Irish Champions Weekend brand ambassador, Victoria Smurfit
The Iinaugural Irish Champions Weekend is a two-day meeting featuring ten Group races (Five Group 1 races) and will be run at Leopardstown this Saturday and the Curragh on Sunday as a joint venture showcasing Ireland’s two premier Flat racecourses.
The festival features two iconic fixtures the QIPCO Irish Champion Stakes and the Palmerstown House Estate Irish St. Leger and is one of the richest weekends on the international racing calendar with prize money of over €3 million over the two days.
On Saturday at Leopardstown, the Goffs Champions Sale kicks off the day prior to the first race by holding a horses-in-training sale featuring a selection of highly-rated flat horses.
The horse auction will take place at approximately 1pm at the racecourse and will feature 20 elite horses-in-training, mirroring the Goffs London Sale this summer, where the top lot was sold for £1.3million.
The QIPCO Irish Champion Stakes is one of the highest-rated races in the world and has a prize fund of €1 million. It has been won in the last five years by The Fugue, Snow Fairy, So You Think, Cape Blanco and Sea the Stars.
The day also hosts the Group 1 Coolmore Fastnet Rock Matron Stakes which last year was won by La Collina giving jockey Chris Hayes his first Group 1 win.
Given the calibre of the races, no doubt the style stakes will be high over the weekend. Los-Angeles based Irish actress, Victoria Smurfit, will jet in especially as the official Irish Champions Weekend Ambassador.
The day’s stakes races:
QIPCO Irish Champion Stakes (Group 1)
Coolmore Fastnet Rock Matron Stakes (Group 1)
Clipper Boomerang Mile (Group 2)
John Deere Juvenile Turf Stakes (Group 3)
KPMG Enterprise Stakes (Group 3
Sunday at The Curragh
Hurricane Fly – on parade on Sunday
The day will start with the Curragh Thoroughbred Trail during the morning before racing which will give racegoers a behind-the-scenes look into the operations of some of the world’s most famous trainers and stud farms such as Johnny Murtagh, Dessie Hughes, John Oxx and Kildangan Stud.
Throughout the afternoon the attractions will include a Parade of Champions featuring Hurricane Fly, Jezki, Quevega and Moscow Flyer and the feature race is the Palmerstown House Estate Irish St. Leger.
The Moyglare Stud Kids Zone will provide a variety of exciting free entertainment throughout the day for younger racegoers with shows featuring well known Disney characters, while a performance by the Celtic Tenors will bring the raceday to a close.
The day’s stakes races:
Palmerstown House Estate Irish St Leger (Group 1)
Goffs Vincent O’Brien National Stakes (Group 1)
Moyglare Stud Stakes (Group 1)
Moyglare Jewels Blandford Stakes (Group 2)
Derrinstown Stud Flying Five Stakes (Group 3)
