View Full Version : Melbourne Cup 2003
Tuesday, 19 August 2003: Dual Group One winner Carnegie Express starts his spring campaign at Randwick on Saturday with trainer David Payne revealing that his ultimate target is the Melbourne Cup.
Payne tells Chris Scholtz that past fitness problems with Carnegie Express are behind him and he is looking forward to the stayer leading the strong team he is preparing for the spring.
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audio story (http://www.aapracingandsports.com.au/cms/cmspopnews.asp?NID=26671#audio)
Wednesday, 20 August 2003: Spring carnival entries Falbrav, Indian Creek and Jardine’s Lookout performed with mixed results in major Group races at York in England on Tuesday.
Falbrav added the Juddmonte International to his fine Group One record, raising hopes that he may travel to Australia for the W.S. Cox Plate in October.
Falbrav’s two length win made him the inaugural winner of the Brithsh Horseracing Board’s Middle Distance Championship and earned a 250,000 pounds bonus for his Italian and Japanese owners.
Trained by Luca Cumani, Falbrav has now won six Group One events including the Japan Cup, Eclispe Stakes and Prix d’Ispahan and would be a tremendous international drawcard for the $3 million Cox Plate at Moonee Valley on October 25.
However Cumani suggested with retirement to stud for Falbrav due at the end of the year his program may now be directed towards the Breeders Cup Turf followed by a final career start in the Hong Kong International Cup in December.
Another immediate option is next month’s Irish Champion Stakes.
Another Cox Plate entry Indian Creek finished fifth to Falbrav.
Melbourne Cup entry Jardine’s Lookout was only fifth to Bollin Eric in the G3 Lonsdale Stakes over two miles but trainer Alan Jarvis remains keen on another Australian assault.
A big contingent of Melbourne Cup entries will contest the Ebor Handicap over 14 furlongs at York on Wednesday while Dubai World Cup winner Moon Ballad, a Godolphin entry for the Cox Plate, will start in the Celebration Mile at Goodwood on Saturday.
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Handy Harry
10-09-2003, 12:01
By Andrew Eddy
September 10, 2003
Four of Europe's leading stables are considering tackling the world's most famous race - the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe - in Paris next month before sending their contenders to Australia to attempt a unique double by winning the Melbourne Cup.
The stables of Aidan O'Brien, Dermot Weld, Godolphin and Marcus Tregoning indicated yesterday, when paying up for their horses for the Melbourne Cup by the first declaration deadline, that they were keeping an open mind on a double that no horse had achieved, said Racing Victoria Ltd's equine business development manager, Mark Player.
"It happens only every four or five years that the dates fall this way but it is possible for a horse to race in the Arc, go into quarantine, come to Melbourne and then be out of quarantine by cup morning," Player said.
"Obviously, we'd love them to bypass the Arc and be here for the Caulfield Cup as well.
"But as the trainers have the Arc high up in their preference, it would be a great result to see them come for the Melbourne Cup, as well.
"It is not an impossible task and if it is ever going to be done, these trainers are the ones capable of achieving it."
The horses concerned are highly ranked as far as the Melbourne Cup is concerned. They are cup topweight Vinnie Roe (Weld), second topweight Mubtaker (Tregoning), third topweight Black Sam Bellamy (O'Brien) and cup favourite Mamool (Godolphin's Saaed Bin Suroor).
Oscar Schindler ran favourite when unplaced in the 1996 Melbourne Cup, won by Saintly, after finishing third in the Arc.
A total of 144 horses from an original entry of 283 were left in the race for the Melbourne Cup after first declarations yesterday. Of those, 22 are international entries, including last year's winner, Media Puzzle.
There were 13 international entries among the 124 remaining in the Caulfield Cup. Eight of the 69 paid up for the Cox Plate are trained overseas, including the highly rated pair Falbrav and Moon Ballad.
The Godolphin team, still searching for its first Australian group 1 victory, appears certain to be small this year, with just four horses from the original entry of eight being paid up yesterday.
Godolphin paid the first declaration for Mamool, Millstreet and Beekeeper for the Caulfield and Melbourne cups, with Dubai World Cup winner Moon Ballad the stable's sole Cox Plate hope.
The curse that plagued last season's flying two-year-old Murphy's Blu Boy has continued, with news yesterday that the colt will miss the entire spring carnival to have a throat operation.
The colt, who won his first four starts earlier this year by a total of 30 lengths, is rated a 70 per cent chance of making a full recovery from the problem, which laid him low last month.
Trainer Mick Hicks, from Goodiwindi, said: "He's got a similar problem to what roarers get and he'll need an operation to tie back a flap in his throat."
Hicks sold a 49 per cent share in the colt last season for a reported $700,000 but the horse has started only once since the sale for a second place in a Blue Diamond Stakes prelude.
This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/09/09/1062902054514.html
Handy Harry
11-09-2003, 08:32
The current favourite for the Melbourne Cup, Godolphin's Mamool, is on target for one more run before entering quarantine for Australia.
Godolphin's Simon Crisford advised that Mamool is now unlikely to run in the Group One Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp on October 5, but is being targeted for the Group One 41st, Preis Von Europa.
The Preis Von Europa which is run over 2400m for three-year-olds and up, will be run on September 28 in Cologne and Mamool will then enter quarantine on October 1st.
Mamool, a four-year-old is by IN THE WINGS from GENOVEFA (USA) (WOODMAN (USA)) and he's won five races ranging from 1600m up to 3200m on slow and good to firm ground.
By: Jo Adams - Thursday, 11 September 2003
Handy Harry
11-09-2003, 08:36
Story on racingpost.co.uk -
Media Puzzle ruled out for the season
MEDIA PUZZLE, winner of the 2002 Tooheys New Melbourne Cup, has been retired for the season, trainer Dermot Weld has revealed.
The six-year-old has not been seen on the track since that win last November as he suffered an injury while trainingin Dubai over the winter.
Media Puzzle had been entered for Saturday's Irish Field St Leger at The Curragh and another crack at the Melbourne Cup on November 4 had been on the cards.
"The horse is sound but I am not happy with him, and we'll keep him for next year," explained Weld.
Reply
Recommend Message 2 of 14 in Discussion
From: The Carnegie Express Sent: 10/09/2003 8:35 AM
I wonder how many part time punters made the dash and threw money on fixed odds when NSW TAB offered them at $21?
From: imaufo Sent: 10/09/2003 11:10 AM
Nice little earn for the TAB.
From: __eraser_ Sent: 10/09/2003 11:18 AM
So true. I wonder who they will do it with next year.
From: cady Sent: 10/09/2003 11:26 AM
Let's be honest though - anyone who backed a horse that had serisouly broken down earlier this year to win a race in which he'd have to carry far more weight than last year needs his head read...
From: mel¡šša Sent: 10/09/2003 11:29 AM
I'm not ashamed to admit I backed him as soon as markets opened, didn't have much but enough for an interest, same as I do every year on Dermot's horses. Had some fun for my investment, so that's the main thing! I had some on Vinnie too, and knew beforehand that the Arc is the aim, but I'm prepared to risk/lose the outlay on the offchance it comes off!
From: Knight1609 Sent: 10/09/2003 11:48 AM
So mel did you get the 150-1 Media Puzzle last year?? well done if you did
I had something on him to this year as a just in case, saver type of investment.
I have put more on a few others which I liked but no way you'd get 20s about him on the day
From: Luskin_Star© Sent: 10/09/2003 11:50 AM
It appears that everyone is being bold enough to believe Dermott is telling the truth. Following past experiences, I thought one should always question what comes from Dermott's mouth.
From: mel¡šša Sent: 10/09/2003 11:52 AM
Sure did Knight, last years collect paid for the next 5-10 years of early bets on the Wizard's entries!
I also always pick a couple of long rangers for the Cups/Cox Plate, as you save, for a saver just in case, and the winners have more than paid for the non-winners, so I can't complain!
From: vorogue Sent: 10/09/2003 4:45 PM
the NSWTAB had originally laid punters to lose $1 million at the 20's but then extended it "due to popular demand" and laid it to the tune of $2 million, nice big sling for one glen robbins courtesy of the TAB ? (he made them $100k)
From: Knight1609 Sent: 10/09/2003 4:53 PM
Hope that's not Glen Robbins of Uncle Arthur fame in which the 20-1 was way overs because he was only offering 10-1 for Aunty Dawn.......LOL
From: StylishCentury Sent: 10/09/2003 4:57 PM
I think Munsie is looking through the TAB human resource sheet to see who this Robbins imposter is.
You gotta love how these bookies can lay the right horses without any inside information.
From: imaufo Sent: 10/09/2003 5:15 PM
Has anybody done the sums on these early markets and figured out the market percentage that the TAB is betting to?
From: Rodent™ Sent: 11/09/2003 4:10 AM
Ima, I'm not sure anyone can count that high.
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By Craig Young
September 11, 2003
Last year's Melbourne Cup winner, Media Puzzle, won't run in the nation-stopper this year: the stayer was ruled out yesterday and it coincided with money for a stablemate named In Time's Eye.
The biggest winner from the withdrawal of Media Puzzle because of injury is TAB Ltd, which took a promotional gamble against the Dermot Weld-trained galloper when offering punters $21 about the horse several weeks ago.
"We originally planned to lay it to lose $1 million but it was that popular, and the odds were snapped up that quick, we continued to lay it for another 15 minutes," TAB Ltd spokesman Glen Munsie said yesterday.
Munsie said it was the third such promotion in the past three years, adding that "other bookmakers were betting $12 and $13 at the time".
TAB Ltd took just over $50,000 from punters betting on Media Puzzle and, under the "all-in system", there will be no refunds.
"There are plenty of people that now have grossly inflated odds about other runners in the Melbourne Cup," Munsie said, pointing out those punters can't be expected to take a deduction on the horse they've backed.
"Two years ago the AJC Australian Derby winner, Universal Prince, was posted favourite for the Melbourne Cup when first markets went up and he was a stewards' scratching on the morning of the race.
