An auspicious and eagerly-anticipated event on the city’s sporting landscape, Hong Kong’s season-opening meeting lived up to expectations at Sha Tin on Sunday (8 September) with a wonderful start to the 2024/25 season crowned by KA YING RISING’S brilliant win in the Class 1 HKSAR Chief Executive’s Cup Handicap (1200m).
The on-course vibe was extremely positive, befitting the sense of occasion surrounding the launch of a new season, with 42,566 attendees – the largest season-opening attendance since 2019 – enjoying world-class racing along with an impressive variety of entertainment including the opening ceremony and the post-meeting performance of MIRROR’s Edan Lui.
The challenging weather failed to suppress the excitement and enthusiasm of the attendees, including a record 7,100 Mainland tourists, on an afternoon when KA YING RISING displayed exceptional quality by setting a weight-carrying record in the HKSAR Chief Executive’s Cup by winning with 135lb on a rain-affected track.
No horse had carried 135lb to victory in this race previously and it is pertinent that LUCKY SWEYNESSE and VICTOR THE WINNER – the two previous winners of the HKSAR Chief Executive’s Cup – both carried only 115lb in their victories and then proceeded to Group 1 triumphs.
KA YING RISING has repeatedly shown a capacity to run extremely quick final 400m sectionals and Sunday was no exception with a 21.94s split. I look forward to watching his continued progress throughout the season.
I would like to thank The Honourable John Lee, Chief Executive of the HKSAR, for his attendance on Sunday and his kind remarks, particularly regarding the status of our season-opening meeting as one of Hong Kong’s major events.
I would also like to thank all of the participants and Club staff who worked so hard to ensure the success of the meeting despite the adverse weather.
The fourth Philanthropy for Better Cities (PBC) Forum at West Kowloon this week has been a great success bringing together more than 2000 delegates and almost 100 eminent speakers from around the world under the over-arching theme of “Delivering Impactful Philanthropy in the Real World.
The forum, which is convened by the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust in association with the Institute of Philanthropy and supported by global foundations including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, China Soong Ching Ling Foundation, Nippon Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Tanoto Foundation, Temasek Foundation, Tencent Charity Foundation and the Wellcome Trust, is extremely important.
Thought-leaders, foundation representatives, policymakers, non-government organisatons and global experts have met this week to engage in idea-sharing discussions on translating philanthropic action into tangible, sustainable outcomes.
The Club, which acts continuously for the betterment of society, has a long-standing commitment to philanthropy through its Charities Trust and, despite the challenging macro-economic environment, it is committed to helping build Hong Kong into a global hub for philanthropy, in line with the HKSAR Government’s vision.
I was impressed with the quality and diversity of speakers, including Julia Gillard – Chair of the Wellcome Trust, Chair of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership and former Prime Minister of Australia – and Professor Michael Spence – 2001 Nobel Laureate in Economics, Philip H. Knight Professor and Dean Emeritus of the Stanford Business School and Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution of Stanford University.
Another of the many highlights was the closing plenary session, which included a panel discussion on how investing in arts and sports yields a high social return on investment. The panel featured, among others, Oscar winner and screenwriter, director and producer Dustin Lance Black, Olympic Games gold medal-winning diver Tom Daley and leading Hong Kong jockey Vincent Ho.
Happy Valley’s first meeting of the season takes place tonight and it promises to be a spectacular occasion with the City Circuit’s world-famous Beer Garden transformed with a Greatest Show In Town theme.
The vibrant carnival atmosphere will be heightened by the performance of brilliant international singer Rechelle Mansour along with lion-dancing displays as our customers sample a fantastic array of food and beverages while enjoying world-class racing from close quarters.
The Class 3 Lido Handicap is carded as race 8 and will be run over 1200m for HK$1,860,000. The speed will be good to fast. MEGA BONUS has good early gate speed and Luke Ferraris will be keen to lead from gate eight. KA YING CHEER has drawn on his outside and Zac Purton will be able to follow MEGA BONUS across to sit on the speed. SUPER JOY N FUN (Jerry Chau) and HAPPY FAT CAT (Antoine Hamelin) will settle in the leading division. ONE FOR ALL also races handy but may be caught wide from gate 10 for Lyle Hewitson.
SUGAR SUGAR ran second in this race last year and went on to win twice in this class, course and distance during a very consistent year. Ellis Wong rides SUGAR SUGAR for the first time as trainer Caspar Fownes opts to use a 7lb claim. SUGAR SUGAR has drawn ideally in gate three and is a win and place chance.
Zac takes the ride on KA YING CHEER for the first time for Pierre Ng. KA YING CHEER won first-up last season and was consistent thereafter. He has good gate speed and Zac should be able to get across from the draw to be in a striking position in the leading division. KA YING CHEER was an impressive trial winner last week, comes into the race near his winning body weight and is also a win and place chance.
SUPER JOY N FUN won his first two career starts over this course and distance last season in Class 4 and then raced consistently at four subsequent starts when rising to Class 3. SUPER JOY N FUN trialed well in preparation for this race and should get a good run from gate five. He is a place chance.
RIGHTEOUS ARION has recorded all three career wins over this course and distance and has finished in the top five at his last 21 starts, a remarkably consistent record. RIGHTEOUS ARION has drawn ideally in gate four and is a place chance for Brenton Avdulla and trainer Tony Cruz.
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