'It has opened so many doors for ex-racehorses' - the remarkable charity that has filled a glaring void in Ireland

We've seen sheep, goats and various breeds of cattle. We've looked at the poultry and wondered how the judges assess "the hen eggs, tinted as collected". We know Linda Smith will win the "best large drake" category since she's the only entrant. Now, finally, here are the horses, but which one is the 2022 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner?

Tattersalls Ireland has sponsored the Treo Eile Showing Pathway Series Final, part of the 82nd Royal Meath Show at Trim in County Meath, set against the impressive background of the town's medieval Anglo-Norman castle. The participants are thoroughbreds, ex-racehorses, divided into novice and open classes, with the riders listed in the show catalogue but the names of their mounts are not published. 

I've done my research. I know A Plus Tard is here, in the novice division. I'm ashamed to say I can't pick him out as the horses begin to gather. 

They all look magnificent and I'm glad I'm not a judge. Instead I meet those who do face that daunting task, Sarah Collen first. "Bold Flyer, Galway Plate, 1989," I venture. Collen positively beams. "Oh my goodness, you remember," says one of the pioneering female riders in Irish jump racing.

Collen, an expert on conformation, and co-judge Julie Donaghy Simpson are experienced show judges with a passion for the retraining of racehorses. It is a passion shared by the dynamic Caoimhe Doherty, manager of the Smurfit family’s Forenaghts Stud, and marketing consultant Sarah Sands, who are the reason we find ourselves here today.

In 2020, the pair founded the Treo Eile organisation, which has filled a void in Ireland’s equestrian landscape, providing a coordinated programme for the rehoming and retraining of former racehorses. Its growing profile has served as a welcome antidote to high-profile cases that have damaged the reputation of Irish racing domestically and internationally.

A not-for-profit body, Treo Eile's work is governed by three underlying principles: to connect racehorse owners with new owners and retrainers; to support ex-racehorses with prize-based programmes in a variety of disciplines; and to promote the success of these initiatives on social media and in mainstream media.

Anne O'Connor, formerly of Goffs and the ITBA, joined Treo Eile in 2022 after seven years with trainer Michael Halford. The sole paid full-time member of the team, she brings formidable energy, experience and enthusiasm to the role and has a missionary-like zeal for expanding the range of Treo Eile's influence.

"From a standing start we now have 776 thoroughbreds registered for second careers,” says O’Connor. “We're finding that the message is beginning to spread, through word of mouth and a strong social media presence. In our various event programmes we've seen a lot of success stories. And a great sense of community has developed.”

The participation of high-profile horses in showing classes at summer shows and the appearance of former stars, including Cheltenham Gold Cup winners Sizing John and Al Boum Photo, at a popular annual fundraising showjumping event have helped to put Treo Eile on the map. The showing final at Trim is the culmination of qualifying events in Cork, Wexford, Westmeath, Tipperary, Galway, Meath, Antrim and Kilkenny, representing a good countrywide spread.

O'Connor says: "The series has been a great success. One of the things we are now hearing from riders is that they want to progress from showing to performance in areas such as showjumping, eventing or dressage. That's great to see because it shows the versatility of the ex-racehorse."

She cites a recent polo fixture in Dublin's Phoenix Park as an example of this versatility, adding: "There were 27 thoroughbreds in action and they all carried Treo Eile hip-stickers for identification. We've discovered a growing market. The traditional Argentinian ponies have become expensive, and many polo enthusiasts in Britain and Ireland are now looking for thoroughbreds of suitable size. They are agile, adaptable, and quick learners. For taller horses, polocrosse is another area where the ex-racehorse can find a new career.”

These are modest initiatives, but they all add up. Treo Eile has been notably successful in attaching itself to existing equestrian schedules, sponsoring prizes for Treo Eile-registered horses in various categories at the recent Dressage Ireland championships and getting involved through the season with the Red Mills-sponsored eventing league.

Jane Davis, head of equine marketing at the Connolly's Red Mills group, is not just an armchair supporter. She has been involved in the retraining of racehorses for many years and I now find her in Trim on Tiffany’s Gold, trained by Henry de Bromhead in his very brief racing career, now winning the open category.

"I feel very strongly about retraining and love being able to give the also-rans a second chance,” says Davis, choosing an apt phrase to describe Tiffany’s Gold, who was last of 14 at 125-1 in his only run in a mile maiden at Dundalk. “The fact that the Treo Eile programme was there played a big part persuading me to buy Mossy [Tiffany's Gold] and now I feel I'm part of a great community that Treo Eile has helped to create. Retraining is a serious business that takes a lot of work but it's great fun too."

