The Irish National Stud held its Thoroughbred Breeding Management Class of 2023 graduation ceremony on Wednesday June 28 in the Osborne centre and garden pavilion. In attendance were the graduates, their families, staff, lecturers, and prominent industry representatives.
The ceremony began with CEO Cathal Beale giving a heartfelt speech, congratulating the graduates on their hard work and achievement. Students Brian Banahan and Ciara Russell then took their turn to give their own speeches on behalf of the class. Banahan and Russell spoke of the memories and friendships made, and expressed their gratitude to those that had helped them on their six-month journey.
Each year, gold and silver medals are awarded to the top two achieving students and this year the prestigious Gold Medal was presented to French native Maël Thilbault who demonstrated an outstanding performance in all aspects of the course with the Silver Medal being awarded to fellow French student Faustine Otero-Chinot.
The INS 'Jonathan Fitzpatrick Business Internship' was awarded to Ciaran Phelan from County Kilkenny, who will commence his internship with the INS in July.
The CEO award for the highest score in the Equine Business exam went to Sean Berns from County Kildare and the continuous assessment award was presented to Gerard Donworth of Limerick.
Australian William Macdonald was the recipient of the Irish Field “Blue Hen” Award. Macdonald was presented with a cheque for €250 and a trophy by Leo Powell for his winning article which will be published in The Irish Field in the coming weeks.
Education Manager Anne Channon commented, “'We would like to thank all who attended the graduation ceremony and everyone who dedicated their time to teaching and guiding the students over the past six months. We would like to congratulate the class of 2023 and we wish them the best for their future endeavours within the thoroughbred Industry.”
Class of 2023
Robert Acheson (Ireland), Brian Banahan (USA), Sean Berns (Ireland), Aoife Boland (Ireland), Julia Coenen (France), Thomas Connolly (Ireland), Gerard Donworth (Ireland), Emma Hunter (Ireland), Scott Innes (Scotland), William Macdonald (Australia), Georgina Macintyre (Australia), Darcie Murray (Ireland), Hilda Ntlatleng (South Africa), Faustine Otero-Chinot (France), Ciaran Phelan (Ireland), Orla Queally (Ireland), Annelie Rodde (Germany), Charles Shanahan (Ireland), Ailish Sinnott (Ireland), Maël Thilbault (France), Dayna Walsh (UK), Rory Woods (Ireland) Lachlan Bruce (Australia) recipient of the HTBA Scholarship, Jarrod Robinson (Australia) recipient of the TBA scholarship, Ciara Russell (Ireland) recipient of the Gerry Dilger Equine Scholarship, Alice Jeffries (New Zealand) and Morgan Wilks (New Zealand) recipients of the NZTBA Scholarship.
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