Cathal Daniels
Equestrian
BIOGRAPHY
Cathal Daniels was selected to represent Ireland in the eventing team at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games alongside Sam Watson and Sarah Ennis, with his mare Rioghan Rua. Less than 24 hours before the start of the dressage phase, Rioghan Rua was withdrawn on veterinary grounds and Daniels reverted to P Alternate status, with Austin O’Connor taking his place in the competition. Ireland’s eventing team finished 8th.
Daniels grew up in a horsemanship family in Galway – his sister runs a riding school and his father is an enthusiastic horseman – and began competing in eventing as a child. He shot to prominence at the 2012 European Pony Championships, winning both team and individual gold medals. He went on to win medals at the European Junior and Young Rider Championships before establishing himself at senior level, where his long-term partner was Rioghan Rua, an Irish Sport Horse bred by Margaret Kinsella in Co. Galway. The pair won team silver at the 2018 World Equestrian Games in Tryon, helping Ireland beat Germany by one fence to second place behind Great Britain.
In 2019 Daniels won individual bronze at the European Eventing Championships in Luhmühlen. At the time of his Tokyo selection he was Ireland’s highest-ranked eventing rider in the FEI world standings.
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