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John Size sails past 1,500 Hong Kong wins as Beauty Eternal headlines fabulous four-timer
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Ricky Yiu bubbling with confidence ahead of Hong Kong Derby winner’s return: ‘I can’t fault him’
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Dylan Mo breaks six-month drought and delays John Size’s inevitable 1,500th Hong Kong win
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Pierre Ng thrilled with Taj Dragon ahead of maiden Happy Valley test: ‘He looks perfect’
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Jockey Harry Bentley handed two-month suspension and HK$300,000 fine for improper conduct
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By Wandering Eyes · Posted
In anticipation of the 25% blanket tariff on all Canadian goods entering the U.S. expected to be enacted April 2, the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society (CTHS) has issued an advisory to its members, aiming to provide some clarity to a fluctuating and often confusing situation. Already this week, the U.S. government enacted a 25% tariff on Canadian steel and metal imports. “This could very well change at any moment given whatever the will of the president is,” warned Tom Rooney, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), about the threatened 25% blanket tariffs. “If it really is just to get people to the negotiation table to negotiate something, maybe we'll never see this. But as of right now, April 2 is the drop-dead date for when a tariff could have an impact on buying and selling horses,” Rooney added. In response to the blanket tariffs, the Canadian government has threatened reciprocal tariffs against approximately $30-billion worth of imported goods into Canada. The country has already retaliated against tariffs imposed on steel and aluminum imports. “While the initial round of tariffs did not apply to pure-bred breeding and racing animals, including live horses, it is likely that future rounds may include such tariffs, mirroring those imposed by the U.S.,” the CTHS wrote, about the reciprocal tariffs affecting imports into Canada. Using information provided by the Canadian Ministry of Agriculture, Agri-Food Canada (which regulates policies and programs linked to Canada's agricultural industries) and the country's border broker network, the CTHS explained that the U.S. tariffs would apply to pure-bred breeding and racehorses “each time they cross the border.” The organization breaks the tariff nuances down the following ways: Mares for Breeding If the mare was born (“originated”) in the U.S., the tariff does not apply. If the mare was born (“originated”) in another country, the tariff applies and must be paid upon entry into the U.S. A Temporary Entry permit is available for 30 days from the date of crossing. This requires cash to secure a bond equal to the tariff value, and the owner must provide proof of the mare's value. If the mare returns to Canada within 30 days, the owner can request a refund of the bond from the U.S. government. However, proof of re-entry–such as a border services date stamp–will be required. If the mare is accompanied by a foal born in Canada, the foal will also be subject to the 25% tariff or require a separate Temporary Entry permit if returning to the Canada within the 30 day period. Horses for Sale and Racing If the horse is intended to be sold in the U.S. at auction or by private sale and was born in the U.S. (“originated”) the tariff would not apply. If the horse was born (“originated”) in Canada, the tariff applies and must be paid upon entry into the U.S. A Temporary Entry permit is available for 30 days from the date of crossing. This requires cash to secure a bond equal to the tariff value, along with proof of the horse's value. If the horse is not sold and returns to Canada within 30 days, the owner can request a refund of the bond from the U.S. government. However, proof of re-entry–such as a border services date stamp–will be required. As an indication of the sometimes conflicting nature of the news disseminated by the U.S. government, Rooney said that, as he understood the situation, the tariffs would apply to the buying and selling of horses. “However, if a horse is going into Canada or coming to, say, Lexington to be bred, and is going to reside in Canada or the United States for less than a year, then the tariff wouldn't apply,” Rooney added. “So, from what I gather, breeding basically should be okay, but actually buying and selling of horses that are going to cross the lines after April 2 would not, as far as being exposed to the tariffs,” he said, offering a slightly different understanding of the tariffs to the CTHS's understanding. If enacted, the tariffs could have no small impact on the breeding and racing industries in both countries, especially for those Canadian-based breeders who sell a portion of their bloodstock in U.S. sales. Last year, 157 Canadian yearlings were entered into a U.S. auction house, bringing in more than $7.6 million in sales. According to the CTHS, 36% of the 2023 Canadian foal crop was sired by U.S. based stallions, representing a nearly $9-million sum in stud fees. Prolific Canadian-based owner-breeder Dave Anderson raised the specter of tariffs being imposed on runners traveling back and forth between the two countries. “Moira would have been hit with a +$1m tariff last year. This is sending shockwaves to breeders who have indicated they won't be crossing the border to breed or race in the U.S. this spring,” Anderson wrote, highlighting Canada's winner of the 2024 GI Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf. Fasig-Tipton president Boyd Browning has a similar take. “The proposed tariffs being discussed with regard to Canadian Thoroughbreds is obviously a concern to the U.S. marketplace. This will impact sales companies, stallion farms and many service