"No other bookmaker has run such a promotion, it is not our fault that something has happened to the horse.
"When original nominations for the Melbourne Cup were taken there were in excess of 360 nominations, and on cup day there will be only 24 runners."
Leading Sydney bookmaker Colin Tidy's horsebet.com.au reported that punters had invested around $3000 on Media Puzzle, which wasn't unusual.
"We don't usually lay the overseas horses heavily until they go into quarantine, which is next Monday," Tidy's spokesman Mark Morrisey said.
"We may lay one heavily now and again but it is usually stable inspired, they know it is coming, and there was good money around the country for In Time's Eye yesterday. We laid a bet of $200,000 to $5000 and the horse is now into $16 with us.
"Godolphin are reported to be buying the horse and the mail is he will be racing under their name in the cup."
Godolphin, the world's most powerful training operation, which has finished second and third in the Melbourne Cup, has the new favourite for the race, Mamool.
Tidy's team is offering $10 while TAB Ltd is betting $11 with Munsie saying; "It has to get through another run in Germany later this month."
Meanwhile, former premier- ship-winning jockey Larry Cassidy returned to the winner's circle at Canterbury yesterday, although the victory was tempered after Racing NSW stewards fined him $200.
Having recently returned from a 17-month riding stint in Singapore and Malaysia, Cassidy is having trouble with weight, which led to the penalty. Cassidy failed to make the 53 kilograms on four horses at Canterbury and had to be replaced.
But he had more luck in the Cabe Group Handicap aboard Ashworth, which scored in style.
"It's much warmer in Singapore, much cooler in Sydney," Cassidy said. "That's probably why I'm struggling with my weight but I'm getting fitter."
Cassidy rode almost 80 winners while away, including a couple of Singapore derbies and a derby trial which rank among the republic's most prized thoroughbred events.
Heavyweight jockey Justin Sheehan was fined $500 after returning a kilogram overweight when finishing second on Magic Marvo in the Winning Edge Presentations Handicap.
Meanwhile, Tom Waterhouse, who was running his father Robbie's bookmaking stand at Canterbury yesterday, was spoken to by stewards following the final race.
Stewards expressed concerns to Waterhouse in regard to his late semaphoring of prices for the opening race. Stewards said he was also slow in putting up odds at last Thursday's Wyong Gold Cup meeting. No action was taken.
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/09/10/1063191456968.html
September 22, 2003
Trainer Lee Freedman declared Caulfield Cup favourite Mummify still had "plenty of improvement" to come after giving him his fourth win in the group 1 Underwood Stakes, 1800m, at Caulfield yesterday.
"He's not there yet but he's going well," Freedman said. "He's looking the goods and I thought he'd improve today.
"He's an exciting stayer."
Ridden by Danny Nikolic, Mummify was always in a forward position and put the pressure on rounding the home turn when he loomed up to challenge the leaders Ain't Seen Nothin' and Crianca.
He took the lead just after straightening and held off Grey Song to score by a long neck, with Ain't Seen Nothin' fighting on bravely a neck away third.
Freedman said Mummify would follow a similar path to Paris Lane which won the Caulfield Cup for him in 1994.
"He will now go to the Turnbull and might even go to the Yalumba as well, just as Paris Lane did," Freedman said.
"He is such a gross horse."
Mummify cost $41,000 at the Adelaide Magic Millions Yearling sales and now has won more than $877,000 with four wins from 19 starts.
The gelding emerged as a top staying three-year-old last season when he finished third to Clangalang and Strasbourg in the AJC Derby before winning the SAJC Derby in May.
"He's a genuine staying horse and today when they cranked up the pace up front it suited him," Freedman said.
Last year the champion Northerly became the first horse since Tristarc (1985) to complete the Underwood Stakes-Caulfield Cup double.
Jeune (1994), the sire of Mummify, was the last horse to win both the Underwood and Melbourne Cup in the same season.
Mummify's dam, Cleopatra's Girl, is a daughter of 1986 Melbourne Cup winner At Talaq which was second to Mr Lomondy in the 1986 Caulfield Cup.
Freedman's other Underwood Stakes winners were Runyon (1993), Sharscay (1995) and Always Aloof (1997), which gave Nikolic his first win in the race.
Trainer Tom Hughes was delighted with the second-up performance of Grey Song which came from last in the 10-horse field to grab second place.
The hard luck story of the race was Ain't Seen Nothin' which sprung a plate in the race.
Bart Cummings said he would order a veterinary examination of Helenus after he beat only one horse home. The Victoria Derby winner was having his first start for Cummings and again over-raced badly.
Rose Archway, whose career has been thwarted by an illness, landed her first win since the 2001 AJC Australian Oaks in yesterday's $100,000 Dubai International Racing Carnival Handicap, 2000m, at Caulfield.
The six-year-old daughter of Archway suffered from a stomach complaint and was continually scouring. However, she put all that behind her with a well-deserved victory and emerged as a lightweight hope in the Caulfield Cup.
Rose Archway has 49kg in both the Caulfield and the Melbourne cups. Heath Conners, son of trainer Clarry Conners yesterday rated the mare a lightweight chance in the $2.5 million Caulfield Cup, 2400m, on October 18.
"Why not," he said. "She has great legs and a huge heart."
Aided by the inside barrier, Rose Archway was in the first four throughout and wore down race leader Another Warrior to score by a half length with Vicksburg running on strongly to finish a long neck away, third.
The mare gave leading jockey Damien Oliver a winning double, having earlier scored on Gold Class in the Nad Al Sheba Club Classic, 1200m.
AAP
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/09/21/1064082873767.html
Godolphin's Mamool showed he is well on target for November's Melbourne Cup with a win in the Group One 1 Preis Von Europa (2400m) at Cologne in Germany on Sunday.
It was Mamool's second Group One 1 success in Germany in the past three weeks, following his win in the Grosser Bugatti Preis (2400m) at Baden-Baden earlier this month, when he beat Aidan O'Brien's Black Sam Bellamy.
Ridden by Godolphin's leading rider Frankie Dettori, Mamool, who started a 2/5 favourite, was in the lead early and then settled behind Well Made at the half-way stage.
Mamool regained the advantage 400m from home and out gunned his rivals to win by a length and a quarter from Albanova (George Duffield) with Well Made (Andreas Suborics) a short-head away third.
They ran 2.35.20 for the 2400m on a track rated as soft.
Godolphin trainer Saeed bin Suroor has now confirmed that the four-year-old will head to Flemington for the Melbourne Cup this year.
After his win in the Grosser Bugatti Preis, Dettori said: "I’ve always liked him. The ground was completely wrong for him when he was beaten in last year’s Deutsches Derby. (He finished 5th on a heavy track) He’s much more mature now. The Ascot Gold Cup was too far for him but he has no problem with a mile and three-quarters or two miles."
After yesterday's win the Godolphin site quoted bin Suroor as saying: "It is really great - this is the ninth Group/Grade One success of the year for Godolphin and the 104th in all. Mamool is a very classy and brave horse and we will now send him to Australia to run in the Melbourne Cup. Frankie was very pleased and gave him a good ride."
Mamool by In The Wings from Genovefa (USA)(Woodman (USA)), has had 14 starts for six wins ranging from 1600m to 3200m, on tracks rated as Soft to Good to Firm
By: Jo Adams , racenet. - Monday, 29 September 2003
Mamool freshens up for cup with winning splash in Cologne
By Darren Prendergast
September 30, 2003
There is already a cosmopolitan feel about Melbourne's spring with the Godolphin-trained Mamool confirming its favouritism for the Melbourne Cup after victory in Germany on Sunday, while the Dermot Weld stable has indicated that In Time's Eye will attempt to qualify for Australia's great race through the Caulfield Cup.
"In many respects the Caulfield Cup is more of an objective than the Melbourne Cup," Weld's son Mark, who accompanied Media Puzzle and Vinnie Roe to Australia last year, told Irish-Racing.com.
"It is a mile and a half [2400m], which will be right up his alley, whereas the Melbourne Cup is two miles [3200m]."
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In the running: Mamool leading at Royal Ascot with Frankie Dettori on board. Photo: wires
In Time's Eye is scheduled to arrive in Melbourne today with travelling companion One More Round, English-trained stayer Hugs Dancer and Cox Plate-bound South African mare Paraca.
Dermot Weld, who was in the US to watch Dimitrova win a group 1 race at Belmont on Sunday, told British press the Caulfield Cup, on October 18, was likely to be In Time's Eye's first target in Australia.
The two-time Melbourne Cup-winning Irish master added a confusing spin to his plans by saying: "It's not certain that he will run in that race, as he will be entered for a few other races that same week. Once he finishes in the first five in a race over the required distance we will be in business as far as the Melbourne Cup is concerned."
There are no such queries with Mamool, which stormed to victory in the Preis von Europa to claim its second group 1 win in three weeks at Cologne. It was the five-year-old's final race start before entering quarantine in England next week to prepare for its trip to Australia.
Mamool, which was at the centre of a nationwide betting plunge on the cup last Friday, remains a clear favourite for the staying classic at Flemington on November 4. It is due to arrive in Melbourne on October 21 and remain in quarantine at Sandown until the morning of the Melbourne Cup.
Jockey Frankie Dettori is confident Mamool, which has 55.5kg in the Melbourne Cup, has what it takes to give Godolphin its first success in the nation-stopper.
"We'll now go to the Melbourne Cup, but the thing you have to remember is that it's a handicap and so the best horse in the race doesn't always win," Dettori said. "Even so, he's as good a horse as I've had for the race in a while."
New Zealand trainer Mark Walker has booked Melbourne Cup-winning jockey Kerrin McEvoy to partner Distinctly Secret during its Melbourne spring campaign.
Walker moved swiftly to secure McEvoy after first-choice Damien Oliver was unable to commit to riding the Kelt Capital Stakes winner in the Caulfield Cup.
McEvoy will ride Distinctly Secret in the group 1 Yalumba Stakes at Caulfield on Saturday week and the Caulfield Cup, for which the five-year-old is on the second line of betting at $9 with Grand Armee. Oliver is committed to riding Cox Plate runner-up Defier in the Yalumba Stakes.
