Ireland has won the Aga Khan trophy at the Dublin Horse Show for the first time in eight years.
Large crowds turned up at the RDS this afternoon for the annual FEI Nations Cup which is the showcase event of the five-day festival.
Ireland's team, made up of showjumpers Cian O’Connor, Darragh Kerins, Richie Moloney and Clem McMahon, beat off strong challenges from France and Britain to win the trophy.
Eight nations took part in the competition which had not been won by Ireland since 2004. The competition also doubled as the last round in the 2012 FEI Nations’ Cup Superleague.
Ireland's winning performance was vital to lift the team out of the relegation zone for next year.
Taoiseach Enda Kenny this evening congratulated the Irish team on their success.
“This is a fantastic performance by the Irish team, in winning their first Aga Khan since 2004. Cian O’Connor, Darragh Kerins, Richie Moloney and Clem McMahon’s win in front of a home crowd at the RDS shows the strength of Irish showjumping," he said.
Following on from Cian O’Connor’s Olympic Bronze medal, the medals won by our Olympic boxers, and Rory McIlroy’s win in the US PGA, it’s been an extraordinary few weeks for Irish sport," he added.