providers that transact business on a meaningful level on a regular basis,” he said. In Canada, there is currently a 21-day public comment period on the proposed countermeasures, with a deadline of March 25. “We strongly encourage all industry stakeholders to submit their input through this form and request an exemption to the Canadian tariffs for purebred breeding and racing animals,” the CTHS wrote. Likewise in the U.S., Rooney (who formerly represented Florida's 16th congressional district) recommended that anyone with strong thoughts or concerns about the tariffs should contact their local representatives. “If you get enough people calling saying 'the tariffs are really hurting,' then you start talking to your leadership. Then you start talking about that in committees. Then the people who are going over to the White House start talking to the people on the staff there, or even the president himself,” said Rooney. “That does have an effect,” said Rooney. “It works.” The post CTHS Provides Details On Threatened US-Canada Tariffs appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
Mrs. Astor, perfect in her last two California starts for trainer Jonathan Thomas, faces a formidable challenger in Kathynmarissa in the March 15 Santa Ana Stakes (G3T) at Santa Anita Park.View the full article -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
In the 25 years that she worked overseeing Todd Pletcher's racing stable, Maggie Sweet only had to concern herself about horses from the time they were two until around five. In the one year that she has been executive director of the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, the nation's oldest Thoroughbred retirement facility, she has learned that inspiring the industry to spend the money to care for them for the next 25 years is a much harder part of the bargain. The TRF currently provides permanent lifetime homes for 400 horses, primarily at eight correctional facilities across the country where incarcerated men, women, and juvenile offenders care for them in groundbreaking programs to teach work and life skills to the inmates. And while other programs only accept horses who can be retrained for a second career, the TRF accepts horses whose racing careers have left them unable to go on to a second career, but who are still comfortable and pasture-sound. “Working with Todd, by the time they were five, they were definitely off to a second career,” said Sweet, who appeared as the Gainesway Guest of the Week on the show. “Here at the TRF, the first ones we get are five, and the average age of the herd is 21. So we get the horse at age five can who no longer compete on the racetrack, and is not sound enough for a second athletic career,” said Sweet. “And then that's 25 years of dignified lifetime care that we are committing to.” The TRF recently concluded a six-month strategic planning session which revealed some important things to Sweet and the board. “It used to be a difficult thing to find a second home for a horse,” she said. “And now it's become much more a matter of course, but I think what most of the industry participants have in their mind is the re-home, re-train, re-home model of it, which is a much shorter stay, and therefore a whole lot less money than it costs to take a horse and keep it for 25 years. Our cost per year, even if you budget at $3,000 per year, over 25 years, that's $75,000. And I think other organizations have done a better job of telling their story.” Sweet challenged anyone who hasn't been supporting lifetime retirement for the length of time they have been in the industry to “please call me, contact me, come to our website, sign up for our newsletters, or go to our social media,” to learn more about the TRF. Elsewhere on the show, which is presented by Keeneland, in our “Fastest Horse of the Week,” segment, which is sponsored by WinStar, we discussed WinStar stallion Timberlake, Into Mischief's only Grade I-winning two-year-old at stud. With a 103 Beyer, Skippylongstocking (Exaggerator), winning his third consecutive Michelob Ultra Challenger Stakes, was the fastest horse of the week. Elsewhere on the podcast, which is also sponsored by the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders' Association, West Point Thoroughbreds, 1/ST TV, and 1/ST Racing, the team of Zoe Cadman, Randy Moss and T.D. Thornton reviewed the weekend's top performances, including the return of Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna), and discussed the retirement of legendary racecaller Trevor Denman. They also reviewed Dan Ross's op/ed in the TDN this week about why it's important and beneficial to support smaller trainers. Click here to watch the podcast. Click here for an audio version. The post TRF Executive Director Maggie Sweet Joins TDN Writers’ Room appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article -
By Chief Stipe · Posted
I hope not. Wouldn't surprise me they haven't learnt from Ellerslie's experience. Seems to have been a few sore horses after Champions Day. -
By Wandering Eyes · Posted
