Cork's Shane Sweetnam came very close to delivering a fourth major win for Ireland this weekend when he placed second in the four-star Grand Prix in Spruce Meadows, Canada, on Sunday.

The 34-year-old, piloting Spy Coast Farm’s stallion Chaqui Z, registered one of just five double clears in the contest, but was just over a second shy of catching Egypt’s Sameh el Dahan and the Irish Sport Horse Sumas Zorro, which is jointly owned by the rider and Ireland’s Joanne Sloan-Allen.

The Egyptian rider collected €28,000 for his win, while Sweetnam picked up €17,000.

Sweetnam had already claimed three third places on consecutive days at the Canadian venue.

Earlier in the day, Tipperary’s Trevor Breen won the famous Hickstead Derby for the second year in a row, this time riding Patricia Brown’s Irish Sport Horse Loughnatousa WB, while in the Netherlands, 19-year-old Wexford rider Bertram Allen won the Geesteren Grand Prix with Ballywalter Farms’s mare Molly Malone V.

On Friday night, Clare’s David Blake was victorious in the Tryon Grand Prix in North Carolina, USA, with Pine Hollow Farm’s Binkie.

http://www.rte.ie/sport/equestrian/2015/0627/711017-sweetnam-places-fourth-in-spruce-meadows/