This time there was no dramatic finish for my home country Germany as they fell to a 0-1 defeat by Spain in the Euro 2008 Football Tournament final early yesterday. Of course, I'm a bit disappointed with the result as Germany were just 90 minutes from being crowned champions of Europe for the fourth time. But I have to admit that Spain were the better team on the night in Vienna and worthy winners of their first major tournament since 1964.
While Europe has now crowned a new football champion, we are just reaching the same climax in our racing season. At the end of every season, a selection panel comprising members of the Club and the Association of Hong Kong Racing Journalists is given responsibility for selecting a group of elite local horses to honour for their outstanding performances during the year. I have to say the selection process and the vote that cast for each winner categories are based on the panel's professional jugdment. Each panel members have also made their voting decisions independently.
Today at our Sha Tin finale raceday we will announce our Horse of the Year and other Champion Awards winners on the turf after the last race. There's going to be lots of excitement and suspense because there are several top horses like Sacred Kingdom, Good Ba Ba and Viva Pataca that all have worthy claims to be this year's Horse of the Year. So I hope you all can come to Sha Tin this afternoon to witness who will become this season's "king of kings".
To thank our racing fans for their great support throughout the season, everyone coming into Sha Tin Racecourse will receive a free gift of a colourful 2008/09 racing calendar. We have also laid on an array of entertainment programmes, including a special opening show in the parade ring, and a star-studded finale which will also mark the 38-day countdown to the Beijing Olympics and the equestrian events in Hong Kong. Then right at the end, as has become a tradition, our guest stars and jockeys will parade on the track to greet their fans and hand out souvenirs.
So I hope you all can join this feast of sport and entertainment at Sha Tin today. Among the 11 races on the card, I'll be paying special attention to Kings Falcon and Hawkes Bay. Getting his maiden win in Hong Kong a fortnight ago, Kings Falcon will race at the same distance of 1400m and I look forward to see if he can repeat his good performance today. After taking a four-month break for bleeding, Hawkes Bay ran a close third in his last appearance. Let's see if he can keep it on and produce a good run at today's finale.
See you there!
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