His Caulfield Cup plans are expected to hinge on Weld's decision with In Time's Eye. Oliver has first refusal on the Gai Waterhouse-trained Sunday Joy, which runs in the Turnbull Stakes on Saturday, for the Caulfield Cup. Patrick Payne, who has also bid for the ride on In Time's Eye, will partner the Bart Cummings-trained Strasbourg in the Turnbull.
Melbourne apprentice Craig Newitt, Strasbourg's rider in its two runs this preparation, has picked up the ride on the Cummings-trained My Chanticleer in the group 1 Metropolitan at Randwick on Monday. My Chanticleer will contest the Illawarra Cup at Kembla today.
Fellow Melbourne apprentice Matt Pumpa is to ride the John Hawkes-trained lightweight Forum Floozie in the group 1 Epsom Handicap at Randwick on Saturday.
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/09/29/1064819874240.html
:eek: :eek: :eek:
By Tony Bourke
October 3, 2003
Melbourne Cup favourite Mamool is the best chance of winning the race the Godolphin stable has had. That was the prediction last night of Godolphin's manager, Simon Crisford, speaking from England to a Melbourne Cup media launch.
Crisford said Mamool, the winner of group 1 races at his past two starts in Germany, was definitely the right horse for this year's $4.5 million Melbourne Cup on November 4. "But we're not making any bold predictions because we know how hard a race it is to win," he said.
The Godolphin stable has made concerted efforts to win the cup in recent years and has managed minor placings with Central Park, Give the Slip and, last year, Beekeeper.
Crisford said Mamool was at least as good as any of their previous runners, if not better.
He said Mamool and possibly two other Godolphin horses would be entering quarantine in England this weekend to prepare for their arrival in Melbourne on October 21.
"Mill Street (who is also in the Melbourne Cup) may make the trip but we haven't yet decided on the other one," Crisford said.
James Given, trainer of Hugs Dancer, who is already in Melbourne, said it has been his ambition to have a Melbourne Cup runner since he saw the race on television during a visit to Perth 11 years ago. Given said Hugs Dancer would definitely run in the $2.5 million Caulfield Cup on October 18 on his way to the Melbourne Cup.
The English-trained South African mare Paraca had a sneak preview of the Sandown track yesterday in preparation for the international visitors' first scheduled workout this morning.
Paraca, with her handler Leanne Masterton in the saddle, had a walk around the track to get the feel of her new surroundings. The other three horses presently in quarantine at Sandown - Hugs Dancer, In Time's Eye and One More Round - were just walked around the compound.
Racing Victoria's Mark Player said yesterday it was planned for Paraca to go on to the track first this morning and work alone, followed by Hugs Dancer. In Time's Eye and One More Round would use the track for the first time about 30 minutes later.
This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/10/02/1064988342146.html
By Rachel Wells
October 8, 2003
Breakfast with the stars Caulfield guineas video (http://media.f2.com.au/?rid=12858)
http://www.theage.com.au/ffxImage/urlpicture_id_1065292588351_2003/10/07/08CUP,0.jpg
The Melbourne Cup. Everyone knows by now that it's the race that stops a nation, the people's race. So why not take the Cup to the people?
As Melbourne's milliners gathered yesterday to show their spring racing carnival hats, the world-famous Melbourne Cup trophy was being displayed to the nation.
The tour is the first time Victoria Racing Club officials have travelled Australia to recognise the contribution that communities from all parts of the country have played in the historic race.
Victoria Racing Club spokesman Joe McGrath said yesterday: "It's the people's race, the people's cup, so we decided we would take it to the people - albeit under very tight security."
For the past four years Queensland has been able to boast that it has been the home of the Cup because local jewellers Hardy Brothers have been making the three handled trophy.
http://www.couriermail.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,1658,290455,00.jpg
The 2003 Cup is worth $80,000. Smaller replica cups are made for the winning trainer, jockey and strapper.
Hardy Brothers director Stuart Bishop said the cup was made from 34 hand-beaten pieces of 18ct gold, weighing 1650 grams. Craftsmen dedicated almost 200 hours to complete the cup.
Starting in Brisbane last Wednesday, the cup has travelled to Alice Springs, Uluru, Darwin and Perth. Next stop is Adelaide, and then back to Melbourne for the big day.
"On the way, we've tracked down some really interesting people with historical connections to the Melbourne Cup," Mr McGrath said.
In Alice Springs Greg Dubois, the grandson of the 1922 winning owner of King Ingoda, Charles Dubois, got to hold the cup. "It was a terrific moment," Mr Dubois said.
In Darwin the cup was blessed by the Larrakia Nation Aboriginal elders, who also held a special smoking ceremony. Mr McGrath said they were delighted to be able to handle the trophy.
Jockeys Mel Schumacher who rode the 1958 cup winner Baystone and Ballina-based Scott Seamer, successful on Ethereal two years ago, were on hand to help launch the national tour.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/1640000/images/_1640337_win300.jpg
Ethereal winning the Melbourne Cup
Also present was former journalist Heather Brown, whose father owned 1959 cup winner Macdougal.
As the cup continued its travels, more than 150 women gathered at Flemington yesterday to get the inside word on what to wear on their heads.
The Millinery Association of Australia's 4th Annual Millinery Collection showed off more than 100 hats by 30 Australian milliners, including Melbourne's flamboyant Peter Jago, who was officially inducted into the MAA's hall of fame.
If that wasn't enough for fans of the turf, Caulfield racetrack hosted an early-morning Breakfast with the Stars as a precursor to Saturday's Caulfield Guineas.
Prizemoney for the cup has ballooned in recent years.
In 1983 the total stake including trophies was $451,500. This year more than $4.6 million is up for grabs.
Hoofnote: No Queensland-trained horse has won the Melbourne Cup since its inception in 1861.
This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/10/07/1065292591258.html
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By Darren Prendergast
October 7, 2003
Champion Irish stayer Vinnie Roe remains in contention to tackle his second successive Melbourne Cup next month, having entered quarantine at The Curragh yesterday following a gallant fifth in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in France on Sunday.
Two-time Melbourne Cup-winning trainer Dermot Weld, who already has In Time's Eye in quarantine at Sandown to spearhead his assault on the Caulfield and Melbourne cups, said Australia's great race remained a possible target for his triple Irish St Leger winner.
"There's three possibilities for him now," Weld told the Racing Post. "He could go for the Melbourne Cup, for which he goes into quarantine tonight, but there's also the French St Leger or the Canadian International. We'll discuss it with the owners and make a decision in the next two weeks."
While hopeful Weld would return to Melbourne with Vinnie Roe, which finished fourth to stablemate Media Puzzle in last year's nation stopper, Racing Victoria's Mark Player confirmed fellow Arc runners Mubtaker and Black Sam Bellamy will miss the Melbourne Cup. "They haven't gone into quarantine," he said.
Mubtaker showed its class when finishing a brave second to French champion Dalakhani in the Arc, while Black Sam Bellamy ran sixth.
In Time's Eye, Hugs Dancer and Cox Plate contender Paraca have all settled in well to the quarantine station at Sandown, Player said, adding that English jockey Dean McKeown will take the ride on Hugs Dancer in the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups.
Handy Harry
21-10-2003, 17:16
The most popular horse of the Melbourne carnival last year was an overseas invader.
HENRY arrives in Melbourne this morning
http://www.racenet.com.au/breeding/news_images/henry.jpg
Possibly though because Henry, the welsh pony, was no serious threat to the local Melbourne Cup runners!
Henry is the faithful travelling companion of Jardine's Lookout and true to form, there he was trotting off the international plane this morning looking for all the world as important as he no doubt feels.
Last year Henry became such a popular figure that the pony was given his own web diary by Racing Victoria.
Naturally everyone expects the same again this year so every footstep of Henry (and Jardine's Lookout!) can be followed.
It cost a whopping $30,000 extra to send Henry to Australia but Alan Jarvis, the trainer of Jardines Lookout, said quite simply;
"No Henry, no trip.
"Jardine's Lookout just would not travel well without him, it would be a waste of time."
By: Jo Adams - racenet...Tuesday, 21 October 2003
Handy Harry
22-10-2003, 08:25
http://www.smh.com.au/ffxImage/urlpicture_id_1066631425428_2003/10/21/400jardines_lookout,0.jpg
Pony express: English stayer Jardines Lookout, with companion pony Henry, was among overseas Melbourne Cup entrants to arrive in Melbourne yesterday. Photo: Vince Caligiuri
Oliver happy to take Prudent option for Melbourne Cup assault
By Craig Young, Darren Prendergast and John Schell
October 22, 2003
Two-time Melbourne Cup-winning jockey Damien Oliver has taken the ride on George Hanlon's nine-year-old stayer Mr Prudent in this year's race.
Oliver, serving a suspension, galloped horses at trainer Lee Freedman's property at Rye yesterday before jumping on the Geelong ferry and heading to Thirteenth Beach, where he partnered Mr Prudent in a sand gallop over 1600 metres.
"He felt in great nick, the old boy, he's in great condition," Oliver said.
Oliver's first-choice Melbourne Cup ride In Time's Eye - a stablemate of Media Puzzle, his winning ride from last year - bowed a tendon in Saturday's Caulfield Cup and is returning to Ireland.
"We worked through the list of possible chances and I was happy enough to be able to get the ride on Mr Prudent. He's a grand old stayer and you know he will run the two miles," Oliver said.
A winner of the Sydney Cup in 2001 before being runner-up the following year, Mr Prudent rattled home to finish second behind Media Puzzle in last year's cup with Corey Brown aboard. Kerrin McEvoy will warm the saddle on Mr Prudent in Saturday's Moonee Valley Gold Cup.
Speaking of the Melbourne Cup, it will be at Canterbury races today as part of its Australia-wide tour.
Zagalia suits Childs
"If you can't beat them, join them" could well be the motto for Greg Childs, who is out to win Cox Plate No.3, this time aboard Queensland Oaks winner Zagalia.
