06/11/2016  Shatin  Race 3

HARMONY PARTNERS blundered badly at the start and then was checked away from the heels of EVEREST which shifted out after being bumped by ACCLAIMED LIGHT which shifted ground after being bumped by SOARING WYVERN. GOLDEN ACHIEVER began awkwardly, shifted in and bumped GREAT TREASURE. From wide barriers, AMAZING ALWAYS, RADIANT STEED and WORLD RECORD were steadied in the early stages and shifted across behind runners. After initially being awkwardly placed close to the heels of HAPPY BEAUTY passing the 1200 Metres, GOLDEN ACHIEVER was checked away from the heels of that horse after HAPPY BEAUTY shifted out marginally. Near the 800 Metres, HAPPY WAY WINNER was left racing wide and without cover. SOARING WYVERN was badly held up for clear running from on straightening until approaching the 200 Metres, SOARING WYVERN was then unable to obtain clear running over the final 100 Metres. C Williams (SOARING WYVERN) stated that although a tight run was available in advance of SOARING WYVERN over the concluding stages, both ROBUST MOMENTUM and MEISTERSTUECK were shifting ground at that stage and therefore he was reluctant to improve into this tight running. He said because of this he was not able to fully test SOARING WYVERN out over the concluding stages. H W Lai (GREAT TREASURE) pleaded guilty to a charge of careless riding [Rule 100(1)] in that approaching and passing the 350 Metres he permitted his mount to shift out when not clear of HAPPY WAY WINNER, resulting in that horse being checked and losing the running to which it was rightfully entitled. H W Lai was suspended from riding in races for a period to commence on Wednesday, 16 November 2016 and to expire on Monday, 21 November 2016 on which day he may resume race riding (2 Hong Kong racedays). In addition, H W Lai was fined $10,000. When questioned, Apprentice K K Chiong stated that she had been instructed to lead on SNOW SLIDER. She said the horse did not show as much early speed as she anticipated and she had to ride SNOW SLIDER along for a considerable distance to clear runners to its inside and it was not until near the 1300 Metres that she was able to desist from riding the horse along. She said it was apparent to her that MEISTERSTUECK was being ridden along to obtain the lead as that horse showed more natural early speed than SNOW SLIDER. She said she felt that she would have had to ride SNOW SLIDER aggressively to prevent MEISTERSTUECK from crossing SNOW SLIDER and, given the amount of work she had done on the horse in the early stages, she believed it would be in the horse’s best interests to steady SNOW SLIDER and then shift to the outside of MEISTERSTUECK. She said after being crossed by MEISTERSTUECK, SNOW SLIDER commenced to travel keenly and when she attempted to shift to the outside of MEISTERSTUECK passing the 1000 Metres, HAPPY BEAUTY maintained its position to her outside and this resulted in SNOW SLIDER having to continue to race behind MEISTERSTUECK. Apprentice Chiong was told that whilst the Stewards accepted that she had to ride SNOW SLIDER hard for some distance in the early stages, on this occasion the interests of SNOW SLIDER would have been better served by allowing the horse to race to the inside of MEISTERSTUECK and forcing that horse to go forward of SNOW SLIDER rather than steadying her mount. When SNOW SLIDER attempted to shift to the outside of MEISTERSTUECK, HAPPY BEAUTY became unbalanced when bumped. ROBUST MOMENTUM, which was following SNOW SLIDER, was inconvenienced in consequence. A veterinary inspection of SNOW SLIDER immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. A veterinary inspection of RADIANT STEED immediately following the race including an endoscopic examination showed a substantial amount of blood in the horse's trachea. Before being allowed to race again, RADIANT STEED will be subjected to an official veterinary examination. ROBUST MOMENTUM, GREAT TREASURE and EVEREST were sent for sampling.