Kiwis Prepare for Horse of Year Awards
- Tuesday, 13 August 2002 00:00
The annual Mercedes Racing Awards will be staged at Ellerslie Racecourse's Convention Centre on Friday night before a packed audience as the time comes to recognise the achievements of the New Zealand thoroughbred industry participants - horse and human- during the 2001-2002 season.
The Sunline (NZ) camp is sure to again be to the fore just as they were at the Australian Horse Of The Year awards earlier this month.
Sunline has been New Zealand's Champion Horse Of The Year for the past three seasons and she is certainly a big chance to make it four in a row with the stiffest competition coming from the Caulfield-Melbourne Cups winner Ethereal (NZ).
The two queens of the turf also face each other in the weight-for-age category while their respective dams Romanee Conti (Ethereal) and Songline (Sunline) are among three finalists for the Mercedes Broodmare Of The Year title.
Sunline is also a finalist in the sprinter-miler section while her breeders, Michael Martin and Susan Archer, are again finalists in the Breeder category.
Sunline's trainers Trevor and Stephen McKee are contenders for the Trainer title while her owners are also in line for the Owner-Of-The-Year trophy.
Ethereal is the hot favourite to take out the Champion Stayers' award while her trainer, Sheila Laxon, has a nomination for Trainer Of The Year.
Ethereal's owner-breeders, Peter and Philip Vela, are also among the finalists for the Owner Of The Year and Breeder Of The Year categories.
The Vela-bred Vapour Trail (NZ) will also be honoured on the night as the New Zealand Bloodstock Filly Of The Year title winner and she is a finalist in the Three-Year-Old section.
MERCEDES THOROUGHBRED RACING AWARDS 2002 FINALISTS
DEWAR STALLION
ZABEEL
MERCEDES BROOD MARE
HONEYMOON EXPRESS dam of Carnegie Express
ROMANEE CONTI dam of Ethereal
SONGLINE dam of Sunline
MERCEDES JOURNALIST
DAVE BRADFORD
MIKE DILLON
BARRY LICHTER
PHILLIP QUAY
MERCEDES BROADCASTER
ADRIAN CLARK
TONY LEE
ANDRE NEILL
LUKE RADICH
DUNSTAN TRAINER
PAUL HARRIS
SHEILA LAXON
BRUCE MARSH
STEPHEN McKEE & TREVOR McKEE ONZM
GRAEME ROGERSON & STEPHEN AUTRIDGE
ALLAN SHARROCK
JOHN WHEELER
MERCEDES CHAMPION JUMPER
CHIBULI
CRAFTY DANCER
GOLDEN FLARE
ST STEVEN
MERCEDES CHAMPION SPRINTER/MILER
HONOR BOUND
SOUND THE ALARM
SUNLINE
VINAKA
MERCEDES CHAMPION STAYER
CYCLADES
ETHEREAL
PRIZED GEM
NEW ZEALAND BLOODSTOCK FILLY OF THE YEAR
VAPOUR TRAIL
McBEATH APPRENTICE JOCKEY
MICHAEL WALKER
GROSVENOR STALLION
VOLKSRAAD
MERCEDES BREEDER
SUSAN ARCHER & MICHAEL MARTIN
GARRY CHITTICK
PETER VELA ONZM & PHILIP VELA
TOM WILLIAMS
MERCEDES CHAMPION WEIGHT-FOR-AGE PERFORMER
CINDER BELLA
ETHEREAL
LA BELLA DAMA
SUNLINE
MERCEDES CHAMPION TWO YEAR OLD
DANCEINTHESUN
DANROAD
GROUT
LADY DEHERE
MERCEDES CHAMPION THREE YEAR OLD
FINAL DESTINATION
LEICA GUV
SIXTY SECONDS
VAPOUR TRAIL
VINAKA
MERCEDES JOCKEY OF THE YEAR
LANCE O'SULLIVAN
SCOTT SEAMER
MICHAEL WALKER
MERCEDES JUMPS JOCKEY
CLAYTON CHIPPERFIELD
JONATHAN RIDDELL
CRAIG THORNTON
MERCEDES AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION IN RACING EXCELLENCE
NO FINALISTS
MERCEDES OWNER
RAY COUPLAND
THAYNE GREEN, HELEN LUSTY & TREVOR McKEE ONZM
DON PYE & WENDY PYE MBE
NOEL & RON STANLEY
PETER VELA ONZM & PHILIP VELA
MERCEDES HORSE OF THE YEAR
NO FINALISTS
NEW ZEALAND HORSE OF THE YEAR (1990-2001)
2001 Sunline (NZ)
2000 Sunline (NZ)
1999 Sunline (NZ)
1998 Tycoon Lil (Aus)
1997 OReilly (NZ)
1996 Our Maizcay (Aus)
1995 Rough Habit (NZ)
1994 The Phantom (NZ)
1993 Vendercross (NZ)
1992 Rough Habit (NZ)
1991 Surfers Paradise (NZ)
1990 Horlicks (NZ)
PICS - Quentin Lang.
