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| Sumita Pawar |
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Mr. Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, Chief Executive Officer of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, praised the Club’s track staff for their exceptional work in handling challenging weather conditions during the FWD Champions Day at Sha Tin on Sunday, April 28th.
Despite over 250mm of rain in the preceding week, all 10 races were safely completed. This allowed Romantic Warrior, Beauty Eternal, and Invincible Sage to achieve Group One victories on a yielding surface.
Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges commended the tracks team for their extraordinary efforts, ensuring that the ground remained fair for all horses to participate despite the adverse weather conditions.
“Nobody could believe that with over 250mm of rain how well our track performed and provided fair going on which to compete.
“On the track, there was a lot of excitement with an upcoming 4YO Invincible Sage, who won the Gr.1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1200m) against several Group One winners. California Spangle showed his true colours even in defeat.
“In the FWD Champions Mile (Gr.1, 1600m), we had a little surprise with Beauty Eternal winning. I would like to acknowledge the performance of Golden Sixty, he is still the hero of Hong Kong and with this weather, the track conditions were not ideal for him.
“The highlight of the day was definitely the FWD QEII Cup (G1, 2000m) with the atmosphere we had and the performance of Romantic Warrior, fighting against some of the best horses in the world and winning this race for Hong Kong.
“To have three Hong Kong winners in the international races is something is that is very satisfying and a great achievement especially when you consider we have a population of 1,200 horses and to be able to compete and succeed on the international stage shows the determination of the Club and our owners and that should make Hong Kong proud.”
During the FWD Champions Day, Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges shared that the total attendance was 33,586, which included 5,110 visitors from the Mainland. He expressed his gratitude and described it as an exceptional achievement.
In recognition of Hong Kong's triumph in securing all three Group Ones, Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges conveyed his appreciation to the owners who invest in bloodstock to make Hong Kong a distinguished name in the racing world. He also acknowledged the overseas guests who brought their horses to compete and thanked the customers for their unwavering support despite the challenging weather conditions.
Mr. Andrew Harding, the Executive Director of Racing, emphasized that this year has been an extraordinary year for Hong Kong racing. He commended the many people who contributed to this success, particularly the owners who played a vital role in making Hong Kong racing world-leading and not just world-class.
“I want to thank our sponsor FWD – they’re an extraordinary partner – and I’m very pleased that we were able to provide them today with a day of truly exceptional racing.
“I want to acknowledge and commend the sterling work of our tracks team – quite exceptional and, again, world-class.”