I'm sure you all greatly enjoyed seeing our sprint champion Sacred Kingdom return to his best on Sunday with his emphatic win in the Chairman's Sprint Prize, and Green Birdie defeat a field of four-year-old elites in the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby Trial.
I was also thrilled by the terrific performance of Helene Mascot, who finished a close second to Green Birdie in the Derby Trial. I had a brief chat with his jockey Felix Coetzee yesterday and he has been very positive about its winning chance in the Derby next month. I think many of you would agree with me that this horse is set to become an early favourite in this classic race. If Helene Mascot stays sound, I will not be surprised if he represents us internationally in future.
Apart from the brilliant performance of our four-year-old elites, Sunday's programme included a special farewell ceremony for Vengeance Of Rain. It was wonderful to see how many of you came along to the Parade Ring to say goodbye to this great champion horse. The number of fans waving flags made a very impressive sight, and some people also held aloft their own home-made banners praising the horse's many achievements in his career.
I learnt afterwards that one of our racing fans even spent few weeks making a painting, from his own memory, depicting the scene when Vengeance Of Rain won the Dubai Sheema Classic. This racing fan presented his gift to the horse's owner Raymond Chow Sunday and I was really impressed by his sincerity and his love for the horse.
Our sport of racing always needs the support of people with passion, and this wonderful horse has certainly helped build a connection between the Chow family, trainer David Ferraris, jockey Anthony Delpech and so many racing lovers, as well as establishing a friendship and special relationship between all parties.
Talking about special relationships, I discovered this week some interesting coincidences between the sports of horse racing and cycling. On the same day that Vengeance Of Rain was running in the Dubai Sheema Classic and cruising to the biggest international success in Hong Kong's racing history, namely 31 March last year, local cycling ace Wong Kam-po was also creating sporting history in another part of the world by clinching his - and Hong Kong's - first cycling world title in the men's 15km race event at the World Track Championships in Mallorca, Spain.
This afternoon, I will be meeting "Ah Po" at Happy Valley Racecourse, as the Club is reappointing him Ambassador for the Mercedes-Benz Hong Kong Derby this year. There are several other similarities between horse racing and cycling, as both depend a lot on tactical positioning in the early stages of a race, then a devastating burst of finishing speed. So I believe that bringing this home-grown world champion cyclist together with Hong Kong's longest-established classic horse race makes a very appropriate partnership.
For tonight's racing at Happy Valley, there are eight races on the card and I will be keeping a close eye on the performances of two three-year-old horses, Diamond Supreme in Race 7 and Master Gunner in Race 8. These two young horses enjoy the advantage of carrying least weight among all runners in their races. I look forward to seeing both of them to give a good performance tonight, and in particular, I hope Master Gunner will bring visiting jockey Emma-Jayne Wilson her first success in Hong Kong.
Comment
