EVENTING:The Irish team for next month's European championships three-day event in Italy was named by Eventing Ireland yesterday. Captain Geoff Curran, who made his championship debut at last year's world equestrian games in Aachen, has got the nod with the grey Balladeer Alfred, writes Grania Willis.
Curran's selection comes as another boost for the Army Equitation School following Commandant Gerry Flynn's Dublin Grand Prix win at the RDS earlier this month.
Sydney Olympic team member Austin O'Connor has been named with Hobby du Mee, along with 1993 European team bronze medallist Sally Corscadden with Millridge Kalmar and British-based Louise Lyons on Watership Down.
The championship quartet was selected by performance manager Lars Christensson, who said yesterday that minor injuries and performances at the final trial had resulted in some "dramatic changes" to his selection, leaving him with "only a few obvious candidates".
"I have selected a team for the future and believe that we are taking an important step on the journey to a medal at the 2012 Olympics in London", he said. Next month's championships will be held in Pratoni del Vivaro just outside Rome.
The championships, which run from September 13th-16th, are the last chance for Ireland to qualify an eventing team for next year's Olympic Games.
On the show jumping front, Jessica Kürten was back on top form at the Dutch leg of the Global Champions Tour in Valkenswaard, claiming fifth in Thursday's Grand Prix qualifier. Compatriot Billy Twomey was 10th with his Dublin winner Tinka's Serenade.
Kürten then went on to finish fourth in yesterday afternoon's speed class, clocking 71.83 seconds with Cadeau Z, leaving her over two and a half seconds off the pace set by Belgian winner Kristof Cleeren.
TENNIS:Form on the national scene was turned on its head at the Fitzwilliam Club yesterday when top seeded Niamh Coveney of Cork crashed out of the Irish Junior Open Championships at the penultimate stage, writes Pat Roche.
Coveney was outgunned by Maria Morrissey 6-1 6-4. Coveney had not lost a set all week but the third seed Morrissey unleashed her best performance of the week.
Morrissey now faces Lisa Lawlor, the number two seed, in today's final - Lawlor beat Galway girl Miriam Hanley with ease, 6-1 6-1.
The boy's senior final today promises to be a good battle between Niall Fitzgerald the top seed from Greystones and Belfast's Conor O'Kane. Fitzgerald has not even looked likely to drop a set all week and this time he booked his final passage with a 6-2 6-2 victory over David O'Hare of Donnybrook.
O'Kane was involved in a big struggle with Tommy Murphy of Carlow, last year's under-16 champion. The Belfast boy dropped the first set 6-7 but fought back well to take the match 6-7 7-5 6-1.
SAILING:Portimao proved windless again yesterday as the 19 TP52-footers in the Portugal Trophy were kept ashore by the event organisers, leaving just today to decide this penultimate regatta in the Breitling MedCup circuit, writes David Branigan.
Ireland's Patches is in third place in the regatta and fifth in the series so skipper Ian Walker and his team will be keen to sail today and score valuable points plus get another chance at delivering an elusive race win for owner Eamon Conneely.
Peter de Ridder's Mean Machine is now virtually unbeatable for this event with a commanding overall lead of 15 points.
Second placed Russell Coutts on Artemis would also like a chance to sail today as a good result for him would break the tie for the overall series lead with Spanish entry Caixa Gallicia.
However, with conflicting sea breezes in the Portimao area and locals recommending sailing only after 2pm, fitting in one race before the 3.30pm deadline for the final race may be a tall order for the organisers.
DUBLIN PORT DBSC THURSDAY SERIES: BENETEAU 31.7 1 Levante (Leyden & Leahy); 2 Magic (O'Sullivan & Espey); 3 Extreme Reality (McSwiney & O'Rafferty).
EQUESTRIAN: Michael Stone has resigned as secretary general of the International Equestrian Federation only a year after taking on the job.
The Dubliner, who has worked for equestrian sport's international governing body in a number of different roles for the past decade, took over as secretary general in August last year.
His departure has come about after what have been described as "irreconcilable difficulties in the implementation of the future direction of the organisation".
Stone could not be contacted last night.
