Breeding & Racing in Germany
David Conolly-Smith: www.galoppfoto.de - Frank SorgeIn order to be of assistance to our growing number of readers from abroad, we are with immediate effect publishing in every issue of Turf Times an English page, giving in compact form all the latest racing and breeding news from Germany in English. It will be written by the well-known racing journalist David Conolly-Smith, who has lived in Germany for many years. He is the German representative of the International Racing Bureau and writes regularly on German racing and breeding for the Racing Post, Irish Field, EBN, TRC and many other publications.
One month into the turf season now and German racing standards were raised another notch with the two Group races in Cologne. Again in NRW area where Cologne is situated the rains came and the track rode heavy which some horses found difficult going. Probably the weather was also one of the factors that the attendance was only 6.500 whereas in the east on the smaller Dresden morning programme over 8.000 racegoers found their way through the turnstiles on a cold but at least dry day.
Last weekends racing in Dusseldorf featured Germanys first Group race of the year. The Frühjahrs-Meile (1mile) for 4-year-olds and upwards attracted a strong field of twelve including two from France, Gamestop (Lope de Vega) from Christophe Ferland´s stable and from Yann Barberot´s stable the favorite at 3/I for the event, American Flag (Wootton Bassett). Whereas Gamestop ran a game race to finish fourth having had every chance at the furlong marker, American Flag never really got involved to finished fifth behind a German trio.
This was one of the weekends when I thought I would not have much to write about. But surprise, surprise even with moderate racing at Mannheim, a small German country track and then an average card in Mulheim an der Ruhr, there was just some interesting results. First to Mannheim, where its main event was a 13.000 € Handicap, but it was the winners of this race, Woody Wood, a 6-year-old Maxios son, winning for the sixth time in his career. He has become a real favourite of the German racing public and actually has over 1500 followers on Facebook. The win also gave his trainer, ex top jockey Andreas Suborics, his 200. winner as a trainer and his young and talented Italian born apprentice Andrea Ricupa his second success on the track.
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Well last weekend’s racing ended as we expected it would. Berlin-Hoppegarten opened its gates to 12.500 racing fans and friends, and they were treated to some fine racing so early in the turf season. It’s not often anywhere in the world, that you see probably the two best 4-year-olds in training in a country, take each other on in a "Listed Race" in the first weeks. But in Germany, the first two from last year’s Derby did exactly that and as expected the finish in this 5-runner race involved the two principals. In the Preis von Dahlwitz over 2000 meters (1m2f), the Derby winner and freshly crowned Horse of the year 2023 Fantastic Moon (Sea the Moon) was marginally preferred in the betting market over his old rival Mr Hollywood (Iquitos).
It´s nice to get back writing this article again as it means we have got through the winter and can look forward to hopefully another exciting grass season.Dortmund kept us going as usual in Winter and though it cared for the German racing´s needs to keep the sport visual, nine race days throughout the whole winter, small uncompetitive fields, bad horses strung out like three-mile chasers doesn´t make much for entertainment, add also what the Americans would declare a very sloppy track and it becomes a null as a watchable sport. Unfortunately, that is the situation in German Racing at the moment and if Winter racing is to continue really it needs a fibresandtrack (PSF) as soon as possible but the sport has many other urgent needs apart from a winter sport track.
With this being the first issue of the New Year, I would like to start off by wishing all our readers a happy and prosperous 2024. One of the unfinished pieces of the 2023 race season, was the trainers championship which went down to the last day's racing in Dortmund on the 30th of December. It was very quickly decided though as Peter Schiergen who had a three-win lead over nearest rival Henk Grewe, produced the first winner on the card. Schael (Isfahan) ran out a very very easy 10 length winner in the hands of apprentice Shuichi Terachi, giving Schiergen his 7th German Trainers title. The 2024 racing got underway on the 8th of January in Dortmund. The first winner of the new season was Bavaria (Kingsman) who battled hard to win by a head. Erika Mäder was the successful trainer and Thore Hammer Hansen rode her to victory.
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The end of the year is closing in fast now, but we will have two race meetings to see the 2023 season out. Weather permitting on Boxing Day, Mulheim will see a final grass meeting and then on the 30th of December, Dortmund on its sand track will bring the curtain down. Most things have been already decided with Andrasch Starke, the leading jockey this year with 79 winners a full 23 more than his closest rival Rene Piechulek. The leading Breeders award was taken by Gestuet Karlshof ahead of Gestuet Fährhof and the leading owner was Liberty Racing 2021. The syndicate racing and bloodstock members hit gold this year with Winning Spirit (Soldier Hollow) winning twice, one at listed level before finishing second in the Italian Derby and running 4th in his owners second colors in the German Derby in Hamburg behind the first colors on the winner Fantastic Moon (Sea the Moon).
The last couple of weekends in our sport reflects in my opinion the general state of affairs in German Racing. Let’s go back two weekends ago and the last time we had racing in Germany, Munich’s last Raceday on the 25th of November somehow passed an inspection an hour before the first race after a blanket of snow covered the track. Now the track was probably raceable and safe enough for horse and rider, but it was definitely very heavy conditions for flat bred horses with snow lying on already heavy ground. But it got the go ahead and the Munich racecourse held its last highlight the Listed Isfahan Münchner Herbstpreis over 2200 meters (1m3f). The winner here Atoso (Guilliani) handled conditions best of all and came home two lengths clear of Palatina (Isfahan) in the hands of a very competent young lady Lilli-Marie Engels giving both horse and rider their first taste of Black type success.
weiterlesen »Last weekend saw Krefeld host Germany´s last group race for the 2023 season. The Großen Preis der SWK AG – Herzog von Ratibor – Rennen, run over the 1700 meters (1m 1/2f) trip for the two-year-olds, saw 6 horses go to post in the Group III event. Unfortunately, there has been a lot of rain of late in Germany and the ground in Krefeld rode on the heavy side.
The heavy ground proved no problem whatsoever for the Sea the Moon colt, Wonderful Boy as he went pillar to post for a very easy 10 length victory in the hands of Champions Jockey elect Andrasch Starke. The winner was followed home by Novemberrose (Camelot) who in turn was 16 lengths in front of Flamingo Moon (Sea the Moon). One can see by the winning margins just how testing the ground was for these two-year-olds and they were spread out like a 2-mile chase.
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Last weekend saw Krefeld host Germany´s last group race for the 2023 season. The Herzog von Ratibor–Rennen, run over the 1700 meters (1m 1/2f) trip for the two-year-olds, saw 6 horses go to post in the Group III event. Unfortunately, there has been a lot of rain of late in Germany and the ground in Krefeld rode on the heavy side.
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Last WeekendsMunich race programme included the running of the last Group I race in Europe this year. The Grosser Allianz Preis von Bayern, one of Germanys late turf seasons highlights over the 2400 meters distance, was disappointingly contested by only four horses. With rain in the area the days before the event and the forecasted soft ground, the Godolphin English challenger Rebels Romance was withdrawn.
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Last weekend’s meeting at Berlin-Hoppegarten, their final meet for the 2023 season, including the Group III, Silbernes Pferd, over the 3000 meters stayers’ trip. With heavy rain on the Saturday evening and again on Raceday Sunday, the ground was pretty testing. The rain and the conditions though proved no difficulties for the much improved 4-year-old Lordano (Adlerflug) as the 15/10 favorite ran out an easy 3 ½ lengths winner to stamp himself as probably Germany´s best staying prospect at present.
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