Caernarfon is reminding Jack Channon of some of the great fillies of his past ahead of her tilt at the Betfred Oaks at Epsom on Friday.
The daughter of Cityscape provided Channon’s father Mick with success in the Montrose Fillies’ Stakes last autumn and it would be somewhat fitting if she was to build on her 1000 Guineas fourth and provide the younger Channon with a Classic victory in his first season since taking over the training licence at West Ilsley.
As well as assisting his father, Channon has previously spent time working for Clive Brittain, and having been encouraged by what he has seen from Caernarfon since Newmarket, is now looking forward to her next big-race assignment, believing she compares favourably with some former top-class fillies.
“We’re really excited and she ran an absolute belter in the 1000 Guineas,” said Channon.
“I’ve been very lucky to have been around some very good fillies in the shape of Rizeena and obviously some of dad’s very good fillies – Samitar, Queen’s Logic, Music Show, Nahoodh and all those – and it’s very exciting to have one again. They are very hard to come by, but she gives me a similar feel to some of those good ones.”
Caernarfon was staying on strongly in the closing stages of the 1000 Guineas but will now have to prove her stamina as she takes the leap up to a mile and a half on the Downs.
However, Channon has always felt she would benefit from tackling further than a mile and is quietly confident she will take the challenge of the Oaks in her stride.
He continued: “Her work has taken a step up since Newmarket and she did a wonderful piece of work on Friday that has got everyone very excited. We’re quietly hopeful she stays.
“We felt going into the Guineas she would benefit from going up to a mile and a quarter. It’s one of those where we don’t know if she will stay a mile and a half but she has all the assets to and she looks a stayer physically, even if her pedigree doesn’t reflect that.
“The way she runs and the way she races will say there is a chance and she looks to have improved a bundle since the Guineas.
“Her work has improved immeasurably and her well-being and her coat and everything else, I couldn’t be happier with. We’re excited to give it a whirl.”
Highfield Princess is fully on course for the King’s Stand Stakes at Royal Ascot following her good return to action at York.
John Quinn’s stable star gave best to the match-fit Azure Blue in the 1895 Duke of York Stakes, but nevertheless ran a fine race to finish second, beaten only half a length.
It is a result that gives hope the six-year-old can replicate the blistering form she showed last season when she entered the winner’s enclosure on five occasions, picking up a hat-trick of Group One contests in the process.
The daughter of Night Of Thunder has shown her versatility over the years and although returning over six furlongs on the Knavesmire, she will drop back to the stiff five furlongs of the King’s Stand when appearing at the Royal meeting next month.
“She’s in grand nick and has come out of York fine,” said Quinn.
“She will go to the King’s Stand at Royal Ascot next, all being well.”
It is 20 years since Aussie speedball Choisir did the King’s Stand/Jubilee Stakes double, but although holding entries for both sprinting Group Ones at the showpiece fixture, Quinn is unsure if his flying mare will attempt to become just the second horse along with Blue Point to achieve that rare feat since.
“I don’t know,” he continued. “She’s in both races and we’ll jump the first hurdle and she will be in the other race if we so decided. Tuesday is the aim.”
Cavalier Football Club’s Head coach Rudolph Speid says his team has no intentions of resting on their laurels, after edging reigning champions Harbour View 1-0, in the first leg of their Jamaica Premier League (JPL) semi-final tie at Sabina Park on Monday.
Orlando Russell’s second goal against Harbour View and third overall this season, proved the all-important strike that handed Speid’s youthful team the advantage ahead of Sunday’s return-leg at the same venue.
“What we tried to do was not to concede any goals and take what we got and that is what happened. But I think we need one or two more goals to be safe and so we will be pushing for that in the next game,” Speid said.
After playing out a goalless first half where both teams had their moments, Cavalier found the go-ahead goal seven minutes after the interval through a well-worked build up orchestrated by Nickache Murray.
Murray floated a delicate pass over the top, which was headed across by Jerome McCleary for Orlando Russell to apply the finishing touch at the far post.
Harbour View came close to pulling level in the 62nd minute, but Cristojaye Daley’s well-struck left-footed drive from a distance, was equally well-saved by Vino Barclett, diving full-stretch to his right, in goal for Cavalier.
Cavalier could have extended their lead in the latter stages when the league’s leading scorer Collin Anderson got away from Harbour View’s defenders but fired a right-footed effort straight at goalkeeper Romario Palma, despite having enough space and time to set and shoot.
