Equestrian Sport: Sally Corscadden, a member of Ireland's bronze medal team at the 1993 European three-day event championships, has a healthy advantage over the rest of the field at the Ballindenisk international, reports Grania Willis.
The event has been changed to a CIC (without steeplechase and roads and tracks) due to the state of the ground.
Riding the six-year-old Ard Allez Cat gelding, Young Man, which was bred by German owner Stephanie von Schilcher in Wexford, British-born Corscadden was not fazed when she was called in to do her test 15 minutes before her allotted time yesterday morning.
As an experienced international competitor, she knew she was quite within her rights to wait until her official time and, with the horse then warmed up to perfection, she went into the arena and produced the winning test.
Her mark of 40.2 penalties leaves her 7.2 clear of closest rival, Co Antrim-based American Teresa Fort, who bought the sixyear-old Valville gelding Whitehill Lad in August.
Fort, who has been based in Virginia for the past six years, most recently with newly-crowned Olympic champion David O'Connor, is now living near Larne where she trains with Stuart Crawford.
Crawford himself could only manage 22nd place in yesterday's dressage, but his younger brother Ross is well ahead in the junior rankings with As Good As Gold, 7.4 points clear of Elizabeth Power and Park Jessie.
Snooker: Ken Doherty secured his place in the last eight of the Grand Prix at Telford with a 5-3 victory over fellow Dubliner and regular practice partner Fergal O'Brien. Doherty, who only compiled one half-century break during the scrappy contest, will play Ronnie O'Sullivan in the quarter-finals.
Rowing: In the run-up to what may be an interesting annual general meeting of the IARU in Galway on the Bank Holiday weekend, club representatives will meet for a special discussion session tomorrow at the Garda club in Islandbridge (11 a.m.).
The fact that Neville Maxwell, one of the lightweight four which did not perform to expectations at the Olympic Games in Sydney, will be joining the national executive of the IARU next weekend is sure to be a point of interest for many in the sport.
Maxwell will be ratified as the Leinster representative at the a.g.m..
Athletics: Emily Maher won through to the 200 metres semi-finals at the World Junior Athletics Championships in Chile yesterday, finishing runner-up to title favourite and 100 metres champion Veronica Campbell from Jamaica. Maher, who finished seventh over the 100, was timed at 23.95 after returning 24.51 when second in her opening round heat.