Media Release - NZTM
Campin's Hero Close to Resuming
- Monday, 12 August 2002 00:00
"I will take advantage of the drop-back clause with him to run in that race at Tauranga," owner-trainer Jim Campin said.
"He's a nine-year-old now and we will see how he runs in that race at Tauranga before setting any ambitious plans for him," Campin said.
Hero finished fourth in a 1000m trial at Te Teko last week and will have another trial at Cambridge next week.
Campin saddled up two winners at Te Rapa on Saturday - Evergreen and Spellbound.
Media Release - TNZ
McKee's Millennium a Good Bet at Te Rapa
- Friday, 09 August 2002 00:00
Grant Cooksley is to ride Millennium who finished a strong second at his last start in the Opunake Cup behind Irish Rover.
Millennium's form leading up to the race has been solid overall. He was also second at Tauranga on June 2 behind With Drawn.
Other runners for the McKees at Te Rapa on Saturday are Split The Bank (race five) and Al Sheba (race nine). These horses will also be ridden by Grant Cooksley.
Split The Bank is stepping up in distance and will find the 1600m more to her liking.
Al Sheba will be improved with her last-start outing at Te Rapa on July 27 as that was her first outing since November.
Meanwhile, the all clear has been given for champion mare Sunline to line up in the $150,000 Mudgway Partsworld Stakes (1400m) at Hastings on August 24.
Media Release - TNZ
Citra's Prince Back to Race in New Zealand
- Monday, 12 August 2002 00:00
Owned by Matata (Whakatane) identity Sam Seamark, the now 6 year old gelding, who has won the G3 VATC Coongy Handicap and been placed in the Queensland Derby and Feehan Stakes (behind Sunline) since finishing 6th in Hades' NZ Derby in his last New Zealand start, has rejoined the Northwood Farm stable of Phil Stevens in Matamata.
Purchased by Stevens for Seamark from Ann & Ken Browne as a two year old, Citra's Prince was trained in Australia by former Marcus Oldham College graduate Cliff Brown after Seamark leased a 50% share to Australian interests.
Stevens, who was involved in the early education of top gallopers Castletown, Corndale and Cool Reception, holds the bay gelding in high regard.
"He is a very smart horse, and although having won only 4 races, his last 3 starts have included the Brisbane Cup, O'Shea Stakes and Caloundra Cup, which is a strong indication of the ability he has", Stevens told Thoroughbred NEWS.
Stevens plans to give the gelding a freshen up, and use a slow build up to prepare him for some of the late summer and autumn features which may include the Marton Cup, a race that the stable won in consecutive years with Esprit de Corps (Centro).
Another horse in the stable that Stevens has high hopes for is the Australian bred filly Blu Rapture (Blu Tusmani).
"She had two starts at two, running second on debut before beating Chit Chat at Counties", said Stevens of the filly that he had to late scratch on the morning of the Matamata Breeders Stakes.
"We did everything we could to get her to the race [Breeders Stakes] as it was the owners dream to have a runner - however x-rays revealed pedal bone osteitis and she underwent surgery to rectify the problem".