CHELTENHAM, UK — Look to the stars. A reflex action for Sean Flanagan as he passed the post in front on Marine Nationale (Ire) (French Navy {GB}) to win the G1 BetMGM Queen Mother Champion Chase. Any win at Cheltenham is emotional for those closest to the horse, but this was one heavily laced with poignancy, coming less than a month after the death of Marine Nationale's former jockey Michael O'Sullivan at the age of 24. Two years earlier, Marine Nationale had provided him with his first victory at the Festival in the G1 Supreme Novices' Hurdle, and later that day Jazzy Matty (Fr) (Doctor Dino {Fr}) became his second. On Wednesday, those two horses gave repeat performances – different races, different men in their saddles, but winners again on the biggest stage of all. “All the jockeys in the world have been under a cloud for the last couple of weeks,” said Flanagan as he began the lead in from the track to the cauldron of the winner's enclosure and a hero's welcome. “I'm only the man that steered him around, Michael's the man who made him what he is and he'll never be forgotten.” Marine Nationale's trainer, Barry Connell, who had played such a key role in the early years of O'Sullivan's life as a professional jockey, was visibly moved by the sorrow of recent weeks, and admitted that it was still “very raw”. He said, “It's been absolutely horrible – horrible. My thoughts and prayers are with the family, his friends – Charlotte, his girlfriend, is here, she was with us saddling up the horse. Everybody in racing, it's a great community, and everybody has come together for Michael.” O'Sullivan's last ride aboard Marine Nationale came in November when they were second to Quilixios (GB) (Maxios {GB}) in a Grade 3 chase at Naas after nine months off the track. Thereafter he has been the mount of Flanagan following a parting of ways between Connell and O'Sullivan, and it was the last-fence fall of Quilixios in the Champion Chase which left the path clear for the eight-year-old to claim his second Festival success. Connell, himself a dual-winning jockey at Cheltenham, continued, “I've been coming racing here since the 1980s, since I was a student, and it's the one race I always wanted to win, because it's pure, unadulterated, on-the-edge speed; the horses finish quickly, they don't finish tired like in the Gold Cup. It won't sink in for a long time. “Michael and I went on a journey with this horse; he rode him in all his races in his novice season over hurdles. He started as a 7lb claimer with us and we asked him to turn pro. He ended winning three Grade 1s as a claimer, was leading rider on the first day [in 2023], and then leading conditional. I've asked racing historians and I don't think they can find anyone who did all that. It is a tragedy that he's left us, but it's a record that he can be really proud of. He's achieved more in a lifetime than a lot of riders who have been riding a lot longer can ever achieve. So I'd like to dedicate this win to Michael and his girlfriend Charlotte.” Sean Flanagan and Barry Connell with the Queen Mother Champion Chase trophy | PA Media A former stockbroker, Connell trains a small string near the Curragh and was represented on the opening day of the Festival by the Supreme Novices' Hurdle runner-up William Munny (Ire) (Westerner). “This is a magical creature and he landed in our yard,” he said of Marine Nationale. “We've only 16, 17 riding out at any one point in time, so to get one like him and, yesterday, to get another one, you pinch yourself. Look, we're only guardians of these horses and our only edge, being a small operation, is to just try to give them as much time as we can.” In another feature race laden with drama, Jonbon (Fr) (Walk In The Park {Ire}) had started favourite but a bad mistake at the ninth fence scuppered his chances as he dropped out to last place before rallying up the hill to take second, some 18 lengths adrift of Marine Nationale. Last year's winner Captain Guinness (Ire) (Arakan) held on for third. Just 40 minutes later, thoughts turned once more to O'Sullivan after a rejuvenated Jazzy Matty, landed the Debenhams Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Handicap Chase in the hands of Danny Gilligan. His victory of two years ago was chalked up to Gordon Elliott, but the six-year-old joined the stable of Cian Collins last spring and duly gave the trainer his first taste of Cheltenham Festival success, having previously won twice for him earlier this season. “It's unbelievable,” he said. “We were very hopeful coming here today, but it's Cheltenham and we needed a lot of luck on our side. We had that. I said that that – Marine Nationale and Jazzy Matty winning – doesn't happen often. This is for Michael.” The card started with the sole British-trained runner of the day when rising star The New Lion (GB) (Kayf Tara {GB}), bred by the late Robert Chugg and his wife Jackie, prevailed in a battling finish with the The Yellow Clay (Ire) (Yeats {Ire}) to take the G1 Turners Novices' Chase for the trainer-jockey brothers Dan and Harry Skelton. The six-year-old was also the 80th Cheltenham Festival winner for dominant jumps owner JP McManus. Through the afternoon another three winners came the way of Willie Mullins to add to his first-day double. The only surprise perhaps was that the outsider of his three runners in the G1 Brown Advisory Novices' Chase, Lecky Watson (Ire) (Valirann {Fr}), was the one to come out on top when a jumping error put paid to the chances of favourite Ballyburn (Ire) (Flemensfirth). Lecky Watson, like The New Lion, was another to pay a posthumous tribute to a much-missed breeder in Ronnie O'Neill of Whytemount Stud. O'Neill also bred, owned and trained his dam Anno Whyte (Ire), and owned and trained granddam Anno Mundi, herself a Red Ransom half-sister to the Champion Hurdler Annie Power (Ire) (Shirocco {Ger}). Both Valirann and Lecky Watson's damsire Stowaway (Ire) were former residents of Whytemount Stud, making it a proper homespun affair. O'Neill, a former amateur jockey for Willlie Mullins's father Paddy as well as being a trainer and breeder, died last October. Jody Townend, whose brother Paul is the leading rider at the Festival, ensured that he is not the only member of the family on the roll of honour when winning the G1 Weatherbys Champion Bumper aboard the unbeaten mare Bambino Fever (Ire) (Jukebox Jury {Ire}). The result gave Stowaway, the stallion in whom O'Neill had placed such faith, his second Grade 1 victory of the day as broodmare sire. The post ‘This Is For Michael’: Emotions Run High as Marine Nationale Storms Champion Chase appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions. View the full article
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6Guest Kit Walker · Started
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