by Magnat

The third meeting of the season will be held next Sunday 30th January commencing at 1.30pm. It will be an all-trot ten race card, consisting exclusively of the U*Bet championship semi-finals reserved for Swedish trotters. All races will be over the short 2,140m distance. This championship continues the competition which commenced in Swedish racecourses between a number of these horses. The horse ages range from as young as 6 years to veterans of 16 years.

Although we will not have any Premier class semi-finals, the Copper Class horses and those in the Gold Class enter this championship, with three semi-finals for each class. Three horses qualify from each semi-final for the final. The Gold class semi-finals include a number of popular horses such as Gentle Way, Hudson Blue, Lover Boy Index, Mad Hatter, Mcollie, Quick Cape, Race Ball and many others. They also include all the horses which are scheduled to debut in this meeting, i.e. Jigsaw, Lonshults Anders, Peasant Gallant, Prince Scorpio, Rambo Lambo, Soren Sufflor, Spunk, and Winner Farming.

There are then two semi-finals for each of the Bronze and Silver classes, with five trotters from each qualifying for the final. Among the in-form horses in the Silver class races, we find the heats’ winners and runners up, Bankir Zon, Energy Launcher, Ironbar, Matador Knick, Prince Brilliance and Vera L.H.

A set of balanced semi-finals is anticipated, with room for surprises, making predictions a difficult task.

Last meeting
In the last meeting, we had various interesting races for all trotting classes, together with a flat race for Class A horses.
The highlight of the day was the Premier Class race where a number of Swedish horses which are scheduled to meet again in the U*Bet championship Premier final in a couple of weeks’ time showed off their fine form. The race resulted in an impressive win for twelve-year old Think Yatzee which increased its speed in the last 500 metres to end up winning comfortably from the other Swedes Flash Coger, newcomer Affe Fager and Arnie Sensation. Thus, Think Yatzee has exceeded Euro11,000 in total prize-money won here in Malta.

The first Gold Class race was won by French newcomer Nobel Pasmarick, thanks to its excellent sprint down the final straight to beat L’Un des Olivettes, Big Hit and other newcomer Notre Allegro. French veteran Kojak d’Isques also powered to the lead in the last hundred metres or so to finish the second race brilliantly and win from Count of Life, Lucky d’Hercla and Intrus des Rioults.

The flat race was contested by six horses over a short 1,250m distance. In the last third of the race, Irish horse Tarruji overtook British mare Minnow and went on to win from the said Minnow and fellow Irish thoroughbred Lordswood.

The other winners were Jeans de Bannes (Copper class), Marchallah, Notre Bellouet and High Speed Night in the Bronze class races as well as Kalipso Pierji and Geronimos Cadillac in the Silver class.

Other news
Various doping test results have recently been received by the Malta Racing Club, referring to winners and placing horses in the SECF championships held last December. We are pleased to note that they were all negative. Well done to the owners of all these horses. May the percentage of negative doping test results continue to increase, thus continuing to enhance the anti-doping and fair play culture in Maltese horse-racing.

We also note with satisfaction that after receiving a Gold Award in the MOC Awards 2010, the team of Maltese drivers which won last year’s MHRU Mediterranean Drivers’ Trotting Championship, i.e. Alan Agius, George Attard, Charles Camilleri, Carl Caruana, France Cassar and Tony Demanuele, has now been nominated as one of the five finalists for the Team of the Year Award at the SportMalta Awards.

This award ceremony will be held next Saturday evening 29th January, at the Mediterranean Conference Centre. This team has really made Malta proud with their performance in this international competition and thoroughly deserve this further nomination. We wish them all the best next Saturday.

Final word
I walked through Racecourse Street during last Sunday’s meeting and was struck with the atmosphere there at that time. Entering the street from the Qormi side, I can see a full car-park and cars parked in the other available spaces.

Once inside the street, I hear the chattering of people’s voices inside the racetrack and the sound of horse hooves as horses do their warming up. I am passed by a shining trotter (led by a handler and its driver already in the sulky) walking slowly to the racehorse entrance prior to competing in its race. The bars are open and men sit outside, drinking coffee or tea and discussing the races.

Coming from the direction of the race-course exit, two horses whose race has just finished and in need of a good wash are slowly making their way to their stables with sulky still attached. Another horse, well-groomed and just washed after its race is taken out for a restoring walk by its handler; I stop to speak to the handler who kindly gives me a run-down of the horse’s race.

All stables are open; in some I can see horses being prepared for the races, in others horses being inspected or washed after a race, in some cases, people simply sitting outside discussing horse-related matters. Two drivers wearing their multi-coloured driving suits sip tea from long glasses outside a stable.

The bars (replete with horseracing pictures) and other buildings outside the racecourse having a top floor overlooking the race-course are full of people watching the races from there and some are following the races from behind the racecourse’s side-gates.

Two youths who had come out of the racecourse for an errand run in as the commentator announces that the next race will start in two minutes.

A glimpse of the horse-racing environment, of people and of horses … one of the images of Malta on a Sunday afternoon.

We wish you all another exciting meeting next Sunday.