Belle Miraaj named Southland horse of year

Belle Miraaj, who will not race this season because of a minor injury, is Southland thoroughbred racing’s Horse of the Year.

She won the title at the annual Southland Racing and Thoroughbred Breeders’ Awards in Invercargill on Sunday night.

The four-year-old Iffraaj mare is in the spelling paddock after bruis- ing a front tendon while playing in her loose box this month.

Ascot Park trainer Gay Robinson is giving Belle Miraaj a long break to ensure the injury heals completely and to allow the galloper time to mature more.

She will probably resume training in the winter. Winning the Southland Horse of the Year Award with Belle Miraaj was a ‘‘huge’’ thrill, said Robinson, who shares the mare’s ownership with John Dooley, of Heddon Bush.

Belle Mirage, who was also named Three-Year-Old of the Year, had a proud record last season, with wins in the Southland and Gore Guineas, thirds in the Warstep Stakes and New Zealand Bloodstock Airfreight Stakes, both at Riccarton; and a fifth in the Group I New Zealand Oaks at Trentham. ‘‘Both Guineas wins were pretty special,’’ Robinson said.

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Belle Miraaj

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