For Harbour View’s Head coach Ludlow Bernard, its back to the training pitch to assess their mistakes and make the necessary adjustments for the second leg.
“We ran out of ideas up top and so we paid the price for it. We didn’t capitalize on what was probably a tired Cavalier team, but we have some things that we clearly need to look because we are now under one-nil, so we just have to reset and come again,” Bernard stated.
Meanwhile, the second semi-final between Arnett Gardens and Mount Pleasant remain evenly poised, as they played out an entertaining 2-2 stalemate in a game that ensured the large crowd did not leave disappointed.
The inform Leonardo Rankin (17th) and Trivante Stewart (63rd), got the goals for the St Ann-based Mount Pleasant, who went in front twice, but Shai Smith (30th) and Fabian Reid (66th), ensured Arnett Gardens, remained in contention.
It was mostly end-to-end action from the start, but it was Mount Pleasant that drew first blood when Rankin deflected Demario Phillips’s weighted corner kick past Eric Edwards in goal for Arnett Gardens.
However, the “Junglists” were back on level terms 13 minutes later when Ajuma Johnson’s weighted cross found the head of the rangy Smith, who made no mistakes in guiding past Shaquan Davis.
As the score remained unchanged at the break, both teams against came out firing on the resumption, throwing their weight in attack, but again, it was Mount Pleasant that found the go-ahead goal three minutes past the hour mark.
Stewart outsprinted two defenders before squeezing a right-footer past the advancing Edwards to register his 16th goal this season.
But the celebrations were short-lived, as Reid also registered his 16th goal of the season when he utilized a cheeky first touch to create space for a right-footed drive that had Davis well beaten.
Both teams continued to create chances and could have secured the advantage, but for a lack of composure in the final third.
Still, both Paul “Tegat” Davis of Arnett Gardens and his counterpart Theodore “Tappa” Whitmore, agreed that it was a fair result, as it is anybody’s game come Sunday.
Mystical Power, the first foal of Champion Hurdle-winning mare Annie Power by superstar sire Galileo, made the perfect start to his career at Ballinrobe.
Sent off at the prohibitive odds of 2-5, he justified favouritism with the minimum of fuss despite perhaps lacking the fireworks that many expected.
Racing in the colours of J P McManus, the four-year-old is owned in a partnership along with Mrs John Magnier and Mrs Susannah Ricci, the latter also owned Annie Power.
Annie Power only suffered two defeats in a 17-race career under rules, with her two reverses coming at the Cheltenham Festival. The first when second to More Of That in the 2014 World Hurdle and then the following year in the Mares’ Hurdle when falling at the last with the race at her mercy.
In 2016 she ran in the Champion Hurdle, beating My Tent Or Years and she went on to follow up in the Aintree Hurdle before retirement.
Trained by Willie Mullins, just like Annie Power, Patrick Mullins had to get serious in the closing stages before Mystical Power pulled clear to beat Perfect Nelson by two and three-quarter lengths.
Patrick Mullins said: “I’m happy with that. His mother was all out to win in Galway first time and improved significantly, so he’s equalled his mother this far anyway.
“He’s a horse that has improved. The more work he’s got the more he’s improved and I think he’ll continue to improve. He got to the front very easily but I don’t think he did an awful lot when he got there.
“He’ll win plenty of races and I have to commend Ballinrobe on the fabulous job they’ve done with the ground here. We weren’t afraid to bring up a good horse like that. They do a super job and I hope they enjoyed seeing him here.
“He has been in Enda Bolger’s before coming to us and has done loads of jumping. Whether he goes for a winners’ bumper or maiden hurdle I don’t know, but he has lots of jumping done and jumps well.”
McManus’ racing manager Frank Berry said: “It was grand. He was a little bit green when he got to the front but you couldn’t have asked for anything more. He’ll tip away for the summer.”
Despite failing to secure qualification to the Pan American (PanAm) Games nor the World Championships, Jamaica's artistic gymnasts Tyesha Mattis and Kiara Richmon took heart from their respective performances at the just-concluded PanAm Gymnastics Championships in Medellin, Colombia.
Mattis, Richmon and newcomer Mya Absolam, all produced credible showings in a highly competitive environment at the three-day championships which ended on Sunday but were unable to break into a coveted top 12 position.
