The Curragh racecourse is a new venue for the Flat Season finale on Sunday, when the season’s roll of honour will show Colin Keane, Aidan O’Brien and Mrs Sue Magnier all retaining their respective jockeys trainers and owners titles.
There will be free admission to all racegoers to celebrate the final day of the 2023 Irish flat racing season.
“We are delighted to host the final fixture of the Irish flat racing season and as a gesture of thanks to all those who have supported us throughout the year, we will be offering free admission to everyone on the day,” said Racecourse CEO Brian Kavanagh.
“It has been a flat season to savour with many standout performances on the track including Classic winners Paddington, Tahiyra, Auguste Rodin, Savethelastdance and Eldar Eldarov. We look forward to another wonderful day at the track to complete a fantastic season for The Curragh.”
Group 1 success eluded Colin Keane during the year but he comfortably retained the title of champion jockey, gaining a stranglehold on the championship in late August and powering home for his fourth successive title and his fifth in all.
Keane shared Group 2 success with Ger Lyons as Zarinsk won the Romanised Minstrel Stakes at Leopardstown in July having won a Group 3 with the same horse on two occasions earlier in the season.
Keane also rode Group 3 winners for Aidan O’Brien, Michael O’Callaghan, Willie Mullins, Henry de Bromhead and Noel Meade and partnered the Richard Fahey-trained Native American to win the valuable Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sale Stakes at the Curragh at Irish Champions Festival in September.
For the second year running, Billy Lee is the championship runner-up with Dylan Browne McMonagle, the champion apprentice for the past two seasons, on course to take third place. His current total of 57 winners is already a personal best. With tallies of 54, 53, 51 and 47 winners, Ben Coen, Gary Carroll, Ryan Moore and Ronan Whelan respectively have also bettered their previous best this term.
For the 26th time, Aidan O’Brien is Ireland’s champion trainer. A multiple Group 1 winner once again, Aidan won at the highest level in Ireland with Auguste Rodin taking both the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby and the Kingdom Of Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes. Paddington won the Tattersalls Irish 2,000 Guineas while also at the Curragh, Savethelastdance won the Juddmonte Irish Oaks, Luxembourg captured the Tattersalls Gold Cup with the Goffs Vincent O’Brien National Stakes going the way of Henry Longfellow.
Sue Magnier is Ireland’s champion owner once again. She narrowly gets the better of her fellow Coolmore partners Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith and Georg von Opel’s Westerberg Ireland to retain the title.
“Our horses campaigning competitively on the international stage reflects so well on our racing and breeding industry and on Ireland itself,” said Horse racing ireland CEO Suzanne Eade who will be joining us for the Annual Women in Sport conference in Dublin next week.
“In the coming days, the Breeders’ Cup and Melbourne Cup present the opportunity for Irish-trained horses to shine once again and as we count down to those meetings, I congratulate our 2023 champions and thank everyone who contributed to another wonderful season.”
