The 2024 season of horse racing has already opened with a bang. The third weekend of January saw brilliant showcases within the sport. Jockeys and their formidable steeds exhibited extraordinary skill, captivating audiences from Japan to Hong Kong to New Zealand. A historic moment even occurred for Rachel King at the Stewards’ Cup, making the weekend even more memorable. Let’s take a peek at this brilliant weekend racing recap.
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A horse racing spectacular
In an Instagram post by World Horse Racing, the account announced the “WEEKEND RACING ROUND-UP 📝” The action commenced with a riveting showdown at Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong for the Stewards’ Cup, a prestigious Group 1 race on January 21, 2024. Voyage Bubble, a 5-year-old horse from Australia, trained by Ricky Yiu and ridden by James McDonald, showed an impressive performance, overtaking Beauty Eternal by 1 1/4 lengths in the final stretch to win the Stewards’ Cup.
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The total prize money for the race was a whopping HK$13,000,000. The excitement continued in New Zealand at the Group 1 Thorndon Mile (1600m) at Trentham on January 20, 2024. Puntura, a six-year-old Taranaki gelding ridden by Craig Grylls, won the race. The race had a prize pool of $400,000. And if this wasn’t enough, the weekend continued with a historic mark set by Rachel King.
A historic moment, elevating an already stellar week
Australian jockey Rachel King achieved a significant milestone in Japan on January 21 at the G2 American Jockey Club Cup, a 2200-meter race at Nakayama. King became the first foreign female jockey to win a graded Japan Racing Association flat race. The Aussie rode Chuck Nate, a six-year-old Heart’s Cry gelding trained by Noriyuki Hori and owned by Kaneko Makoto, in this historic win, and it also marked Chuck Nate’s first Graded success. King battled to the line in a tight finish, finishing a nose ahead of Boccherini, trained by Yasutoshi Ikee. After the iconic moment, Rachel King conveyed her appreciation to Japanese fans, stating, “Many thanks for the continued support, it helped get me home today in a nice race.”
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