experienced riders but also with beginners.
Special characteristics of the breed
A special feature of the Irish Sport Horse is the fact that Irish sport horse breeding is open to the cloning of horses and already uses two cloned horses for breeding. For example, there are two clones of the white stallion Cruising, who died in 2014 and had previously achieved great success in show jumping. Cruising Encore and Cruising Arish were born in 2012 and have been allowed to be used for breeding since 2015.
Where can I look up the pedigree of an Irish Sport Horse?
All pedigrees can be looked up in the Irish Horse Register.
Known horses of the breed (in sport, movie/television)
Cruising was one of the leading and most famous Irish sport horses. During his jumping career he won countless international competitions, won Grand Prix classes and also qualified for the World Cup. He is the only stallion in Ireland to receive a 5-star rating for his jumping ability.
Mr Medicott competed twice at the Olympics and descends from Cruising. Before his well-deserved retirement, he completed the 50th international competition of his career.
Ballynoe Castle RM was one of the most successful horses in US eventing. He competed in six CCI4* competitions, with the FEI World Equestrian Games 2010 in Lexington being his most famous competition.
Endangered horse breed
This breed is popular – both for sport and leisure. However, it should not be forgotten that the breed is categorised as an “endangered breed” by “Horse Sport Ireland”. The preservation of this valuable and genetically diverse breed is a priority. This also explains why cloning of this breed is permitted. The Irish Sport Horse impresses both in terms of performance and its pleasant character and this is also due to the breeding objective of the “Irish Sport Horse Studbook”. This prescribes that the breeding goal is a horse that is “capable of winning at the highest international level in FEI disciplines”. This is not possible without a clear and honest character.
It is also worth mentioning that this valuable breed may also be used for crossbreeding or refinement, for example for the Tinker ( on the condition that the Irish Sport Horse fulfils the Irish Cob breeding standard).
How much does an Irish Sport Horse cost?
Depending on the level of training, an Irish Sport Horse costs from approx.$4,000 upwards (broken in at three years of age or leisure horses and geldings). Well-trained sport horses that have already been used successfully in sport can cost between $20,000 and $40,000
Further frequently asked questions about the Irish Sport Horse
What does an Irish sport horse look like?
Well proportioned, dry limbs, a noble head and well-developed withers with an ideal saddle position.
What diseases are known in Irish Sport Horses?
This horse breed is bred for high-performance sport, but is based on a particularly strong and robust conformation. No specific diseases are known.
Are there any piebalds in the Irish Sport Horse?
There are piebalds, which are called Coloured Irish Sport Horse in Ireland.
Irish Sport Horse in video
Did the article about the Irish Sport Horse convince you? Then watch this video to get an even better picture of the breed:
