Royal Ascot nightmare as TV star kicked by horse and misses big race moment
One of the rising stars of US racing broadcasting was forced to miss her big race moment as a result of a freak injury. Andie Biancone, 28, has soared to fame covering US racing's biggest events including the Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup as a roving reporter and analyst for FanDuelTV.
And while the network has a team on site for the royal meeting, Biancone was due to make her debut at the prestigious event as a groom, leading up a horse trained by her dual Arc-winning father Patrick.
Until he left Europe 35 years ago, Patrick Biancone trained one of the most powerful strings in world racing as head trainer to Daniel Wildenstein, based in France.
He won back-to-back editions of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe with Sagace and All Along in 1983 and 1984. He also trained the great Triptych to win the Irish Champion Stakes in 1987 and Coronation Cup in 1988.
At the height of his fame he moved to Hong Kong for a period and the 73-year-old now operates a boutique stable in Florida which was represented by Lennilu in the Queen Mary Stakes.
Andie joined him in Newmarket and was in the saddle for the grey or roan filly's daily exercise while Lennilu trained and was supposed to lead up the two-year-old at Ascot on Wednesday.
But she instead arrived at the meeting on crutches after a painful incident on the gallops. Her sister Marie led the horse up instead.
'Everything had gone swimmingly well the entire week,' said Andie. 'Lennilu handled every obstacle thrown at her with perfection.
'But yesterday after a little easy gallop, we were pulling up, she was great but her company horse came next to her and spooked at a massive truck that had come by.
'He just bucked straight over his head and ended up kicking me in the foot. I was sobbing. Lennilu packed me home, a 20 minute walk back to the barn through traffic and everything.'
She went on: 'I got it scanned in Newmarket. They said it looked pretty clean, just soft tissue but I will probably get a second opinion back in the states. I can't put weight on it right now.'
Lennilu ensured the trip from Florida was not wasted as she stayed on well to finish third behind the Aidan O'Brien-trained winner True Love.
Patrick Biancone, saddling his first Royal Ascot runner since 1988, said: 'She is only a baby. I liked the fact she fought back at the end. We will go home and give her a break and then we'll see her in Del Mar for the Breeders' Cup.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Powys County Times
12 hours ago
- Powys County Times
Jim Goldie favouring Ascot date for American Affair
Jim Goldie is leaning towards Champions Day at Ascot over the Breeders' Cup for his stable star American Affair. The King Charles III Stakes victor was one of the most popular winners at Royal Ascot and had Goldie dreaming of a trip to America. However, a setback in the days after Ascot put plans on hold for the five-year-old and he is still only in light work, which makes Goldie think he should target just one race. 'We're still in pre-season mode with him, if that makes sense, we're planning towards October time so we've eight to 10 weeks,' said Goldie. 'We haven't made a final decision about America yet, but I think it's more likely that we go to Ascot with him as I don't want to do both as that would mean rushing him. 'Obviously the Ascot race is six furlongs and he might just be a five-furlong specialist, but if he's not that's another string to his bow.' Goldie finished second in the 2012 British Champions Sprint with Hawkeyethenoo while Jack Dexter was beaten just a neck the following year, so the handler is eager to finally secure the title. 'The point about Ascot is I've seen it, been there and done it but not quite won it! I've come close a few times and we've had horses run well there whereas going halfway around the world, it could be too firm for him,' he said. 'The option is there next year if we need it. We know how his form is stacking up as the horse we beat easy twice this year (Jm Jungle) is now going for the Nunthorpe after winning at Goodwood. 'I do like Champions Day. Jack Dexter won the race after Frankel there but nobody remembers as everyone was still talking about Frankel! 'I had it in my head we were going to America but I wanted a prep-race and I could only see two. The Ayr Gold Cup or Ascot, and Ascot was only 10 days or so before. 'I spoke to Tadhg O'Shea who rides all over the world and he said you want to ideally get them over there in plenty of time to acclimatise, so it then became one or the other so that's where we are. I'd think it's Ascot but I'll sit on the fence as long as I can.'