In May, Childs was adamant Zagalia had cost him victory aboard The Jewel, which finished second in the Queensland Oaks at Eagle Farm, but stewards dismissed his objection.
"It was a clean fight, we shook hands and moved on," Childs said yesterday. "I'm more than happy to be on her [Zagalia] because I know good she is. Her run last week in the Caulfield Cup [6th] was good, and Lonhro has had one start here and been beaten."
Childs combined with Gentle Genius in Melbourne a year ago, with the mare's performances earning her "Queen of the Spring" honours.
Back in the saddle
With the ride on group 1 winner Ambulance awaiting in Saturday's AAMI Vase at Moonee Valley, John Hawkes's No.1 Melbourne rider Darren Gauci returns to race riding at Geelong today after an injury incurred in a recent fall.
Gauci hasn't ridden since being dislodged from the Hawkes-trained Inuit at Werribee on September 24 but has been riding trackwork for two weeks.
"I like to have my jockeys fit," Hawkes said this week before booking Gauci for his Geelong Cup day runners. He has Octagonal three-year-old Donington contesting the Geelong Classic as he works towards a start in the Victoria Derby on Saturday week.
Gauci and Hawkes combine with sprinter Force Apollo in the Dual Choice Plate, while Outlaws is the stable representative in the Geelong Cup.
Alarm bells ringing
Jim Cassidy has been asked to meet Racing NSW stewards on Monday for an inquiry into his ride on Native Jester in the Belle Of The Turf Stakes at Gosford last Thursday.
Stewards, who have also asked trainer Tim Martin and prominent owner Nick Moraitis to attend, are gathering betting information on the event from local and interstate operators, while attempting to gain access to the records of international betting exchanges.
Native Jester was well beaten behind Imperatrix in the Gosford event after Cassidy took the mare to a huge mid-race lead. Native Jester was backing up after winning at Rosehill five days earlier. Her normal preference is to lead.
Big bucks on offer
The Gerald Ryan-trained Clangalang will be in contention for a $US1 million ($1.44m) bonus should it win the Cox Plate on Saturday. To claim the bonus prize, Clangalang must follow a Cox Plate win with victory against some of the world's best in the $US4m Japan Cup.
Clangalang is the only Australian-trained horse entered for the Japan Cup on November 30 after the retirement of fellow nominee Helenus last week.
New Zealand trainer Mark Walker last week ruled out a trip to Japan for his Caulfield Cup placegetter Distinctly Secret. Walker is focused on winning the Melbourne Cup with the five-year-old.
Clangalang has already been inoculated for an overseas trip following its Melbourne spring campaign. The four-year-old has also been nominated for the Hong Kong Vase and Hong Kong Cup at Sha Tin in December.
Course manager quits
The man in charge of Caulfield racecourse and the two-track Sandown complex has resigned.
The Melbourne Racing Club's chief executive Peter Sweeney said yesterday that racecourse manager John Green had resigned for personal reasons, effective from November 21.
The timing couldn't have been worse, as the MRC's showpiece three-day Caulfield Cup meeting was mired in controversy. It ended last week with concerns being raised by leading racing persons, including respected trainers Bart Cummings, Ireland's Dermot Weld and Racing Victoria chief steward Des Gleeson. They had raised questions over the firm track presented for the cup meeting.
The previous Saturday the track for the Caulfield Guineas meeting, which opened the carnival with three group 1 events, came under fire due to a distinct bias towards runners on the rails.
Sweeney has called on Racing Victoria, the ruling body down south, to look at the policy regarding licensed people making such comments.
Sweeney said that Green, who had two stints spread over 20 years with the MRC, had approached the club in late August intending to resign but had agreed to stay on until after the cup carnival.
Vet begs to differ
Leading Victorian veterinarian Glen Robertson-Smith isn't so sure the Dermot Weld-trained stayer In Time's Eye bowed a tendon due to the hard track when finishing 10th in Saturday's Caulfield Cup.
Considered an expert on bowed tendons, Robertson-Smith told The Age the country had just been "through extreme drought" and there had been "very few bowed tendons".
Robertson-Smith believes horses are more likely to suffer bowed tendons when running on heavy or slippery tracks, on which gallopers are inclined to overreach.
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/21/1066631431952.html
Handy Harry
22-10-2003, 17:39
Mega Ark's foreigners enjoy soggy landing
By Tony Bourke
October 22, 2003
Any concerns about the Flemington track being too firm for this year's Melbourne Cup would have seemed slightly presumptuous in the dreadful conditions at Tullamarine Airport, as the final contingent of overseas horses for this year's spring carnival arrived in Melbourne yesterday.
The 747 cargo carrier "Mega Ark" could hardly have been better named as it landed in heavy rain. Perhaps some of its four-legged passengers, including Melbourne Cup favourite Mamool, were wondering if leaving the giant aircraft in such conditions was the right idea.
Once on the ground, some of the handlers accompanying the horses could have been confused about being quizzed on firm tracks, when the weather suggested it would have been more appropriate to ask if they could handle the wet.
Godolphin's travelling foreman Tony Howarth and Sarah Simmons, who looks after Jardines Lookout and his pony mate Henry, have been here before so they know what to expect.
Howarth said Mamool and stablemate Millstreet, which is also likely to run in the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday week, were "adaptable" horses used to racing in all sorts of conditions.
"Although they wouldn't like it as hard as this," he added, tapping the wet tarmac.
The other horse on yesterday's flight was the Irish stayer Holy Orders, trained by Willie Mullins, who had never brought a horse to Australia before. The seven-year-old, which mixes flat racing and hurdling, is in the care of strapper Tracey Gilmour, also on her first trip to Melbourne.
In usual Godolphin style, Mamool and Millstreet each had their own two-horse containers which virtually doubled the price of their transport. Holy Orders travelled as a single and the double act of Jardines Lookout and Henry will again be a highlight this spring.
All the horses travelled well on the 33-hour journey, with the Godolphin pair, Jardines Lookout and Henry, coming from London via Dubai and Singapore, and Holy Orders joining them in Singapore from Dublin via Dubai.
Mamool, a group 1 winner in Germany at its past two starts, is regarded by Godolphin as possibly their best chance yet of winning the Melbourne Cup after their recent minor placings.
Godolphin had second placings with Central Park in 1999 and Give The Slip in 2001, and a third last year with Beekeeper. Jardines Lookout was seventh last year behind Media Puzzle.
The subject of firm tracks in Melbourne in spring, highlighted by Irish trainer Dermot Weld after last year's Melbourne Cup which he won with Media Puzzle, flared again after Saturday's Caulfield Cup meeting.
Weld's two runners at Caulfield, In Time's Eye, a leading fancy in the cup, and One More Round, both pulled up sore, the former later found to have bowed a tendon, although the career-threatening injury has not necessarily been linked to the firm track.
Weld has since said visiting trainers would think twice about sending horses to Melbourne if they had to race on tracks as firm as Flemington was last Melbourne Cup day and as Caulfield was last Saturday.
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/21/1066631432133.html
By Craig Young
October 28, 2003
The world's most powerful racing stable may have the favourite for Tuesday's $4.6 million Melbourne Cup, but Sheikh Mohammed's Godolphin operation fears master trainer Bart Cummings.
Cummings will start Frightening and Strasbourg in pursuit of Cup No.12, and the living legend's thoroughbred arsenal brought a play on words from Godolphin spokesman Alan Byrne.
"Bart has a frightening record in the race," he said. "You saw what Frightening did on Saturday in the Gold Cup at Moonee Valley. Bart is a genius, he has got his horses in great form and he'll be hard to beat."
Byrne was at Sandown yesterday to oversee the trackwork of Godolphin's Melbourne Cup favourite Mamool and stablemate Millstreet, with the pair among 35 third acceptances taken yesterday for the race.
"They took it slightly easier than yesterday [Sunday] morning," Byrne said of the pair, which worked solo over 1400 metres. "The track was a bit soft and we held onto them a bit.
"Tomorrow the last 400m may be a bit quicker, assuming the ground is a bit better. We'll just remove a few cobwebs."
Byrne said the Godolphin team was happy with the condition of the horses, which arrived in Melbourne last Tuesday after a 36-hour flight, and they were "progressing nicely".
Byrne made it clear Millstreet would need to be "absolutely thriving" before Godolphin head trainer Saeed Bin Suroor gave the all clear for a start in the Melbourne Cup.
Suroor is due in Melbourne on Thursday but Mamool's jockey, Frankie Dettori, who hasn't endeared himself to Australian punters with his riding down under, is likely to arrive later in the week. Dettori's wife recently gave birth to their fourth child.
Byrne believes a local jockey will ride Millstreet, should it start, and many jockey managers in Australia have tracked down Byrne's mobile phone number, prompting the Englishman to say: "I've not been short of friends."
Unlike two-time Melbourne Cup-winning Irish trainer Dermot Weld, the Godolphin team refused to buy into the debate about the preparation of racetracks. "It is entirely up to Racing Victoria what the Flemington track is on Melbourne Cup day," Byrne said.
When asked about the weights the pair will carry - Mamool has 55.5 kilograms and Millstreet 54.5kg - he pointed out that Godolphin's assault on global racing, which has netted group 1 races in 11 countries, is usually aimed at weight-for-age races. For that reason, he said, "you would have a long search to find a Godolphin horse that has been leniently weighted".
Byrne believes Lee Freedman's Caulfield Cup-winning stayer Mummify "deserves to be at the top of markets", while English stayer Hugs Dancer should not be underestimated.
Hugs Dancer turned in a superb Cup trial when five and six wide for half the Caulfield Cup before finishing seventh, with Byrne saying: "He has the Ebor [race] form back home, which is what you need for this race."
There were no surprise drop-outs when third acceptances were taken yesterday, although prominent owner Lloyd Williams surprised many by paying up for Legible. Williams has won Melbourne Cups with Just A Dash (1981) and What A Nuisance (1985), while the former casino king's successful betting-ring forays before the great race have created headlines.
