Discover Ireland Dublin Horse Show Begins Today

Almost 1500 horses will take part in the The Discover Ireland Dublin Horse Show which begins today at the RDS arena in Ballsbridge.

The first class in the main arena on Wednesday will be the Horse Sport Ireland Six Year-Old competition, and this will be followed over the five days of the show by 131 further competitions.

Wednesday's international feature class will be the Irish Sports Council Classic, and on Thursday a Speed Derby will be followed by the Serpentine Speed Stakes, with the Anglesea Stakes Winning Round competition finishing off the day.

Friday at the RDS is Furusiyya FEI Nations' Cup day, where Ireland's Investec show jumping team will do battle with seven other countries for the coveted Aga Khan Trophy.

Saturday will see the Land Rover Puissance take place over the big red wall, preceded by an Accumulator competition and the JLT Dublin Stakes, while Sunday hosts the Speed Championship followed by the show's finale, the Longines Grand Prix of Dublin.

With almost a million euro in competition prize money up for grabs and over 100,000 people expected to attend, the show will also play host to 300 trade exhibitors, with Horse Sport Ireland one of the featured stands in the main hall of the RDS complex.