Dressage rider Jess Dunn has switched her nationality to represent Ireland and is aiming for selection to this summer's World Championships. Based at White Hill Stud in Lancashire, she debuted for her new country last month at Lier CDI3* with her top horse Dan Its Carston.
Jess Dunn, a dressage rider based at Jennifer Whittaker’s White Hill Stud in Lancashire, changed her nationality at the start of the year to compete under the Irish flag. In her international debut for Ireland last month at the Lier CDI3* event, she rode Dan Its Carston to eighth place in the grand prix special and 17th in a 41-horse grand prix field, wearing the green jacket for the first time. Dunn shared her ambitions in an interview, stating, “I have a really good team behind me at White Hill with Jen, her husband Toby and our yard manager and competition groom Amber Flynn. Danny is showing so much potential, I thought it was time to back myself.” She described her goal as bold, saying, “It feels quite ballsy to say I’m aiming for selection, but I’ve always had these pipe dreams. I would get so far then something maybe happens like a horse goes lame or you need to sell them, so I thought while everything is going in our favour, let’s go for it.” Dunn has received positive support, including from Irish Olympic rider Abi Lyle, with whom she has discussed her plans. “Abi has known my plans for a while and we’ve had some really good chats,” she noted. “It’s a lot of pressure to put on myself but we have a really good structure at White Hill.” Assisted by Becky Moody, Dunn is developing a training plan, including trips to Belgium this spring and other internationals. “I know what we need to work on and, all going well, we’ll see what happens this summer,” she added, emphasizing her enjoyment of the process with Dan Its Carston.