The Winning Team Off To Dubai For Another Golden Shaheen Victory

Some of the best sprinters from all over the world will be in attendance but Sibelius has a chance to etch his name into the history books by being only the third multiple-time winner of the race.

A former top jockey, O’Dwyer enjoyed a fruitful career in both Ireland and England, riding hundreds of winners before seeing his career out in America.

With his career as a jockey coming to an end, O’Dwyer was able to learn the training game under some of the very best trainers in America, including Al Stall, Michael Matz, Bill Mott and Andrew McKeever.

Having completed his apprenticeship, O’Dwyer started his own operation in 2014 and has gone on to train hundreds of winners, but it’s Sibelius who has helped launch O’Dwyer and his stable to even greater heights.

With an exciting month ahead, we were able to sit down with O’Dwyer to discuss Sibelius’s chances and his operation back at home.

O’DWYER TO FOLLOW TRIED AND TESTED METHOD AHEAD OF 2024 DUBAI GOLDEN SHAHEEN

There’s something about this time of year that Sibelius and Jeremiah O’Dwyer seem to love.

Since his memorable win in the 2023 Dubai Golden Shaheen, Sibelius has been a frustrating horse to follow, but for the second successive year, he has come alive over the American winter, winning recently at both Gulfstream and Tampa Bay Downs.

Sibelius’s two recent victories follow the exact path to his success in the 2023 Golden Shaheen and O’Dwyer has every reason to be optimistic that preparation for this year’s renewal has gone exactly to plan.

"We’ve taken a similar path to what we did last year, going for the Pelican Stakes at Tampa and the Mr Prospector Stakes at Gulfstream. Thankfully, he has won both races two years in a row, and this seems to be the time of year when he is at his best. He might be peaking, and if that’s the case, I’m certainly very happy with that."

What made Sibelius’s victory in the 2023 Golden Shaheen even more impressive was that it marked the first time that Sibelius had ever run abroad. This time around, O’Dwyer has every reason to travel confidently and believes his horse has reached the same levels as last year.

"The horse seems to be at the top of his game; he’s been impressive in both of his prep races this year and has come out of those races bouncing. He looks as good as he was last year, and I’m hopeful he can run the same sort of race at Meydan this year, and if that’s good enough to win the race, then so be it."

Whilst some trainers may have trepidation about sending their horses halfway across the world, O’Dwyer doesn’t hold any fears as to how his stable star will handle the trip.

"He’s got a great temperament; he’s very straightforward and just goes out to do his job. His mentality is very good; last year he travelled over there easily and settled in super quick. He’s got a good head on his shoulders, he’s very good mentally, and we don’t have to baby him too much. He’s just the ultimate professional."

A lot of that mentality comes down to how Sibelius trains at home.

"He’s very simple and straightforward to train. We’ve had him a long time; he came to us as a 2YO, and he had his first start for us when he turned three. I know him well, and he knows me well. He’s very straightforward. He likes to go out and do his job and enjoys his training. He’s just very good."

Now six, Sibelius is a proven performer, but turning up to a race of the quality of the Golden Shaheen has meant a lot of hard work has gone on behind the scenes to ensure that he arrives at Dubai ready to race.

"I have picked up a lot of advice from a lot of good trainers, but some of the best advice I ever received came from Bill Mott when he said that older horses can’t have too much downtime, as the older they are, the harder it is to get them back to full fitness if they lose some of it."

O’Dwyer seems to be putting that advice into practice with Sibelius, who, despite heading towards the twilight of his career, seems to be at the peak of his powers.

"He’s our best horse in the barn; I know every little thing about him; I know if something is off or not. This year we’ve had to give him a little more training to keep him at peak fitness; he’s six now, he’s a little bit older, a little bit stronger and the more they eat, the more you have to train them in order to keep them in tip-top shape."

With O’Dwyer happy with how Sibelius has prepared for the race, he is crystal clear when it comes to stating what the horse’s overall aims for the year are.

"This is his main goal for the year. He has what all top horses have, and that is a willingness to win; he wants to outdo all the other horses and get to the finishing line first. It’s like human athletes; the best ones always have that extra desire to push out a little bit more when it really matters, and that’s a quality he certainly has."

O’DWYER KNOWS A TOUGH 2024 RENEWAL LIES IN STORE

Heading into last year’s Golden Shaheen, it’s fair to say that Sibelius wasn’t among the heavy favourites. Returning at odds of 8/1, O’Dwyer fondly recalls that special day and the emotions he felt.

"I’ve never felt anything like it in my life; my emotions were just wild; it’s hard to explain exactly how I felt - overwhelmed, overjoyed, I was just super excited."

Keen to relive those glory days, O’Dwyer knows that it will take something special to win the race again, and the very best opposition stands in his and Sibelius’s way of backing up their 2023 success.

"Heading into the race, we aren’t nervous, but we are very respectful of the level of competition that we are facing.

The race is worth a lot of money. They are all top trainers from all over the world, and they are going to send their horses in peak condition. The local trainers as well – they know the conditions and they know how to do a job. So, it certainly won’t be easy, but we will be going over there with a horse in top condition and are hopeful of running a big race.

I can’t spend my time worrying about them. I’m just thinking of getting my horse to the race in the very best possible condition."

When it comes to Sibelius’s future plans, it’s fair to say that O’Dwyer is dreaming of further Dubai success.

"One day, I would love to take him to the Breeders’ Cup, but we are very mindful of him. It’s all about him and when he’s ready to go. Dubai was such an experience for us last year; he’s only a 6YO gelding, and he’s sound. We’d love for him to keep coming back. It would be a great feat for him to get to three Golden Shaheens. I’d be absolutely delighted with that.

I’d love for him to be a three-time winner of the Golden Shaheen; a two-time winner would be fabulous. Hopefully, he will give a good account of himself this year, and once he’s happy, healthy and willing to do things, we’ll run him and tailor his schedule to see where the best opportunities are for him. Hopefully, he will be around for a couple more years at least."

The task that lies ahead for O’Dwyer and Sibelius is massive. At the moment, O’Dwyer hasn’t made any plans for celebrations after the race, but his team should ‘be able to throw something together pretty quickly’ should Sibelius cement his place in the record books by becoming just the third multiple winner of the Golden Shaheen.

With some exciting 3YOs back at home, 2024 stands to be an exciting year for O’Dwyer and his team. However, it’s with Sibelius where their major hopes lie.

Set to leave it all out on the track, a date with destiny and further glory in the Gulf awaits.