BREEN SECOND, DUFFY SIXTH IN ATHENS GRAND PRIX

Ireland punched well above its weight in today's (Saturday) Grand Prix at Athens, Greece, with Tipperary's Shane Breen claiming the runner-up spot with 'Carmena Z', and two other combinations finishing in the top ten.

Belgian Jose Thiry continued his run of good form at Athens with the Grand Prix victory today, but Breen was just a fifth of a second behind in the three-horse jump off, with 20 year-old Alex Duffy in sixth place on 'Tampa' with a four-fault first round.

Kildare's Nicola FitzGibbon, riding her own 12 year-old bay gelding 'Puissance', took seventh today after having a fence down, and Niall Talbot and 'Tequi d'I' faulted similarly, and in a slower round settled for 14th in a field of 34 starters.

Earlier, Breen took the winner's laurels in the smaller jump-off class on 'Worldbreaker de Liebri', with former Army Equitation School rider Gerry Flynn in sixth place on ''SIEC Perferro'.

SHOW JUMPING RESULTS: CSIO3* ATHENS GREECE SEPTEMBER 30 - OCTOBER 3 2009

ATHENS GRAND PRIX / FEI World Cup
Table A one round with one jump-off - art 238.2.2
1m50
Saturday October 3, 2009

1) ROXETTE DE L OBSTINATION; Jose THIRY (BEL) Faults 0.00/0.00 Time 38.05
2) CARMENA Z; Shane BREEN (IRL) Faults 0.00/0.00 Time 38.28
3) BALOUFINO; Angel NYAGOLOV (BUL) Faults 0.00/0.00 Time 39.57

6) TAMPA; Alex DUFFY (IRL) Faults 4.00/- Time 70.83
7) PUISSANCE; Nicola FITZGIBBON (IRL) Faults 4.00/-  Time 73.14
14) TEQUI D'I; Niall TALBOT (IRL) Faults 4.00/-  Time 77.35

34 starters
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Class 10
Table A one round with one jump-off - art 238.2.2
1m40
Saturday October 3, 2009

1) WORLDBREAKER DE LIEBRI; Shane BREEN (IRL) Faults 0.00/0.00 Time 31.59
2) RITUS; Lukasz JONCZYK (POL) Faults 0.00/0.00 Time 32.19
3) CARACAS; Rudi HELSEN (BEL) Faults 0.00/0.00 Time 35.31

6) S.I.E.C. PERFERRO; Gerry FLYNN (IRL) Faults 0.00/4.00 Time 32.79

46 starters