The England-born Mattis, who was Jamaica’s standout performer at last year’s event when she qualified for the World championships, expressed some disappointment that she wasn’t able to repeat the feat, as she was firmly set on getting to the PanAm Games in Chile and the World Championships in Belgium, later this year.
She placed 32nd overall with an all-around total of 44.500, after scoring 12.867 on vault, 10.533 on uneven bars, 10.733 on the balance beam and 10.367 for her floor routine.
"I was happy with parts of my performances, but I felt like I put a little bit too much pressure on myself to qualify and so I didn’t do as well as I would have liked to,” Mattis said shortly after competition.
However, the 24-year-old did find a few positive takeaways that she hopes to improve on ahead of next month’s Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games in El Salvador, when she is next expected to parade her skills for the island.
“I managed to complete a 2 1/2 twist off beam again after not putting that out in competition for over four years, so I am super proud of myself in that regards as I am proving to myself that I can do more than I am limiting myself to,” she reasoned.
“I am more than capable, and I just need to trust that my body can do the work and again, not putting too much pressure on myself. I work so hard in the gym and when I really wanted to put out my best, I made a couple mistakes.
“But I have to remember I’m only human and I can learn from some of my mistakes and so I am really looking forward to a better performance out in El Salvador in a couple weeks. Looking forward to trying some different routines there and putting out more of my skills as I know I have so much more up my sleeve and the more I compete internationally, the more confident I feel,” Mattis added.
For Richmon, who placed 36th overall with an all-around score of 42.866, just being able to represent Jamaica at the event, represents a remarkable achievement and another significant milestone in her budding career.
Her total includes score of 11.100 on vault, 10.233 on the uneven bars, 10.400 on the balance beam and 11.133 for her floor routine.
“I feel like I did my best with my performance at the championships, especially being that I only had two weeks to prepare. So, I am definitely proud that I was able to hit all four apparatus and getting to be here with the team,” Richmon shared.
With this being her first elite outing since 2019, the 21-year-old Fisk University student is eagerly looking forward to continuing her journey, as her unwavering determination, relentless work ethic and immense potential positions her as one of country’s gymnast to watch.
“It felt amazing, and this performance will definitely serve as motivation for me going forward, I just need to just trust my training and do not over work myself. I also need to have more confidence and belief in myself and hopefully on my next competition I can produce a stronger performance with cleaner routines,” the US-born Richmon said.
Meanwhile, Absolam, another England-born gymnast, had an all-around total of 39.533, after scoring 10.333, 10.033, 8.600, 10.567, on vault, uneven bars, balance beam and floor, respectively. She placed 42nd overall.
On the male side, Canada-born Elel Wahrmann-Baker, was Jamaica’s top performer, placing 27th overall, with an all-around total of 72.301. Wahrmann-Baker had scores of 12.767 on floor, 13.067 on the pommel horse, 11.067 on rings, 13.100 on vault, 13.133 parallel bars and 10.167 on high bar.
Caleb Faulk placed 29th overall with scores of 12.300, 10.900, 12.400, 12.767, 11.9667 and 11.667 for an all-Around total of 72.001, while Matthew McClymont tallied 63.165 for 47th overall. His scores include 12.233, 9.133, 7.533, 12.733, 10.800 and 10.733.
Jamaica’s other representative Michael Reid only took on the pommel horse and parallel bars where he scored 11.933 and 12.467 for a total 24.400.
Paddy Twomey will drop Noche Magica back to the minimum distance at Royal Ascot after he was caught late on in the Marble Hill Stakes on Saturday.
A debut winner over five furlongs at Cork, Twomey stepped him up to six furlongs for the Group Three at the Curragh.
Having travelled much the best throughout the race, he hit the front inside the final furlong but could not pull clear and was eventually reeled in late on by Jessica Harrington’s Givemethebeatboys.
Twomey now feels the decision has been made for him regarding Ascot, and it will be back to five furlongs for the Norfolk Stakes rather than the six of the Coventry.
“He won well over five in Cork and he shows us that blistering speed,” said Twomey.
“The Marble Hill was a fact-finding mission. He travelled and did everything right. He got to the front and just got nutted at the death.
“His mother (Pious Alexander) is a half-sister of Dandy Man and the family is all speed. I’d say we will go for the Norfolk.
“I was the most disappointed man at the Curragh but going forward, he probably did me a favour. I would have run him in the Coventry if he had won, but now we will go for the Norfolk.”
Andrea Atzeni partnered Angers to an impressive victory in the Mehl-Mulhens-Rennen at Cologne on Monday.
