Queen’s Plate field filled with quality

SOUTH AFRICA’s most prestigious weight-for age race, the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate, takes place at Kenilworth Racecourse tomorrow.

The 1600m race will see 14 top horses and jockeys competing for the R1 million prize.

The field will include Durban July champion Pomodoro and 2013 J&B Met favourite Jackson.

Defending Queen’s Plate champion trainer Justin Snaith will return this year with Run For It and will hope that his new horse will be able to emulate his champion of last year Gimmethegreenlight.

However, at odds of 12/10, the favourite for the title will be Variety Club, currently rated as the best horse over 1600m in the country.

The favourite will have a hard time in the race though after being drawn in gate 15.

The field was reduced from 15 to 14 last week following the scratching of Snaith’s second entry in the race, Changingoftheguard.

Winning the Queen’s Plate will however require a combination of strong performances from both the horse and the jockey.

Jockey Bernard Fayd’herbe, who is a four-time winner of the Queen’s Plate, said: “In the big races such as the L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate, a leading jockey needs to time the run perfectly and master the big match temperament.”

He added that a lot of preparation is needed to win the race, which includes knowing your own horse and the opponents’ horses.

“After all, you can lose a race with one wrong move. In these big races, big players are involved with huge investments and it is important that you keep as professional as possible at all times. I believe that it is not always natural ability but also hard work and, most importantly, a healthy state of mind that separates you from the rest.”

Fayd’herbe will be competing in this years event riding What A Winter, who is the highest-ranked thoroughbreed in South Africa.

He added: “It is also important to get to know the horse you are riding and to study your opposition in order to work out the best tactics for the race. Racehorses travel at 70km/h and when you come off it is like coming off a motorbike, so it is important to be focused every second of a race.”

The Queen’s Plate will take place tomorrow at 4.45pm.