North Wales Chronicle
a day ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Rain – or lack of it – remains a pain for connections of Anmaat
Last season's Champion Stakes hero has only been seen twice this season, pushing Los Angeles close in the Tattersalls Gold Cup in Ireland before finishing best of the rest behind Ombudsman in the Prince of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot. Having since sidestepped the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown, trainer Owen Burrows and owners Shadwell are keen to run him at York, but underfoot conditions could again scupper his participation. 'We're desperate to run him, but he won't be there if it's very fast ground and it doesn't sound like there's a lot of rain around,' said Shadwell's racing manager Angus Gold. 'I was going to talk to Owen before confirmations. He says the horse is bouncing and he really wants to run him, but we've got the autumn ahead of us and at some stage the weather must turn. 'I fear we may not be there next week.' Should Anmaat miss York, his next option appears to be be the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown next month ahead of the planned defence of his Champion Stakes crown at Ascot in October. Definitely on course for York, however, is Delacroix, with Aidan O'Brien still gobsmacked by the manner of his Sandown victory, where he reeled in Ombudsman from a seemingly impossible position. 'It was the most amazing thing I ever saw, I think. He could not win at the two-furlong marker, everything had gone sideways on him, and when Ryan (Moore) got him out he still had too much ground to make up,' the Ballydoyle trainer told Sky Sports Racing. 'I think his times suggested no horse has ever covered the last two furlongs in an Eclipse the way he did and he won with his ears pricked. 'In the Derby he got taken out at the top of the hill and Ryan said it was race over straight away. We found it very easy to put a line through it, we thought a mile and a quarter was his distance and he'd two lovely runs before the Derby over a mile and a quarter.'
Rhyl Journal
a day ago
- Rhyl Journal
Lambourn still ‘definitely' in the Voltigeur mix, says O'Brien
The Australia colt emulated his sire by striking Classic gold at Epsom and the Curragh in June and is now ready to step up his preparations for a major autumn target. For a long time another Classic bid in the St Leger at Doncaster seemed likely, but with stablemate Scandinavia throwing his hat into that particular ring with victory in the Goodwood Cup, Lambourn may instead be bound for Paris and a tilt at the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Lambourn digs deep in the closing stages to become a dual Derby winner for @Ballydoyle Ryan Moore | Aidan O'Brien — The Curragh Racecourse (@curraghrace) June 29, 2025 When asked whether Lambourn could step back to Group Two level on the Knavesmire, O'Brien told Sky Sports Racing: 'He could, we've a lot of horses kind of ready for the Voltigeur, some are just about ready and some are probably not going to make it. 'Lambourn definitely could. We'll see how he is and his next target then can be either the Leger or the Arc. I think the lads are thinking Scandinavia is going to be trained for the Leger now – if the ground was nice he would go there and Lambourn wouldn't go there, but if it was the other way Lambourn would go there. 'Lambourn probably needs a race between now and the Leger or the Arc and it (Great Voltigeur) is a race that could suit him. 'He's a straightforward, honest, no-nonsense horse. He does what he has to do and doesn't do any more.' Another Ballydoyle inmate with Arc aspirations is last year's third Los Angeles, who made an excellent start to his campaign with successive wins at the Curragh but could finish only fifth as a hot favourite for the Prince of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot. Having since enjoyed a mid-season break, he is set to return to competitive action in the Newbridge Silverware Royal Whip Stakes at the Curragh on Saturday. 'We were thinking he could go to the Royal Whip and go and improve a lot,' O'Brien added. 'He's had a break since Ascot and we were thinking if he went to the Curragh this weekend he could go to the Prix Foy as an Arc trial or he could go to the Irish Champion Stakes as an Arc trial. 'All those things are open, but he's just starting back and he'll be running with no pressure win, lose or draw (this weekend). We'd just like to get a run into him to get him ready for the autumn. 'The Arc has been his target all the time. We tightened him up a bit too much in the Prince of Wales's Stakes and because of that he just had to have a little rest. He's come back happy, but will progress a lot before the Arc.' O'Brien also had news of Henri Matisse, last seen finishing third in the Sussex Stakes behind shock 150-1 winner Qirat. O'Brien said: 'He'll go probably for the Prix du Moulin. Goodwood was a little bit of a disaster – it was really only a four-furlong dash in the second half of the race. 'It was one of those races that is hard to work out, but we were very happy with the run, Ryan (Moore) was very happy with him and we think he's still progressing. 'We haven't seen the best of him yet, we think.'
