The eyes of the sporting world were fixed on Hong Kong on Sunday for a sensational afternoon of sport at our LONGINES Hong Kong International Races at Sha Tin. It was a day of thrills and excitement, and one with a surprise or two thrown in for good measure. I said in the lead-up to the event that I would feel satisfied if local horses could snatch one win from the four events but in the end I was given a big surprise as the home contingent landed a treble in the Cup, Mile and Vase, to match the three wins we achieved in 2011. I must admit that what our elite runners achieved went far beyond my expectations and I am pretty sure there can’t have been many of you who predicted that emphatic return from our runners!
Among the trio of winners I think it was a notably special feat for us to put an end to our 15-year wait for a Vase hero, with Dominant landing us the first Vase victory since Indigenous in 1998, in fact it was our first since the race became a Group 1. The triumph was a very sweet one for John Moore, as he has now completed a clean sweep of all four G1 races at our biggest race meeting.
John Size and Douglas Whyte also enjoyed a memorable day as John expertly prepped his maiden HKIR winner in Glorious Days in the Mile, while Douglas ended his 15-year HKIR drought in style by bagging a G1 double on the Size stable star and Akeed Mofeed in the Cup. Those were fantastic performances, but I’m sure many of you would rate the overall high point as being the sole overseas victory on the day - Lord Kanaloa’s outstanding display in the Sprint. In my view it’s one of the best sprinting performances I have ever seen on a racetrack and he appeared to be a different class to his world class opponents.
However, I believe many racing fans like me also feel for the unfortunate incident involving Jwala in the Sprint, as this British filly fell down in the final stage of the race. Paramedics and Club vets immediately proceeded to the location to provide medical attention to both the rider and the horse. It was fortunate that her jockey Steve Drowne was okay. He suffered from collarbone injuries but was nothing more serious than that. For Jwala our vets made their best endeavor to rescue her, but as of her fatal injuries she was deceased later. Many had expressed their sympathy to Jwala’s connections inside the racecourse. So did many other racing fans who conveyed similar messages through different channels. It’s definitely something that we horse lovers didn’t want to see but unfortunately it could happen.
On a brighter note, some of our younger horses produced some good performances and proved their merits. The standout of course was Akeed Mofeed in winning the Cup but it was also a fine effort from Gold-Fun who was just beaten by Glorious Days when runner-up in the Mile. When you combine those performances with Endowing’s previous win in the G2 LONGINES Jockey Club Cup, it is clear that last season’s four-year-old crop is a good one. It just shows that the 2013 BMW Hong Kong Derby back in March was a quality renewal, and these up-and-coming stars have shown us that they can be important forces for Hong Kong on the world stage. Their emergence at the top table is positive for the sustainability of our sport and these results are what we strive to produce each year.
I must also say that the tremendous support of both local and overseas media means that the media coverage we had for the international races this year was the best ever. This is an indication of the importance of our International races on the global stage and highlights the successful implementation of the Club’s aim to be a world leader in the sport. We still have work to do but it was nice that a few of those members of the media were generous enough in their praise to say that the Club has set a benchmark for international race meetings. The challenge we now face is how we can do better next year. We always try to improve and that is what we thrive on.
Getting back to our regular local racing fixture, with Christmas soon approaching, racegoers can feel the Christmas atmosphere early in our Horse Around This Xmas themed meeting at Happy Valley racecourse tonight, along with the Christmas décor and some themed activities and performances on offer this evening.
Among the eight races of the card, the HK Academy of Medicine 20th Anniversary Cup (Handicap) is a good symbol of the donation the Club made 20 years ago, in funding this very important academy for the benefit of local medical and public healthcare sectors. Over the past decades, the academy has made immense contributions in areas of specialist training, education and continued professional development. With the HKJC Innovative Learning Centre for Medicine in the academy – at a HK$53 million donation from the Club’s Charities Trust – officially opened yesterday, it would make medical simulation training commonplace for 63,000 healthcare professionals and 3,000 medical students in Hong Kong.
For the Cup race itself tonight, it is run as a Class 3 over 1200m. With the expected good to slow pace it will likely favour horses in the front of the field. Step Faster and Supreme Flight are the most likely leaders, with newcomer Green Easy looks progressive and will try to overcome his wide draw of 12 to drop into a handy spot behind them. Atacx and Costa Del Sol should be well placed in midfield with last start runner-up My Name Is Bond coming from the back.
Step Faster who is working and performing well in his last start is my favourite pick for this race, especially with Joao Moreira on board as he comes back from suspension. My Name Is Bond is my second pick as he’s working very well and has a fast finishing speed. Atacx is a good place chance, with newcomer Green Easy who has trialled in Happy Valley being my other choice for a place.
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