Legible was overpowered by Frightening in last Saturday's Gold Cup at Moonee Valley, with leading Victorian apprentice Craig Newitt following instructions when cutting the four-year-old mare loose at the 600m.
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/27/1067233102677.html
By Craig Young
October 28, 2003
The five European horses chasing the Melbourne Cup worked under two rainbows, in driving rain and in icy temperatures at Sandown yesterday, eight days out from the great race, and the favourite was among them.
What Mamool did had many scratching their heads but the Godolphin galloper wasn't the only one to perplex watchers.
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Mamool
Let's try to explain.
Hugs Dancer, an impressive seventh in the Caulfield Cup, was out of it. He had enjoyed the best of the weather for his work and was back in his box when the sky turned black.
Irish jumper Holy Orders, though, which has three victories over last year's Melbourne Cup winner Media Puzzle to his credit, paraded about as if he owned the place, walking along the motor racing track before venturing onto Sandown's steeple grass.
As Holy Orders made his way up an incline, Mamool gave his stablemate, Millstreet, 80 metres start when cantering off on the course proper from the 1600m pole.
Millstreet is used as a pacemaker in Europe for more illustrious stablemates and has supposedly come to Melbourne as Mamool's punching bag.
The workout became really odd because Millstreet, instead of providing a lure for Mamool to chase down, had increased his lead considerably by the time they reached the other side of the track. Holy Orders, meanwhile, watched from the steeple hill.
The rainbows disappeared and it was freezing. Holy Orders walked down the hill and was on his way back up again when Jardine's Lookout ventured onto the track, this time without his mate, a pony named Henry.
In last year's Melbourne Cup Jardine's Lookout finished a seventh that screamed "back me again" and, while he trotted off to get ready for this year's version, Holy Orders ambled down the incline as Mamool and Millstreet were led off the track by no less than seven minders - two work riders, two imported security guards, a groom, a travelling foreman and a media man, all dressed in the blue livery of Godolphin.
It was revealed later that the blue-suited crew had decided not to put them head-to-head for fear of revving them up.
Jardine's Lookout moved towards the home bend and was ready to trot up the straight. At this point Holy Orders, with US work rider Tracey Gilmour in the saddle, drifted down onto the course proper's running rail, ignoring the markers in the centre of the track.
And he was travelling the reverse direction, with Jardine's Lookout coming his way. Fortunately the pair passed each other without incident.
Jardine's Lookout ended up walking back to where he started from and work rider Sarah Simmons, daughter of trainer Alan Jarvis, turned him around.
"He doesn't want to go round without Henry," Simmons said.
So Jardine's Lookout returned to the compound while Holy Orders continued his long walk.
As the Irish jumper with the US work rider passed the entrance gap, a Racing Victoria official asked Gilmour: "How long to go?"
"I'm going round again", she replied.
"You've 10 minutes; make it brisk," the official said, but Holy Orders was having none of that. He came to a halt, swished his tail and pigrooted, as if to say "I'll do what I wish".
Back in the compound, Jardine's Lookout had found Henry. They walked together around a woodchipped path.
Holy Orders returned to the compound and started to pick at the grass. When Gilmour returned from mucking out the stable she tried to lead the horse back. Initially he resisted but eventually consented.
Work was over; the raiders were now at rest. The watchers, brought up on a diet of Cummings and Waterhouse, were still scratching their heads.
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/27/1067233102701.html
By Tony Bourke
October 28, 2003
If looking the part was the only criteria, then the Melbourne Cup would be already in the bag for Godolphin's Mamool, who will be one of the most striking horses in this year's field.
Yet, just a week out from the cup, it is still too early to forecast if this will be Godolphin's year to finally win one of the few great races of the world to have eluded it.
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In five years of trying, Godolphin has had two seconds and a third from its eight Melbourne Cup starters, which is quite a respectable return, but nothing short of a win is going to satisfy the Dubai-based operation.
Godolphin's motto is the "pursuit of excellence, not a dream" and with each cup defeat has come a greater determination to do better.
Simon Crisford, Godolphin's racing manager, who is due to arrive in Melbourne later this week, has said Mamool represents the stable's best chance to win the Melbourne Cup, even more so than the dual Ascot Gold Cup winner Kayf Tara, who was all the rage in 1998 before breaking down in the week before the cup.
Five-year-old Mamool is a beautifully proportioned stallion, supposedly a bay but closer to black, who comes into the race as a group 1 winner over 2400 metres in Germany at his past two starts.
Godolphin's director of media and communications, Alan Byrne, said yesterday that not a lot should be read into the wins in Germany, other than that they showed Mamool was in good form.
Byrne said they certainly did not indicate that Mamool, who won the races after the declaration of cup weights, had in any way "beaten the handicapper" with his 55.5 kilograms.
"If a Godolphin horse was let in (the cup) light, it would be a first," was his dry retort.
Unlike many of the Godolphin team who have been purchased or consigned by other members of the Maktoum family along the way, Mamool has been with the stable since he started racing.
Frankie Dettori has ridden him in each of his 14 starts, which have yielded six wins, two seconds and a third for $1.7 million in prizemoney.
Mamool was first prepared by David Loder, Godolphin's main two-year-old trainer before joining the stable's senior trainer Saeed bin Suroor as a three-year-old.
He won the group 3 Queen's Vase (3200m) at Royal Ascot last year, beating this year's Ascot Gold Cup winner Mr Dinos.
He also won the group 2 York Cup (2800m) in June before finishing fifth to Mr Dinos in the Ascot Gold Cup (3200m).
While the form sheet is impressive, the most critical part of any northern hemisphere attempt to win the Melbourne Cup is how the horses travel and settle in and so far Mamool and stablemate Millstreet have all the ticks.
They were supposed to have a solid hit-out at Sandown yesterday but plans were changed because of the atrocious conditions.
They are likely to finish their work this morning, with a sharp 400-metre sprint, which, at this stage, speaks volumes for how they are going.
This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/10/27/1067233095744.html
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Handy Harry
29-10-2003, 07:26
By Tony Bourke
October 29, 2003
The aptly named Irish stayer Holy Orders is shaping as if perhaps he needs some divine intervention if he is going to play a part in Tuesday's Melbourne Cup.
Holy Orders has become very much the reluctant racehorse since his arrival in Melbourne last week and, despite putting on a brave face, his handler Tracey Gilmour is at her wits end to know how she can change his attitude.
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Despite all of Gilmour's coaxing and cajoling, the seven-year-old is simply refusing to gallop at Sandown and, for her, the arrival today or tomorrow of trainer Willie Mullins cannot come soon enough.
Mullins is the son of the legendary Paddy Mullins, 84, one of Ireland's foremost trainers of jumpers for more than 50 years and who recently won his first classic on the flat, the Irish Oaks with Vintage Tipple.
Holy Orders, who spends more time on the track than any of the northern hemisphere visitors, has done nothing more than a light canter and that was late last week.
In the past couple of days he has slowed down to a walk - only a couple of hundred metres at a time - and yesterday he completely jacked up when Gilmour tried to get him going with the English stayer Jardines Lookout as a companion and reared high in the air, all but unseating her.
Gilmour had asked Sarah Simmons, daughter of trainer Alan Jarvis, if she would mind working Jardines Lookout the reverse way of going in the hope the presence of another horse would get Holy Orders interested.
Instead, he just reared and stopped while Jardines Lookout went on his way.
Gilmour said later she was "not concerned" at Holy Orders' refusal to gallop. "He was fit when he got here and he's had a canter so I'm just taking it day-by-day."
Gilmour said Holy Orders, who has won 10 of his 35 starts both on the flat and over jumps, did his work under much different conditions at home in Kilkenny.
"He doesn't go near a racecourse between races," she said.
His race jockey, apprenctice Davey Condon, who is due in Melbourne tomorrow or Friday, usually rides him in much of his work.
Holy Orders is certainly no slouch with form around Media Puzzle, Vinnie Roe and the highly rated Black Sam Bellamy.
He met Media Puzzle three times last year and beat him each time although they were all on rain-affected tracks, which did not suit the subsequent Melbourne Cup winner.
Gilmour said that Mullins started schooling his flat horses as two-year-olds "because jumping gave them variety and kept them interested".
She has tried most things with Holy Orders at Sandown, including walking him for half a lap on the bitumen car racing track.
This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/10/28/1067233172786.html
By Roy Masters
October 30, 2003
Zagalia, the Melbourne Cup runner trained on a high altitude simulator, took fright at sea level on Tuesday, breaking away from her handlers and jumping waves before being rescued by trainer Clarry Conners.
Owner John Singleton said: "There was a bit of a panic because she swam so far out to sea [off a Melbourne beach], a boat was needed to bring her back."
Conners took a more subdued view of the incident, saying: "She was walking along Mentone Beach, jumped a wave and went in belly-deep. We had to bring her out but there was nothing to it. She came straight back out.
"If you can make a story out of that, you're a better man than I am, Gunga Din."
Told that Singo said a rescue boat was called, Conners said: "He makes things up."
Part-owner Gerry Rose, a veterinarian, said the degree of panic over the incident rests somewhere between the Singleton's and Conners' views.
"Zagalia normally goes to Mentone Beach and trots in the water up to her elbows," he said. "The water is usually still but wind kicked up a few waves and she jumped them.
"They had to bring her out."
Zagalia is third favourite of the Australian horses for Tuesday's big race, having won the Queensland Oaks and placing sixth in the Caulfield Cup and fourth in the Cox Plate.
Rose admitted Zagalia was training on a hypoxicator, a machine that simulates high altitude and prompted a furore in the Australian Football League this year when it was revealed that Brisbane Lions players were using one.
"We weren't going to mention it because of the publicity in the AFL but, yes, Zagalia trains on it for an hour a day, three to four days a week," Rose said.
The machine, used in the rehabilitation of heart surgery patients and the treatment of asthmatics, delivers air of a lower oxygen concentration than found at sea level in order to elevate the heart rate and improve cardiovascular efficiency.
When used with horses, the animal stands in a stall with a mask attached and the machine varies the available oxygen concentration for set intervals.
