ENGLISH TEXTS his simplicity and kindness.“ We travelled to Ascot for our horse’ s final race, in January 2020. Although he only finished second, Willie brought us into the winners’ enclosure where we shared a drink. Every time Willie comes to race in France, we go and say hello, and he never forgets to ask for news of Un de Sceaux!”
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CHRO- NICLES OF THE WORLD
Katherine Ford-UK Passionate about racing, Katherine left her native Yorkshire to spend six months in France in the early 2000s... and almost 25 years later, she is still there. Now a freelance journalist and translator, she has discovered and introduced racecourses around the world for Equidia, and regularly presents French racing on Sky Sports Racing. She is also a breeder and owner of Thoroughbreds.
Igor de Maack- Global Economy Associate director at the wealth management firm Vitalepargne, Igor de Maack is a reference in financial market analysis. He has also invested in horses( Écurie Nininoé) out of passion, thanks to his friendship with Fabien Rycroft( Écurie Elag). Initially active in harness racing, he has diversified into flat racing, notably with horses such as Lindy and Onesto.
Vicki Gibbins- Ireland + Sales As Managing Editor of LAB Racing, Vicki Gibbins has a vast knowledge and experience of racing and the wider equestrian world. With a background specialising in bloodstock, her writing can been read in a number of publications globally, including International Thoroughbred, Racing & Sports. Vicki also represents Trackside – an on-course paddock analysis service used by Weatherbys and various other customers – and is responsible for the publication of L ' informateur.
Equicer EQUICER is a national network of specialized advisors dedicated to professionals in the equine sector. This subsidiary of the Cerfrance group offers its expertise in management, taxation, business setup, economic optimization and corporate strategy.
UK
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FLASHBACK ON CHAMPIONS DAY
I was lucky enough to travel to England to cover an exceptional edition of Champions Day. But the show began long before the first of the five British Group 1 races. Just before my trip, I followed the performance of Hong Kong champion Ka Ying Rising in The Everest in Sydney. The world’ s best sprinter made headlines after a fake news post circulated on X suggesting he might become a non-runner. But over the 1,200 meters of The Everest, Ka Ying Rising silenced any doubts, outclassing the best Australian sprinters to offer expatriate Hong Kong-based Australian jockey Zac Purton“ the most satisfying victory of my career.” A huge source of pride for Hong Kong, and a success for the World Pool- the international commingled pool organized by the Hong Kong Jockey Club- which recorded a record turnover of over HK $ 83 million(€ 9M) on the race. Unfortunately, this morning commingled pool did not include the PMU, which also skipped the day’ s other major Australian highlight, the Caulfield Cup. That Group 1 also made racing history, won for the first time by a female jockey, Jamie Melham aboard Half Yours, d who is now set to target the legendary Melbourne Cup, just like Alessandro Botti’ s Présage Nocturne, a fine performer in fourth place. QIPCO Champions Day brought together more than 31,000 spectators to celebrate … our champions. A fifth Champion Jockey title for Oisin Murphy, a 17 th Champion Owner title for Godolphin( suspense will last until year-end for the champion trainer title), and the induction into the Hall of Fame of Enable and Major Dick Hern, the 20 th-century trainer of champions such as Dayjur. Across the five Group 1 races, there was something for everyone: form held true when Gold Cup hero Trawlerman repeated in the British Champions Long Distance Cup, and Kalpana completed the double in the British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes. But the British Champions Sprint Stakes and Queen Elizabeth II Stakes delivered huge shocks, with wins from Powerful Glory and Cicero’ s Gift. At 200 / 1, Pow-
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