The punishment continues. After taking both the Derby and the Oaks, Ireland’s Aidan O’Brien stable took the St Leger with the favourite Scandinavia to give his 55 year old trainer his 9th winner and become the first trainer in modern era to take it three years in succession.
For a long while it looked as if Ireland would be giving the three home runners a total drubbing as the Derby winner Lambourn led Scandinavia, the Paddy Twomey trained Carmers and the third O’Brien player Stay True ahead of the English trio Furthur, Rahiebb and Tarriance.
Lambourn had led all the way at Epsom and set the sort of tempo here that would ensure that the last quarter mile would be a battle of attrition. Indeed he was having to dig deep soon into this pitiless four and a half furlong straight as Scandinavia came to push ahead two out with Carmers and Stay True threatening.
These last yards were the hardest. Lambourn wilted away, Carmers and then Stay True weakened and then Rahiebb who had dropped back to last rallied magnificently to come dramatically through to threaten the leader. But Scandinavia had just enough to defy him and Tom Marquand could not repeat what he had done for Aidan’s son Joseph with Galileo Chrome in 2020.
But for all the excitements on the track the most significant event of the week was the racing “strike” on Wednesday and the public emergence of the new BHA chairman Lord Allen. He came to Doncaster on Friday and for all racing’s woes he was impressively firm and yet inspiringly optimistic in both private conversation and public interview.
He was appointed in February but only confirmed his position at the start of this month and his legendary business prowess meant that to finally meet him was like a first paddock glimpse of a fabled foreign classic winner. He is a short, sharp, friendly Scotsman crackling with an energy that belies his 68 years. “The best thing about this week is that racing has shown a united front,” he said. “Before I finally took up this job I met 116 leading racing people. All agreed that things had to change but few of them wanted to do it themselves. Racing has a great community and makes a major contribution to the economy. I think our message is getting through.
Behind him was packed crowd of snappy suits and fancy frocks unsoaked by the downpours which at times reduced them to a pantomime of plastic drapes yesterday. In theory he will be committing just one day a week to the BHA chairmanship, and he was flying to America next day amidst commitments enough to make you wince. He is chairman of both Balfour Beatty and THG plc as well as the Invictus Games but was convincing in his ability to bring clarity and purpose to racing’s future. “Yes,” he said, “it has a great future but it has to be realistic”
At Doncaster Aidan O’Brien had won the featured two year old race with Puerto Rico just as he had at Leapordstown with the wide margin scorer Benvenuto Cellini. Late in the afternoon his Delacroix was expected to make it 13 wins for the Ballydoyle phenomenon and duly obliged. French star Christophe Soumillon was substituting for the injured Ryan Moore and after sitting some way off his pacemaker Mount Kilimanjaro and the veteran Royal Champion scythed across to the stands side rail to get clear and hold off the other veteran Anmaat by a decisive length with Royal Champion third
Racing has a higher profile in Ireland but while the grass in metaphorical as well as physical terms may seem greener they too face massive problems below the glittering triumphs of the Coolmore wonders and crowds at Leopardstown and particularly at the Curragh are paltry compared to the 26,000 which gave Doncaster such a buzz yesterday.
We should note that Charles Allen’s closing words on Friday were “this is the end of the beginning.” A lot, some of it pretty uncomfortable, is likely to happen before the world’s oldest classic once again lights up Doncaster next September. Let’s hope Scandinavia’s victory was a signpost to the start of something good.