Rose said: "Zagalia goes up to 5000 metres, which is base camp [on] Everest, for three minutes and then returns to sea level for three minutes.
"This process goes on for an hour, exercising her heart and lungs without stretching or working her legs.
"When she goes up to 5000 metres, she goes to sleep. She becomes very quiet and closes her eyes for three minutes.
"As her heart rate rises, she trains herself to be very efficient at higher altitudes.
"It's space-age technology first developed with the Russian spaceships. Because they were not very efficient, the astronauts were trained to acclimatise at lower oxygen levels."
Based on the performance of the Brisbane Lions winning their third successive premiership, the hypoxicator appears to help athletes go the distance.
Singleton said: "Gerry picks horses by the size of their nostrils, their heart and lung capacity and how they walk.
"It's a theory he used with [Golden Slipper winners] Belle Du Jour and Ha Ha but he's had a few failures, too.
"But the hypoxicator is like being in a box and getting the benefit of training at altitude, and let's hope it works."
Zagalia's panic at sea level clearly demonstrated that Singleton was not meant to own horses with a love of water.
"I once had a horse in the United States and I called her Dawn Fraser, because I wanted to have a female named after the best swimmer in the world," he said. "She won her first race in record time, then died."
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/29/1067233254481.html
By Darren Beadman
October 31, 2003
So what is it about Bart Cummings and thoroughbreds that makes the man a legend, a national treasure on target to win his 12th Melbourne Cup? Maybe a couple of champion former jockeys like Roy Higgins and Harry White can help out.
"Bart's son Anthony summed it up the best," Roy told me this week. "Anthony once said 'he [Bart] is a great tutor, he has taught me everything I know but not everything he knows'."
But what separates the great man from the rest?
"He doesn't waiver, doesn't look at the doom and gloom of it all," was how Harry started off.
"Bart sticks to the pattern, keeps focused on what he wants the horse to do. He doesn't get flustered. If they [horses] get to the desired race, they get there; he doesn't get desperate, start running them here, running them there. He let's them get there in top shape."
Between them, these two former stars have won six Melbourne Cups. Harry won aboard Think Big in 1974-75, Arwon (1978) and Hyperno (1979). Think Big and Hyperno were prepared by Bart.
The horses are buried on Harry's property outside Melbourne. Harry got Think Big when the gelding turned eight and he died at the age of 25. He had Hyperno for about 15 years.
"I never asked them to do a day's work," Harry said. "I never got on their back, they were good horses to me."
Roy won his two Melbourne Cups with Light Fingers (1965) and Red Handed (1967). Bart trained both of them.
I also owe Bart deep thanks. My two Melbourne Cup winners - Kingston Rule (1990) and Saintly (1996) - carried the Bart stamp.
We all agree there is a mystery about Bart that is hard to define.
"There may be an equal, but there is no one better than Bart," said Roy, who rode for TJ Smith, Colin Hayes and other training greats from around the world.
"Bart treats the horse as an individual," he said. "One of the true keys, he is a horse psychiatrist. He studies the horse, he knows what each requires and he is not afraid to do things differently."
Harry recalled times when spring was bearing down and Bart's team of stable workers, strappers and foremen reckoned the prospects of playing a role in the major races looked forlorn.
"All of a sudden horses would pop up like mushrooms, they would be there overnight," he said.
Frightening is a case in point - a restricted galloper which has emerged to win the Coongy Handicap and the Moonee Valley Gold Cup at his past two starts.
The four-year-old entire is now the talk horse of this year's cup, while stablemate Strasbourg, which ran second in the AJC Australian Derby, has been prepared specially for next Tuesday. You dismiss them at your peril.
Roy recalled a horse called Ngawyni that arrived at Bart's stable back in the mid-1970s.
"It was an absolute cripple, it was sour, it was broken down," Roy said. "It was the unhappiest horse when it came into the stable and unfortunately I told Bart, 'you win a major with this horse and I'll buy you a diamond-studded bike'.
"He went on to win a number of features, including the 1977 Australian Cup. Bart just worked the horse out, turned him around."
Roy believes it is all about the challenge these horses provide. Way back then, Bart was tinkering with gear combinations and nothing has changed. Kingston Rule won his cup with a shadow roll on.
Bart really does things differently while still sticking to the plan. He imported equilox, a paste that builds up a hoof. Let's Elope had no front feet so he rebuilt her hooves with equilox and she won the Caulfield-Melbourne cup double in 1991.
"What worked for one horse might not work for another," Roy said. "If it happens, clicks, he has got it and it can transform the horse. Bart does what he thinks is right by the horse, doesn't let anything sway him."
And Harry talked about the pre-race chats.
"One thing about Bart, he used to come into the jockeys' room, in his quiet way, sit down beside you and say, 'forget the name of the race, just ride the horse'," Harry said. "He'd get you thinking, put you in a relaxed frame of mind."
Harry reckons not enough trainers used to do that, and I can vouch they don't do it enough now.
"That always gave the jockey great confidence," Harry said. "It may have been a short statement, but a powerful one."
And what about the pursuit of grass tracks? Nothing has changed. Bart will take horses across town, out of town, if the course proper is available and it fits the plan.
You only have to look at Daneborogh. The stayer could have run and probably won the Kembla Grange Cup recently, but Bart felt it would be more beneficial to gallop the horse between races. Five days later Daneborogh ran an unlucky second in The Metropolitan.
No doubt it all goes into keeping the horse happy; it's Bart's way.
And then there are the trainers. Guy Walter, Leon Corstens, Shaun Dwyer, John O'Shea are just some who have had stints working for Bart. Like Anthony, they learnt much but not everything.
Cagey is a word Roy used. The Bart recipe for success is not a public document. It remains ensconced in the mind of one wise man.
The three of us are constantly reminded how Bart can time a horse's preparation to the day, to the minute, according to Roy. It is a gift few in the racing game possess.
As for the thing he hates, well, Bart never has liked to see his horses lead in races. He believes the horse leading worries because it can hear rivals behind.
Maybe it is a mind game, for Bart remains sharp. His wit is lightning quick. Now in his 70s, working with horses has kept him active. Working the horse out and planning its future is something Roy and Harry strongly believe has kept Bart young.
They agree, you must be mentally right to succeed.
As told to Craig Young
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/10/30/1067233329572.html
http://www.smh.com.au/sport/horseracing/index.html
Sensational work IMA...
I dont know much about the form but i saw the Mckinnon stakes & was impressed with Pentastics run but after looking at Mamools form he looks to have easily the most class....any thoughts ?
Mummify is out of the Cup...
Mamool is a high class horse and will get high marks form the paddock. Doesnt sem to have too much of a sprint...more a grinding type I think...but who knows what will happen when he hits the hard tracks of Melbourne?
Yes I liked Pentastics run as well and I thought looked great last start. . Came home well didnt he? Grey Song also fits that catagory but probably lacks a little class? But was unlucky not to win a Sydney Cup over the same distance.
Frightening is another lovely horse ...A Bart horse so will have its supporters...and showed a bit of dash around the corner at Mooney Valley the other day on a wet track. Similar run to Yippiyio ( second in the cup) a few years back so could sneak a place. Another that will get high marks from the paddock.
Makybe Diva has been making some ground in earlier races..starting to grind a bit.
Seabiscuit
04-11-2003, 07:16
Makybe Diva seems to like running 4th. Funny horse this one. Won 6 races in a row and now has run four 4ths in a row. So perhaps there are two more 4ths to come in the sequence.
Form reads 111111864444
http://www.aapracingandsports.com.au/racing/melbcup/2003/mcup2003index.htm
Form for every runner.
A$1,700,000 matched on BetFair.....not bad. :)
Mamool is a high class horse and will get high marks form the paddock. Doesnt sem to have too much of a sprint...more a grinding type I think...but who knows what will happen when he hits the hard tracks of Melbourne?
Ha ha what a cat! Looked beautiful in the yard but just didnt stay the trip and ran last.
Makybe Diva...didnt run 4th but won the cup. Yahaaaa! ( pity I left it out after reading Seabiscuits post...thanks for nothing!)
FINISHING ORDER
1 Makybe Diva
2 She's Archie
3 Jardine's Lookout
4 Pentastic
5 Zagalia
6 Grey Song
7 Dinstinctly Secret
8 Yakama
9 Hugs Dancer
10 Big Pat
11 Frightening
12 Mr Prudent
13 Ain't Seen Nothin'
14 Tumeric
15 Country Tyrone
16 Bold Bard
17 Holy Orders
18 Fawaz
19 Debben
20 Piachay
21 Millstreet
22 Schumpeter
23 Mamool
Fat Bastard
04-11-2003, 12:00
Mamool ran the favourite - and ran last. The first time a favourite has finished last in the Cup since 1934. Godolphin had 2 runners, finished 21st and 23rd.
Makybe Diva wins Melbourne Cup
Maykbe Diva, ridden by Glen Boss and trained by David Hall, won the Group One $4.6 million Melbourne Cup (3200m) at Flemington.
Maykbe Diva beat She's Archie and Jardines Lookout.
Makybe Diva, a 13-2 shot in early betting, beat She's Archie with English stayer Jardine's Lookout third.
Glen Boss rode Maybe Diva to a clear-cut victory sprinting past heavily-backed Godolophin galloper Mamool, ridden by Frankie Dettori, about 300 metres from the finish post.
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November 4, 2003
Dear Race-Goers
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Now look, I don’t want to put a damper on your Melbourne Cup Race- Going experience today: I know that the Melbourne Cup is a national institution, and I know lots of you enjoy watching horse racing, and I know it can be fun getting dressed up in your best clothes, making yourself look as elegant as possible, and then heading off to Flemington Racecourse to get so drunk, that within 20 minutes of arriving there, you’re lying upside down in a rose bush, half your clothes are missing, and you’re totally unable to blink both eyes at the same time.