Atzeni, who now rides as a freelance, teamed up with Mario Baratti, who is based in France, to win the German equivalent of the 2000 Guineas and deny Charlie Johnston and Ioritz Mendizabal with Finn’s Charm in second.
Angers had only won one of his six starts in France, and was third to Jean-Claude Rouget’s French Guineas fifth Valimi on his most recent outing.
Finn’s Charm attempted to make all under Mendizabal, with Roger Varian’s previously unbeaten Dragon Icon and Benacre, a stablemate of Finn’s Charm, within touching distance.
The leader briefly looked to have slipped the field before Atzeni brough Angers with a powerful run down the outside and he went on to win by six lengths.
Dhangadhi was third, just ahead of Benacre and Dragon Icon.
“He’s a lovely, big horse and ran very well in France the last day,” Atzeni told Wettstar.
“He gave me a nice feel going down to the start and his trainer Mario Baratti has done a great job to keep him spot on for this race, as it’s never easy to travel a horse to a different country.
“He looked the best horse in the paddock and he was by far the best horse in the race.”
Anmaat secured his first Group One success when leading home a British one-two in the Prix d’Ispahan at ParisLongchamp.
The five-year-old progressed rapidly throughout an unbeaten 2022 which culminated in a Group Two success in the Prix Dollar at the same track on Arc weekend.
And following a pleasing return behind Adayar in the rearranged Gordon Richards Stakes at Newmarket, the Owen Burrows-trained runner showed his liking for the French capital once again on Monday afternoon.
Ridden with patience by Jim Crowley in the 10-furlong contest as David Simcock’s Light Infantry dictated terms on the front end from Joseph O’Brien’s Buckaroo, Anmaat was asked to go through the gears and deliver his challenge when angled out by his rider in the home straight.
But with Light Infantry and Buckaroo refusing to lie down, plus home contenders Erevann and Facteur Cheval quickening along with Anmaat, Burrows’ gelding had to pull out all the stops to claim gold in a fantastic five-way dash for the winning post, with Light Infantry holding on for the silver medal.
Crowley told Equidia: “It was a good finish. It was a bit messy early on, I thought I was a little bit far back. He picked up very well, he’s improving all the time, It’s lovely to win a Group One.
“I was a little bit concerned about the quicker ground but he’s handled it fine. I’m hoping he will improve and he will be even better with more cut in the ground as well.”
Beaten Irish 2,000 Guineas favourite Royal Scotsman is undergoing tests following his lacklustre run at the Curragh.
Paul and Oliver Cole’s colt was sent off was sent off a heavily supported 6-4 chance in Ireland having finished third to Chaldean in the Newmarket equivalent.
However, he never looked like getting involved under Jamie Spencer and came home ninth of the 11 runners, beaten over seven lengths.
“He’s come back and he’s a bit sore, we’re just investigating now,” Oliver Cole told Sky Sports Racing.
“I don’t really want to say too much, but he never picked the bridle up going down to post and he never picked the bridle up during the race which is totally unlike him.
“So, we’re investigating now and it will all come out in the wash in the next couple of days, but it certainly wasn’t him.
“All options are still there for him – the St James’s Palace, the Jersey, we’re just trying to do the sensible thing. If we went for the Jersey, we could step back up to the Group One miles after that, all being well.
“We need to win a race with him.”
Texas’s Julien Alfred will have a chance to defend her NCAA Outdoor 100m title after securing her spot in the field on the final day of the NCAA West Regionals in Sacramento on Saturday.
The 21-year-old St. Lucian, who won the NCAA Indoor 60m and 200m double earlier this season, sped to a meet record and collegiate leading time of 10.83 to comfortably be the fastest qualifier to the Championships set for June 7-10 on her home track at the University of Texas's Mike A. Myers stadium.
Her Jamaican teammate, Kevona Davis, also made it through the preliminaries with an 11.06 effort.
The Texas duo also made it through in the 200m with Davis running a season’s best 22.33 and Alfred running 22.45.
Arkansas’s Ackera Nugent, a two-time NCAA Indoor Champion, ran 12.69, a new meet record to advance fastest in the sprint hurdles. Her countrywoman, Texas Tech’s Demisha Roswell, also made it through with a season’s best 12.77.
Arkansas’s Nickisha Price and Joanne Reid both advanced in the one-lap event with personal best times of 50.49 and 51.49, respectively.