The facilities at Stevens' Matamata property include a 600 metre sand track which has proved essential in the recovery of the promising filly and the plan is to trial her at Cambridge on August 20 in readiness for a start in the Sideline Bar Hawke's Bay Guineas.
PICS - Quentin Lang.
Media Release - TNZ
Blue Bloods Impress in New Zealand Trials
- Thursday, 08 August 2002 00:00
There is a big gap between an 800 metre catchweight heat and the summer classic, but Lafleur and Diamond Like showed enough to encourage hopes that they can live up to their breeding.
Despite having done little more than three-quarter pace in her training to date, Diamond Like rose to the occasion to beat Lafleur by three-quarters of a length.
Lafleur likewise has not been pressured and more than pleased her trainer Jim Gibbs with both her relaxed demeanour and the ability she showed.
Cambridge Stud-owned and bred Diamond Like is out of the former high class race filly Tristalove who was trained by Dave and Paul O'Sullivan to win the Matamata Breeders' Stakes before she transferred to Australia where she won the AJC Sires' Produce Stakes and Australasian Oaks.
Paul O'Sullivan trains Diamond Like, who is a sister to the recently retired high class Australian colt Viking Ruler.
Lafleur is owned by Peter and Philip Vela, who bred her from Desert Lily, a Green Desert daughter of the high class European sprinter Habibti, a half-sister to legendary broodmare Eight Carat.
Media Release - TNZ
Te Rapa Double for Campin and McNab
- Saturday, 10 August 2002 00:00
Evergreen took her record to three wins from six starts with another of her all-the-way displays in the Te Atatu Farm 1200.
Although she had a number of rivals lined up behind her to challenge 200 metres out, she held them all at bay comfortably.
Spellbound justified her strong support with an impressive debut effort in the Huntly Honda Ginger Molloy 1200.
The four-year-old Deputy Governor mare had attracted a big following with a trial win at Te Awamutu last month.
Media Release - TNZ
Sunline to Resume at Hastings
- Thursday, 08 August 2002 00:00
"Naturally we are delighted to have her resuming here", McGifford said.
"The weather has cleared and with 2 1/2 weeks to the race we are confident that the track will be ideal", he said.
It is expected that the rail will be in its true position, thus providing footing that has not been used since the May 11 racemeeting.
Trainer Trevor McKee was also pleased to hear of the improved state of the Hastings track following the cancellation of last Thursday's meeting due to heavy rain.
"Hastings is our preferred choice, but we will be guided by the weather in the week leading up to the race", said McKee from his Takanini training complex.
Due to the historically fickle spring weather patterns, Sunline will also be nominated for 1400 metre events in Sydney and Melbourne as a possible alternative.
"We don't want to start her on a bog track like we did last year as it did tend to knock her a bit - and I don't think she likes it wet like she used to - they get a bit older and craftier", McKee said.
In her last three New Zealand race starts at Pukekohe and Te Rapa, Sunline has drawn huge crowds and with 12 individual Group One winners amongst the 30 nominations for the $150,000 feature, John McGifford will be smiling for some time.
PICS - Quentin Lang.
Media Release - TNZ
Eric The Bee-rilliant in Grand National
- Saturday, 10 August 2002 00:00
The 11-year-old had won the Grand National Hurdles four years ago and was foiled by only Lucky Tip from repeating in that race last Wednesday.
But today he adjusted brilliantly to the bigger fences in the hands of Jonathan Riddell to put in a late surge that took him to a comfortable win over Currency and Sir Avion.
Topweight and favourite Silver Archer was the only other finisher, virtually pulled up after almost dislodging rider Finbarr Leahy 1200 metres from the finish.
Willie Tee lost Shoji Saki with a round to go, while Kinkaroo and Reon Aukett also parted company.
Media Release - TNZ
Trackwork Fatality at Matamata
- Thursday, 08 August 2002 00:00
It is believed that the male rider died soon after being crushed by his mount when it reared over backwards. His name will be released once next of kin have been notified.
Media Release - TNZ