Tiffany's Gold (Jane Davis) and Limekiln Rock (Sarah Neville) share a tender moment

There are many more here with stories of the fun they are having with their former racehorses. 

There’s Sabrina Harty, a Grade 1-winning trainer over jumps, now riding Slievenamon John. Apparently, he raced unsuccessfully having had problems with allergies and his wind. I look up his form later. Abysmal. But my goodness, what a magnificent horse. "He has retrained well, and I'm hoping my 13-year-old daughter will take him over," Harty says.

I spot Jenny Murphy, former travelling head girl to Gavin Cromwell, riding her pride and joy, Welsh National winner Raz De Maree. He was 13 when he won the Chepstow showpiece. Now 19, he's in great shape, superbly turned out by Murphy with expert assistance from Noel Harten.

I approach Eleanor Erel aboard eight-year-old Gelisko, who ran five times over hurdles for Paul Nolan without showing much ability. He was bought with retraining in mind by Wexford-based Erel, who became “hooked on horses as a six-year-old” and was involved with showing ponies when growing up in the south Dublin suburb of Stepaside.

Alice Fitzgerald is riding her homebred Loaded, the second foal out of Fikrah, who has more recently produced Magical Sunset, a Group 3 winner for Richard Hannon last season. "He sold well as a yearling,” explains Fitzgerald, “but I was heartbroken when he was led away. I told my partner Mike that when the horse finished his racing career I would get him back – I don’t think he thought then I was serious.”

Melanie Love, daughter of Irish Grand National-winning trainer Dot Love, is riding the five-year-old Lark Rise, who was too physically immature for the track but has a “wonderful temperament” according to Love, who adds: “Treo Eile has opened so many doors for ex-racehorses. It's great to see.”

For that, we must pay tribute to the vision of Doherty and Sands. Doherty, a tireless fundraiser for Treo Eile's ventures and an articulate advocate for aftercare, welfare and education, is a force to be reckoned with a begging bowl in hand. Like everyone associated with the organisation, she longs for a situation in which the industry would find a way of funding the rehoming and retraining of racehorses in a structured and comprehensive way. However, she says that a wide range of sponsors have greeted her appeals positively. Grateful for all support, she singles out Godolphin for special mention.

Sabrina Harty shows off her Novice final winner Slievenamon John

Godolphin's Diana Cooper is a Treo Eile director and deeply committed to the project on a personal level.

Cooper says: "Treo Eile was founded to fill a huge gap in our sport and industry, and is delivering on those goals to promote the thoroughbred, support the retrainers and connect them to owners. However, we still have no sustainable funding, and Treo Eile is only one part of the equation. We need an overall industry strategy that is transparent and promotable, a plan of action that will cater to vulnerable horses. We also need to promote education about long-term welfare."

There’s no denying that, for all the fantastic work done by Treo Eile, it unfortunately seems like a drop in the ocean when set in the context of the massive numbers that leave the Irish racing scene every year. During the summer we saw the fate of some of these horses thanks to the work of the RTE Investigates team who uncovered shocking evidence of horrific mistreatment at the Shannonside abattoir in Straffan, County Kildare. A consistent theme struck by the Trim participants is that the industry as a whole needs to get to grips with the issue of long-term traceability.

Doherty says: "This is a great industry and we have seen day in and day out just how wonderful an animal the thoroughbred is. I don't think it's the case that the industry doesn't care about aftercare but it was just never part of the plan. That has changed now and everyone looks at aftercare in a different way which means Ireland in particular has a huge opportunity to do more, and to do it better than the countries that have explored this before us."

As for A Plus Tard, I do recognise him in the end. He looks wonderful and behaves beautifully for Emily Kate Robinson, who shows him to excellent effect, as you might expect since she's one of Ireland's leading dressage riders. Two and a half years after his Gold Cup triumph, he has set to settle for the runner-up spot this time. It's an honourable second, behind a winner picked out by almost everyone, the ringside experts, my untutored self and even my urban-reared children. We all thought Harty's Slievenamon John was the pick of the bunch – but everyone involved is an absolute credit to the sport and the industry.

You can read more in our Life After Racing series below:

'It's not just the social licence, it's morally the right thing to do' - how racing is raising its game for horses in retirement 

'He won us the Gold Cup - but we've got just as much of a thrill out of what he's achieved since he retired' 

A Cheltenham legend is baffled by balloons - but horses' enthusiasm for their second careers can't be deflated 

'The interaction is magical' - join Group 1 winner Goldream for his latest big date at a brain injury centre 

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