In the field, defending NCAA high jump champion, Lamara Distin of Texas A&M, easily cleared 1.85m to secure her opportunity to defend her title. Texas’s Ackelia Smith, world leader in the long jump, also booked her spot in the field for the triple jump with 13.96m.
Meanwhile, at the East Regionals in Jacksonville, Ohio State’s Yanique Dayle and Kentucky’s Anthaya Charlton made it through in the 100m.
Dayle, the Jamaican Senior, produced a big personal best 11.05 while Charlton, the Bahamian Freshman, produced 11.08 (2.3 m/s) to advance.
Dayle also advanced in the 200m with a season’s best 22.58 while LSU’s Brianna Lyston also made it through with 22.92.
In the field, Georgia’s Vincentian Junior, Mikeisha Welcome, jumped 13.50m to make it through in the triple jump.
Ed Walker does not think his Betfred Derby contender Waipiro faces an “impossible” task in attempting to turn the tables on favourite Military Order from their run at Lingfield.
The pair were first and second, separated by a length and a quarter, in the Derby trial at the Surrey track, which was this year was moved from the saturated turf to the all-weather course.
The Godolphin runner was immediately promoted to the head of the betting while Waipiro is around a 16-1 chance, and Walker feels that offers each-way value given it was just the third run of his life.
“He didn’t show a lot on his debut at Kempton Park but we left him in the Derby for a reason. It wasn’t a total surprise that he won at Newmarket but it was obviously very pleasing,” said Walker.
“It looked a very hot race but we chose a race like that to answer questions as we believed he was a nice horse and we wanted to see where he sat with other nice horses. The result was very rewarding and he stepped up again at Lingfield.
“You have to be very pleased with his run at Lingfield. He was very relaxed and very professional. He performed to a high level and it was a satisfying run.
“I think he stamped himself as a high-class colt there as he gave the Derby favourite a good run for his money and you have to be pleased with that.”
Waipiro was forced wide off the bend at Lingfield and Walker feels he could have finished closer on another day.
“The race didn’t go as smoothly in the last couple of furlongs as it did for the winner, who looks a very good horse, and he is bred for the job and he is a very worthy favourite for the Derby,” said Walker.
“Military Order was dominant in the last 100 yards and we are going to have to make another significant step forward to beat him, but I don’t think it is impossible for him to turn it around.
“I think the void is the massive difference in price. I’d imagine, in an open Derby, he might attract attention from punters having an each-way bet. I certainly wouldn’t put anyone off having an each-way bet on him.
“I think he will handle the track and the occasion. He can get a bit warm at home and I wouldn’t be worried seeing him get a bit warm in the preliminaries.
“He is most likely going to wear a red hood to post to help keep a lid on him a bit, because he was a bit noisy at the start at Lingfield. He is generally a very relaxed horse and a professional horse.”
Key defensive plays from Shamera Sterling and Latanya Wilson overcame another high-percentage shooting performance from Jhaniele Fowler as the Adelaide Thunderbirds pulled off another thrilling one-goal win 54-53 over the West Coast Fever at the Netball SA Stadium on Saturday.
Fowler, the Suncorp Super Netball League’s leading scorer, converted 42 of 43 attempts but it was not enough to prevent the reigning champions from falling to their fourth defeat of the season.
Wilson earned 74.5 Nissan Net Points and Sterling 63 for defensive play that held off the defending champions who led 20-12 after the first quarter. However, the league leaders managed to close the gap by the half-time interval after outscoring Fever 14-11 in the second.
The low-scoring encounter saw the Thunderbirds win the third and fourth quarters, 13-10 and 15-12, respectively to snatch another close win. Eleanor Cardwell converted 26 of her 30 shots and Lucy Austin scored six from six in the hard-fought victory.
Adelaide Thunderbirds now have eight wins and just two losses from their 11 games this season while Fever dropped to seven wins and four losses and are only third on goal difference over Melbourne Vixens who also have a record of seven wins and four losses.
The Vixens suffered their fourth loss of the season going down 70-62 to New South Wales Swifts, who got 29 goals from Romelda Aiken-George from 34 attempts and a perfect 16 from 16 from Helen Housby.
Mwai Kumwenda scored 33 of her 35 attempts for the Vixens.
Meanwhile, Shimona Nelson scored 53 goals from 56 attempts for the Collingwood Magpies, whose miserable season will be their last in the Suncorp Super Netball League, as they suffered yet another defeat.
