Community Yearbook 2020

NEWBURY RACECOURSE

Newbury Weekly News

Thursday, 16 January, 2020

Arabian delights

THE Dubai Inter national Arabian Races a t Newbury Racecourse attracted a crowd of nearly 7,500 racing fans. Staged under the pa tronage of Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, de puty ruler of Dubai and UAE minister of finance , the free-to-attend raceday is widely regarded as the pinnac le of the global Arabian racing season, boasting no fewer than four Group 1 contests. Off the track there were prize draws and competitions , including the Arabian Rainbow competition, which had pupils from 14 schools in and around West Berkshire decorate near life-siz ed models of Arabian horses. Hungerford Primary School was the winner of a £2,500 priz e, chosen by Sheikh Hamdan. The competition f or the best dressed lady on the day was won by Tasmin Wooldridge, who, together with a friend, will be jetting of f to Dubai for a luxury thr ee-night stay at one of Roda’s five-star properties with flights courtesy of Emirates Airline.

De Rasher Counter on his way to victory

Rasher ’s romp

Pure Madness! NEWBURY Racecoursebecame a House of Fun as a crowd of 22,000 enjoyed music legends Madness’ 80-minute set for the Party in the Paddock, after the racing. All ages danced the night away to some of the ska band’s best-loved hits and old favourites, including It Must Be Love , Driving in My Car and Baggy Trousers . The band, led by the charismatic frontman Graham ‘Suggs’ McPherson, right , opened with their 1979 hit One Step

Crowds flocked to the Dubai International Arabian Races

Tom’s still got it LEGENDARY pop star Sir Tom Jones had a crowd of almost 23,000 people up on their feet as he belted out some of his biggest and best- loved hits at Newbury Racecourse. Seventy-nine-year-old Sir Tom rolled back the years with an energetic set after the racing, including his international hits Mama Told Me Not To Come , Delilah , It’s Not Unusual , Burnin’ Down the House , She’s a Lady and Sex Bomb . His performance followed a thrilling day of racing which featured the £250,000 Weatherbys Super Sprint. After his set, Sir Tom tweeted a video of himself performing to the crowd with the words: “I’ll never fall out of love with you. Thanks @ NewburyRacing.” Abbie Webster and Wilf Butler picked up a new iPad each for winning the best c hildren’s hat competition, while the day’s star prize – the keys to a brand new Kia Picanto 2 worth more than £11,300 – were presented to Sophie Br ookes from Cardiff.

proud that we have been able to get these horses right for the big day. It is close to home and it is so special for everybody. “We could have taken this horse to Cheltenham last year, but mentally we didn’t think he was ready for it and the owners were prepared to wait, with this as the target, so it is just magical when it comes off.” Perfect Pierre PIERRE Lapin took a big stride into the footsteps of his champion sprinter half- brother Harry Angel when he landed the Dubai Duty Free Mill Reef Stakes. The Roger Varian-trained colt captured the same prize Harry Angel won in 2016, before going on to head Europe’s sprint rankings, in clear-cut fashion over Mystery Power and Shadn .

EMMA Lavelle enjoyed the most memorable weekend of her 20-year training career when De Rasher Counter captured the £250,000 Ladbrokes Trophy at Newbury, 24 hours after stable star Paisley Park made a winning return to the track. De Rasher Counter delivered the trainer’s biggest victory over

fences with a six-lengths triumph under emerging Welsh riding talent Ben Jones. Twenty-year-old Jones belied his lack of big race experience by taking the 12-1 chance to a breakthrough triumph from The Conditional and Elegant Escape .

Beyond , which instantly drew the crowd in on their third visit

Marlborough trainer Lavelle said:“I am so

to Newbury Racecourse.

They played two equally-popular gigs at the

venue in 2009 and 2015 and showed they can still entertain with a rousing performance. The band also played My Girl and Embarrassment , before their only UK number one, House of Fun, sent the crowd into raptures. Earlier in the day, racegoers were treated to an action-packed seven races. There was success for West Ilsley trainer Mick Channon, with Pattie winning the Unibet Handicap Stakes.

Pierre Lapin

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