But this is the exact reason why I’m writing this letter today: I’m desperately appealing for a bit of decorum and dignity at the races this year, because it’s my thinking that maybe, just maybe, the Melbourne Cup has ever-so-slightly started turning into ... A SHAMEFUL DEN OF INIQUITY, A WANTON ORGY OF EVIL AND GREED, A FIERY HELL-PIT OF DEBAUCHERY AND LUST AND DRUNKEN LASCIVIOUSNESS, YEA VERILY, not to mention the fact that it’s really hard to get a park around there.
Now, please, don’t think I’m being a prude or a big nerdy-guy, because I’m not; I can be as wicked and wild as anyone else — hey, sometimes I even re-use those little pop-up juice bottles that say on the back "Not For Re-Use", yeah, I can be a MENACE II SOCIETY.
But the eyes of the world are upon us today, and so I urge all Melbourne Cup Race-Goers to lift their game, to improve their public behaviour, and this can be achieved by following my three simple, sensible Melbourne Cup rules.
Rule One: Don't gamble
Yes, I know that traditionally you’re supposed to gamble when you go to the races: you’re supposed to spend lots of money on a betting ticket, then you watch a whole bunch of horses go round in a circle, then you throw the betting ticket away — it’s lots and lots of fun. But this year, I’m urging racegoers to eliminate gambling from their race-going activities; don’t go down to the betting ring and give your hardearned money to the bookies — those small gnarly men wearing ’60s-style suits and ’60s-style hats who all look like they walked off the set of Homicide.
Over the past few years, I've witnessed far too much lewd and skimpy dressing at the Melbourne Cup: too many slutty, strapless frocks with plunging necklines. - Danny Katz
Instead, why not be more charitable and donate your money to the poor and the needy — go down to the betting ring and give it to the drunken guy wearing a sombrero who’s collapsed beside the Porta-loo with an empty wallet in one hand, an empty champagne bottle in the other hand, and half his lunch running down his chin.
Rule Two: Dress tastefully
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A young couple get to know each other at the Melbourne Cup.
Over the past few years, I’ve witnessed far too much lewd and skimpy dressing at the Melbourne Cup: too many slutty, strapless frocks with plunging necklines and see-through fabrics and above-the-knee hems — and I’m talking specifically about the frocks worn by men who have dressed up as women.
Yes, I’m well aware that cross-dressing is a respectable, ageold tradition at the Melbourne Cup, but why can’t these men show a bit of style and refinement — maybe try a modest black cocktail dress, or a Lisa Ho sleeveless number with pin-tucked bodice, which would perfectly complement a hairy cleavage.
Also nuns’ outfits should be avoided altogether at Flemington, unless you’re an actual nun — and if any nuns are going to the Melbourne Cup, they should avoid dressing up as drunken yobbos.
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Rule Three: No drinking of alcohol
This perhaps is my most desperate and heartfelt plea: I myself know the seductive powers of alcohol — there have been times when I have consumed anything up to nine or 10 sips of Baileys IN JUST ONE NIGHT.
But public drunkenness is a loathsome and filthy state of being: every year at the Melbourne Cup, there is always at least one drunken guy in a jester hat trying to urinate in a 360 degree circle, and a drunken woman lying face down in a tub of taramasalata with her dress somewhere around her ears, and a drunken couple, locked in a passionate embrace, using the mounting yard for a whole different type of mounting.
So please, no alcohol-drinking today: instead, why not opt for fizzy drinks — maybe Fanta, or that new Cherry Cola that tastes like carbonated Dimetapp. Or how about a nice drink of juice — although if you’re using a pop-up juice bottle, remember, you’re not supposed to re-use them.
So there you have it: come on, Melbourne Cup Race-Goers of Victoria, if we work together, we can turn the Melbourne Cup into a civilised and sober event, just like all of our other important national days — Anzac Day, Australia Day, the Queen’s Birthday ...
OK, maybe you should disregard this letter.
This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/11/03/1067708134255.html
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Seabiscuit
05-11-2003, 05:41
From www.aapracingandsports.com.au
Aussies punt big on Cup
Tuesday, 4 November 2003:
Australians had a record $117 million flutter on this year's Melbourne Cup, official TAB figures show.
Millions more were won and lost in racecourse betting rings, with sports betting agencies and in humble office sweeps.
New TAB records for wagering on Australia's most famous horse race were set in most states. The total amount bet nationally was up by about $8 million on 2002.
In NSW punters staked $47.3 million on the Cup while Victorian punters stumped up about $30 million - a rise of about six per cent in each state.
In Queensland the figure was $19.9 million, West Australians forked out $8.8 million, South Australians spent $6.8 million, Tasmania and the ACT both wagered $1.9 million and in the Northern Territory the pool was $1.1 million.
Punters had to adjust after the withdrawal of one of the pre-race favourites, the Lee Freedman-trained Mummify.
Greg Shannon, general manager of wagering at UniTAB, which covers Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory, said it was a hiccup.
"Given that it was such a short-priced runner there was quite a few that had it in their trifectas or first fours and that money had to be taken out of the pool or re-invested," Shannon said.
"Fortunately it was early."
Many punters used the net to place their bets.
NSW TAB wagering chief executive Peter Kadar said it had been a "great year", with 34 million hits on the TAB website, a 31 per cent rise from last year.
What the jockeys said
November 5, 2003
1st MAKYBE DIVA (Glen Boss): "There was no other horse I wanted to be on. When they started to come back to me at the 1000 metres I was smiling. At the 600m a lot of them got flushed out and everything went right for me."
2nd SHE'S ARCHIE (Scott Seamer): "I supposed I tracked Glen and had a lovely run but the winner was a bit stronger."
3rd JARDINES LOOKOUT (Darryll Holland): "They just went an unbelievable pace for the first six furlongs (1200m). They were just a bit quick for him early. He's an out-and-out stayer and he ran a cracking race. I was absolutely delighted."
4th PENTASTIC (Steven Arnold): "He had a beautiful run and switched off. I thought he was the one but he didn't run the trip out the last bit."
5th ZAGALIA (Chris Munce): "She had a light weight and I thought it was the way to go [taking her to the front]. She went enormous."
6th GREY SONG (Steven King): "He had a good run most of the race. I put him to sleep. He came out a bit deeper than I wanted and worked into it like he was going to win. He probably felt the ground a little but it was a good honest run."
7th DISTINCTLY SECRET (Kerrin McEvoy): "He got back and relaxed really well. I thought he was going to run a place on the corner. He ran the trip out strongly. It was a good run."
8th YAKAMA (Michael Rodd): "Very dour but she was very good."
9th HUGS DANCER (Dean McKeown): "The Aussie horses were too smart over the first six furlongs (1200m). He was off the bit and I was trying to keep in touch. I made my run early but he didn't show the same dash as in the Caulfield Cup."
10th BIG PAT (Peter Mertens): "The winner was just in front of me but when they are running 34 seconds for the last 600m, that is not his style. It was a great effort to get a top-10 finish."
11th FRIGHTENING (Shane Dye): "He had a nice run but is six months away from being a really good stayer. He was a bit close but had every chance."
12th MR PRUDENT (Damien Oliver): "He was with Makybe Diva on the bend but the old boy's legs weren't as quick as some of the younger horses' legs. He worked home steadily but couldn't match her acceleration."
13th AIN'T SEEN NOTHIN' (Craig Newitt): "She didn't run the two miles (3200m) out. She raced handy and I thought she was a winning chance."
14th TUMERIC (Brett Prebble): "Lacked the class."
15th COUNTY TYRONE (Jim Cassidy): "Had the perfect run but didn't stay the two miles."
16th BOLD BARD (Reece Wheeler): "He had a lovely run but everything else let down better than him."
17th HOLY ORDERS (David Condon): "He never really travelled. He likes to get into a rhythm."
18th FAWAZ (Stephen Baster): "A nice run but probably didn't stay the distance."
19th DEBBEN (Clare Lindop): "I followed Pentastic and when he got going I was left flat-footed. She worked home nicely but will be better next year."
20th PIACHAY (Matt Pumpa): "Went too keen and didn't finish it off."
21st MILLSTREET (Patrick Payne): "He went nice in front. He just failed to quicken and didn't stay."
22nd SCHUMPETER (Corey Brown): "Every chance."
23rd and last MAMOOL (Frankie Dettori): "He felt sore pulling up in the shoulder. He started to wobble so I got off. He relaxed good but you wouldn't expect him to finish tailed off. Whether he has pulled a muscle or not I don't know yet."
AAP
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/11/04/1067708216064.html
Cup planning rewarded with a perfect ride
By Darren Beadman
November 5, 2003
Glen Boss walked off Flemington racecourse early yesterday morning supremely confident and, more importantly, calm. The jockey knew what was at stake.
Having snared the Sydney Cup and The Metropolitan in the past seven months, Boss was intent on adding the one that means the most to his list of successes.
As we walked from our pre-race day inspection, Boss talked about Makybe Diva and an inspired move trainer David Hall had made in taking his cup mount to Werribee for a gallop on its course proper on Saturday morning.
Boss knew the trainer had the five-year-old mare primed for a race that requires superior conditioning and no setbacks. Knowing there had been none of the latter, Boss knew it was up to him.
Hall and his tireless staff at the Flemington stable had presented him with a horse that could win the Melbourne Cup. Boss knew it, and wasn't about to let anyone down. More importantly, he wasn't going to let himself down.
And he heeded the early warnings. The pattern of racing yesterday had everyone taking off about 700 metres from home.
Following the third race, Boss returned to the jockeys' room and apologised to me. It had been nothing serious, but he had pushed out underneath my mount a long way from home and my reply was: "Don't do it in the cup or you cannot win."
He laughed. But then he went out four races later and rode the perfect race. It's easy to understand why Boss's credits now include a formidable trio of major staying races.
What's more, Boss held his nerve when the Melbourne Cup's version of a blast furnace reached its peak.
From barrier 14, Boss positioned himself in the right place at the right time - in fact, all the time. With Godolphin's Millstreet making sure it was a true staying test by bowling along up front, Boss was talking to Makybe Diva all the way.
