Eddie Macken has taken over the ride on the stallion Cruising, which was controversially pulled out of last month's European show jumping championships before the Nations Cup, when the Irish team were bidding to earn a place on the Olympic startlist at Sydney.

In a brief statement issued from Hartwell Stud yesterday, the stallion's owner, Mary McCann, said the partnership between Trevor Coyle and Cruising had ended and that, "after a successful weekend introduction", Eddie Macken would now be riding the horse.

Coyle, now based in Germany, had been riding Cruising for the past six years and, this season, had finished as runner-up in the World Cup final and won the Aachen Grand Prix.

But a disappointing performance in the first speed round of last month's Europeans resulted in the stallion being withdrawn from the Irish team.

Macken, who is also based in Germany, has been without a top horse for some time. He flew back to Ireland at the weekend to ride Cruising at Hartwell Stud, Co Kildare.

"I sat up on the horse and jumped a few fences," Macken said yesterday. "I'm very lucky to get the horse. I loved him. He's fit and well and very straightforward."