The Magpies were outscored 66-62 by the Sunshine Coast Lightning in what was their ninth loss of the season.
Cara Koenen scored 34 from 35 and Steph Wood 20/24 for the Lightning who were picking up their fourth win of the season and are current fifth in the league standings.
Ante-post favourite Military Order leads 16 contenders for Saturday’s Betfred Derby at Epsom, with Passenger the sole supplementary entry.
Representing Godolphin and trainer Charlie Appleby, Military Order booked his place in the Classic line up with a comfortable trial success at Lingfield and he is the only contender for his handler, who has won the race twice with Masar (2018) and Adayar (2021).
“From the team’s point of view, we’re very happy with him. He came out of his Lingfield Derby Trial win very well and we’ve been very pleased with him since,” Appleby told www.godolphin.com.
“He’s improving week on week physically, and we can’t fault him to date on what he has been doing in his work and on the racecourse. He goes out and gets the job done in the mornings without being flash.
“He’s a mile-and-a-half horse, so you don’t expect flashy work. That hasn’t changed from his two-year-old days and I wouldn’t expect it to change.
“Military Order, like his brother Adayar, goes out and gets the job done.”
Sir Michael Stoute saddled Desert Crown to victory last year and he looks to Passenger to give him seventh overall win the in the race.
Owners the Niarchos Family opted to stump up the £85,000 fee to add him to the 12-furlong Classic after enduring a luckless run when third in the Dante last time out.
Aidan O’Brien is the race’s leading trainer with eight wins on his CV and Auguste Rodin captains a possible four-strong team as he seeks to put a disappointing 2000 Guineas run well behind him stepping up in trip.
Adelaide River, Covent Garden and Chester winner San Antonio complete the potential Ballydoyle squad.
Frankie Dettori is set to have his last ride in the Derby aboard the John and Thady Gosden-trained Arrest, an impressive winner of the Chester Vase on his seasonal bow while Dante winner The Foxes is in contention for Andrew Balding.
York second White Birch reopposes for John Murphy, Jessica Harrington’s Leopardstown Derby Trial winner Sprewell and the Donnacha O’Brien-trained Alder round out the Irish hopefuls.
Charlie Johnston’s 2000 Guineas fifth Dubai Mile is set to be joined by stablemate Dear My Friend, who was eighth in the Dante, with Ralph Beckett’s unbeaten Artistic Star, the Roger Varian-trained King Of Steel and Waipiro for Ed Walker the other candidates.
Frankie Dettori will lay a wreath at the statue of Lester Piggott on Derby day, as Epsom also permanently renames a race in memory of one of the sport’s most decorated jockeys.
Piggott, who died last year aged 86, won the Derby a record nine times and Epsom has announced that each year moving forward a member of the weighing room will lay a wreath in the colours of Piggott’s 1970 Derby hero Nijinsky at the statue of the rider situated on the Queen Elizabeth II Stand lawn.
Dettori will take this year’s wreath-laying duties as he makes his final appearance on Derby day before retirement, while the track has also renamed the £75,000 10-furlong handicap staged on Saturday as the Lester Piggott Handicap Stakes.
Dettori – who had a mural commemorating his Derby win on Golden Horn commissioned by Epsom prior to the track’s opening meeting of the season – classed Piggott both as a good friend and hero and is honoured to become the first jockey to lay the annual wreath.
He said: “It is an honour to be asked to lay a wreath at Lester’s statue on Derby day. He was a hero of mine who then became a good friend and it’s impossible to measure the impact he had on me, both as a person and a jockey throughout my life.
“I’m sure it will be a poignant and emotional moment for many reasons and I’m grateful to Epsom Downs for inviting me to lead this year’s tributes to Lester on my last Derby day as a jockey.”
Brian Finch, chair of Epsom racecourse, added: “For so many of us, Lester Piggott is synonymous with the Derby and Epsom Downs like no other jockey before or since.
“Lester sadly passed away just six days before the Derby in 2022 and we ran the Derby in his memory.
“For such a distinguished figure in the long history of the Derby and with his unprecedented achievements unlikely to be matched, we felt it was important to establish a permanent annual commemoration and celebration of Lester’s life on Derby day.
“I would like to thank Frankie Dettori for agreeing to lay the wreath in Lester’s memory this year ahead of his final ride in the Betfred Derby and I hope the Betfred Lester Piggott Handicap will provide an exciting finish of which Lester would have been proud.”
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