The mare settled just worse than midfield and was one off the fence. Soothing words from Boss seemed to put Makybe Diva to sleep. The backmarkers made moves around the outside, charging to the 800m mark. But Boss sat cool.
He could easily have had a rush of blood - we've all done it before. But he has learnt from previous mistakes, and it was evident the plan hatched with Hall and owner Tony Santic would be followed to the letter.
And there was no need to panic. As Boss stated, he was in the zone. The runs came in the straight and it was a matter of not going before he was ready.
It is a sensational feeling, one I had on Saintly in the cup of 1996.
Boss never had to ask the mare for an effort until inside the last 300m. The only concern was to finish off the race in front.
The last 100m would have seemed like an eternity. Am I going to hang on or is something going to arrive out of the blue? You're never home in a Melbourne Cup until correct weight is declared.
But Boss made sure nothing was left to chance. It was a patient, heady ride, which required a jockey committed to the cause. All the hard work had paid off.
The jockey played his role to perfection and Hall's single-minded belief in his own horsemanship was rewarded.
Santic has put a lot of money into the wonderful game.
And Glen Boss rewarded him with the ride of his life.
As told to Craig Young
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/11/04/1067708215989.html
MELBOURNE CUP VIDEOS from NZ (http://www.xtra.co.nz/broadband/0,,10598-2798218-300,00.html)
FASHIONS ON THE FIELD
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MURRAY BELL
The Jockey Club has wasted an opportunity by not sending members of its marketing department to the Melbourne Cup meeting, where they could have learned how an international racing leader goes about selling and marketing its top-of-the-line product.
The marketing and promotional arms of the Jockey Club are home to some serious talent, but it is arguable they have lived a largely sheltered life in a jurisdiction where racing is the king of sports, and genuine competition for the leisure and gambling dollar is relatively thin on the ground.
The Jockey Club has repeatedly shown it thinks international experience is a positive thing for members of other departments such as the handicapping section.
It wouldn't be a bad thing for the marketing and promotional people, either, who could learn a thing or two from their Australian counterparts.
From racenet.
The Godolphin trained Mamool who started favourite in the 2003 Melbourne Cup, but finished last, has been diagnosed with a fractured fetlock of the right hind leg.
Godolphin Manager Simon Crisford, speaking from the Duabi offices, confirmed this afternoon:
"He pulled up lame in the right hind leg after the race and X-rays have confirmed that he has a fracture to the fetlock, which occurred during the race.
"It's just one of those freak accidents that happen in racing.
"He'll come home to Dubai on Tuesday and we will continue to monitor him over the next few months.
"We have no real prognosis of the future with him and won't do until early next year."
Sydney punter's A$2.6m lucky day
14.11.2003 0.13 am
A Sydney punter collected A$2.6 million after a TAB operator incorrectly entered his trifecta bet on the Melbourne Cup.
The punter phoned a A$6 trifecta 20 times for the winning combination of Makybe Diva, She's Archie and Jardine's Lookout. The trifecta was mistakenly entered 203 times by the operator. As the customer chose not to have his bets read back to him he was forced to honour the bet win or lose.
The Hilton sister act
November 14, 2003
The Hilton sisters are gone but certainly not forgotten. They have left us wondering not only what they actually do, but also how they drove the whole city into a Hilton frenzy during the Melbourne Cup carnival.
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During their sensational visit, the sisters - Nicky, 19, and Paris, 22 - did everything expected of two blonde, billionaire, New York celebrities, and more. They wore a wardrobe consisting of skimpy frocks, they had a string of pouting, leggy front-page photographs, and at least one controversial TV appearance.
There were continual innuendo-laden tales of late-night debauchery in bars, timely reports of an amateur sex video from New York, and a fruity liaison with Robert "Millsy" Mills from Australian Idol.
The trip epitomised the Hiltons' elusive fame. They are outrageous and scantily-clad, their fame fuelled entirely by a voracious media. They are equally attractive to both tabloid and more serious media for entirely different reasons. Like Pamela Anderson, they embody modern trash culture.
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Paris Hilton kisses a dolphin during a visit to Sea World theme park in Surfers Paradise, Queensland
They needn't actually do anything - neither Hilton, as heiresses to the hotel fortune, has ever had a job. They simply feed off worldwide image saturation, famous only for being famous.
"We've never seen anything quite like it before," said Simon Francis, director of corporate development for the Seven network, who sponsored the Hiltons' trip to Australia for the Melbourne Cup. "The press interest they generated was unprecedented."
The Hiltons' visit had eerie parallels with the arrival, in 1965, of model Jean Shrimpton at the cup in a daring miniskirt.
Toorak's matrons were aghast then as they were this time when the Hiltons sashayed toward the corporate marquees. Like Shrimpton, the Hiltons were invited to Melbourne purely to glamorise the Melbourne Cup.
But Richard Squire, the former Hollywood celebrity minder charged with looking after the sisters in Melbourne, claims some media were cruel. "The Age and The Australian in particular," he says. "They've had a hammering and they're really disappointed." Squire says that such coverage is "one sure-fire way of making sure that celebrities don't return to Australia".
Francis says Jonathan Green's The Last Word column in The Age, which satirised the Hilton's visit, was to blame. Some realised it was satire, Francis says, but some didn't. "Other journalists who are not as savvy, especially in Sydney, reported what Jonathan wrote as fact, which was bemusing. I had to say to them ‘hello, Jonathan was having a joke at our expense'.
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"Look, the Hilton sisters are out there, they enjoy their lives, but reports of their antics were not reflective of reality."
Francis says they shifted hotels, from the Sheraton to the Park Hyatt, because of an overbooking, not because of a tantrum. And, he added, Seven did not ban Paris from seeing "Millsy", her holiday romance, who had earlier been dumped as a contestant on Australian Idol. "Tripe, rubbish. She can see who she wants."
Paris and Nicky left Melbourne this week, flying home via Los Angeles after extending their stay by two days so Paris could model for designer Wayne Cooper on Tuesday night.
Despite having minimal modelling experience, Cooper let Paris in on his show after she asked him if she could have a go. It gave her extra licence to pout, and gave him added exposure.
Cooper says the Hiltons' peculiar fame comes through sheer wealth. "They're vivacious, cute, they love the limelight, but in the end they are celebrities through money."
Sido Kitchin, the Seven publicist who chose them for the Melbourne Cup, acknowledges they were picked for their sure-fire media appeal. Industry sources say the network forked out about $75,000 for the trip, including return airfares for the Hiltons and two assistants.
"I knew they would get great media attention," Kitchin says. "They are gorgeously glamorous, but also slightly controversial, or at least they are a little more intriguing than most celebrities because I suppose we don't know much about them.
"They are mysterious. We've seen them in New Weekly week in and week out, but we don't know much about them apart from being the Hilton heiresses.
"They are young, sexy and fresh but by no means boring. They're not afraid of high heels and high hem lines, which we knew would be terrific for the Melbourne Cup."
She agrees the reaction in Melbourne was "huge", adding up to a publicity coup for Seven, and an overwhelming return on its investment. "When you get front page coverage and people are talking about themeverywhere you go," Kitchin says, "then you know it has made an impact."
This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/11/13/1068674318491.html
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zeditave
24-11-2003, 13:32
if anyone wants links to the infamous Paris Hilton video.....
By Bill Casey
November 30, 2003
THE European method of not running a horse for six to eight weeks before a 3200-metre race such as the Melbourne Cup has fascinated Australians.
Now the smarties are saying, "Look at the results". Are these Pommie and Froggie trainers mad? They certainly have been much maligned and ridiculed by local trainers.
There always seems to be a "mystery horse". We punters seem to fall into a "European champion" or "mystery horse" every year. A Vinnie Roe, a Mamool. Or one that is reputed to be anything with good overseas form that we don't see running here.
You'd think we would rather not have the benefit of a bit of form. To see something with our own eyes. To make a decision for ourselves.
Perhaps that is why we fall in and send them out favourite for the Melbourne Cup: the mystery of it all, the hidden factor.
Most good judges claim the visitors would be better for a start before the cup. They claim this has been proved by Double Trigger, Oscar Schindler, Harbour Dues, Persian Punch and Mamool this year.
The Godolphin Stud is coming around to our way of thinking. Faithful Son had a run in the Caulfield Cup before he finished seventh to Jezabeel in 1998.
This sort of caper isn't new. People might not realise Bitalli, way back in 1923, was first up for more than six months in the cup when he started 4-1 favourite and won.
That makes a mockery of horses such as Vinnie Roe, which ran fourth last year after winning the Irish St Leger at the Curragh about six weeks before the cup.
Then there is the mystery horse. In 1950, Morse Code was near favourite for the Melbourne Cup, although he literally hadn't done anything for two years.
As soon as the weights came out for the 1950 cup, he became a plunge horse and started near favourite. His trainer Lou Robertson was a close associate of the big-time punter, the late Eric Connolly.
Was the Robertson/Morse Code link with another big punter? Fred Angles perhaps?
Morse Code had four runs before the 1950 cup and did nothing. The first three were in races up to 1600 metres. They meant sweet Fanny Adams, because Morse Code was supposed only to know how to stay.
Then he ran in the Hotham. He ran nowhere in that, too.
Morse Code had two champions to contend with in 1950 - Comic Court and Chicquita - and he finished up running third to them. He probably would have won but for being checked at the home turn.
But despite not being sighted in races before the cup, he was near the top of the betting for weeks. He eventually started at 14-1, backed from 20-1 at the call of the card the day before the cup.
He went on to win that year's Williamstown Cup. Did that mean he needed only another run before the Melbourne Cup?
He started favourite for the Melbourne Cup the next year after a more conventional preparation but fell at the home turn when about to win. He was a top horse. He won another Williamstown Cup in 1952.
So the punt could have had a fair bit to do with the unorthodox preparations.
And when you think of it, they gamble in Europe, too. Perhaps that's the reason, because the recent record of "first-uppers" in the cup has been terrible. Mystery horses haven't been in vogue, either. Smart stables have been trying it, too.
This story was found at: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/11/29/1070081594031.html
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