No excuses from Graffard after Calandagan misses out again
A brilliant winner of the King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot last summer, the four-year-old went on to give Derby and Eclipse hero City Of Troy a run for his money in the Juddmonte International at York before suffering a narrow defeat behind Anmaat in Ascot's Champion Stakes.
Having picked up the silver medal for the third time in succession on his return to action in the Dubai Sheema Classic in late March, Calandagan was an 8-13 favourite to break his top-level duck on the Surrey Downs but again came off second-best, with Aidan O'Brien's Jan Brueghel keeping him at bay by half a length.
'I don't have any excuses. The horse had the perfect run; Mickael (Barzalona) gave him a ride with plenty of thought. Going down the hill he found himself behind Ryan (Moore, riding Jan Brueghel) and gave the horse plenty of time to balance himself,' said Graffard.
'He challenged him, probably took the lead for a moment and then just as they started to climb again, you could see that Ryan was finding more.
'He's a very talented horse who needs to win a Group One, but I'm sure he will. He always gives his best. I don't have any excuses. It was a good performance from him.'
Considering future plans, the French trainer added: 'He's in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud, don't forget he ran in Dubai so hasn't run in France this year.
'Did I do enough at home? I think he was ready, but a tough O'Brien horse beat me, a horse who will keep finding more.'
Barzalona felt Calandagan did not help his cause at the start. He said: 'He's always slowly away, we cannot manage differently with him at the start, but once he found his rhythm I was behind Ryan at Tattenham Corner and I was pretty happy to be there.
'I think I hit the front 100 yards before the line and he kind of just stayed on and got a bit tired going uphill. The O'Brien horse was just a little bit stronger today.
'I hope one day we will be able to break a little bit faster and be able to get a better position earlier, but he has his own rhythm and we'll have to deal with that for the moment.
'He's getting more mature and it's the first time he's run over this kind of different track, so he ran well.'
Seven lengths further behind in third was Marco Botti's Hong Kong Vase hero Giavellotto.
'It was a good run, but they were a couple of proper horses in front of us,' said the Newmarket handler.
'My horse has run with credit, but Aidan said they would go hard and that's the way it turned out.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Leader Live
8 hours ago
- Leader Live
Trailblazing referee Uriah Rennie dies aged 65
The Jamaica-born official grew up in Sheffield and oversaw more than 300 matches starting with his breakthrough appointment as Derby hosted Wimbledon in August 1997. The game was, however, abandoned to due floodlight failure. The Sheffield and Hallamshire County Football Association posted on X: 'We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of our former chair and trailblazing referee, Uriah Rennie. We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of our former Chair and trailblazing referee, Uriah Rennie. Uriah made history as the Premier League's first Black referee, officiating over 300 top-flight matches between 1997 and 2008. He broke down barriers, shaped our football… — Sheffield FA ⚽️ (@SHCFA) June 8, 2025 'Uriah made history as the Premier League's first black referee, officiating over 300 top-flight matches between 1997 and 2008. He broke down barriers, shaped our football community and inspired generations to come. 'Our thoughts are with Uriah's family and friends at this difficult time.' Rennie became a FIFA-listed referee in 2000 and joined the select group of professionals one year later, with his retirement coming in 2008. In November 2023 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Sheffield Hallam University for his distinguished contributions to sport and his work with South Yorkshire communities. However he told BBC News in April how, while on holiday in Turkey last year, he felt severe pain in his back and doctors discovered he had an inoperable neurological condition that left him wheelchair-bound. 'I spent a month laid on my back and another four months sitting in bed,' he said. 'They kept me in hospital until February, they found a nodule pushing on my spine and it was a rare neurological condition so it's not something they can operate on. Incredibly sad to hear of the passing of referee Uriah Rennie. A pioneer, trailblazer and a bloody good ref. Rest in peace, Ref. — Stan Collymore (@StanCollymore) June 8, 2025 'No one has told me I won't walk again, but even if someone did say that I want to be able to say I did everything I could to try.' Former Liverpool and Nottingham Forest striker Stan Collymore posted on X: 'Incredibly sad to hear of the passing of referee Uriah Rennie. A pioneer, trailblazer and a bloody good ref. Rest in peace, ref.' Rennie had been the honorary president of Sheffield side Hallam FC at the time of his death while both Sheffield United and Wednesday also paid tribute to the referee, saying the clubs' 'thoughts are with his friends and family at this time.'
North Wales Chronicle
9 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Trailblazing referee Uriah Rennie dies aged 65
The Jamaica-born official grew up in Sheffield and oversaw more than 300 matches starting with his breakthrough appointment as Derby hosted Wimbledon in August 1997. The game was, however, abandoned to due floodlight failure. The Sheffield and Hallamshire County Football Association posted on X: 'We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of our former chair and trailblazing referee, Uriah Rennie. We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of our former Chair and trailblazing referee, Uriah Rennie. Uriah made history as the Premier League's first Black referee, officiating over 300 top-flight matches between 1997 and 2008. He broke down barriers, shaped our football… — Sheffield FA ⚽️ (@SHCFA) June 8, 2025 'Uriah made history as the Premier League's first black referee, officiating over 300 top-flight matches between 1997 and 2008. He broke down barriers, shaped our football community and inspired generations to come. 'Our thoughts are with Uriah's family and friends at this difficult time.' Rennie became a FIFA-listed referee in 2000 and joined the select group of professionals one year later, with his retirement coming in 2008. In November 2023 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Sheffield Hallam University for his distinguished contributions to sport and his work with South Yorkshire communities. However he told BBC News in April how, while on holiday in Turkey last year, he felt severe pain in his back and doctors discovered he had an inoperable neurological condition that left him wheelchair-bound. 'I spent a month laid on my back and another four months sitting in bed,' he said. 'They kept me in hospital until February, they found a nodule pushing on my spine and it was a rare neurological condition so it's not something they can operate on. Incredibly sad to hear of the passing of referee Uriah Rennie. A pioneer, trailblazer and a bloody good ref. Rest in peace, Ref. — Stan Collymore (@StanCollymore) June 8, 2025 'No one has told me I won't walk again, but even if someone did say that I want to be able to say I did everything I could to try.' Former Liverpool and Nottingham Forest striker Stan Collymore posted on X: 'Incredibly sad to hear of the passing of referee Uriah Rennie. A pioneer, trailblazer and a bloody good ref. Rest in peace, ref.' Rennie had been the honorary president of Sheffield side Hallam FC at the time of his death while both Sheffield United and Wednesday also paid tribute to the referee, saying the clubs' 'thoughts are with his friends and family at this time.'
Glasgow Times
9 hours ago
- Glasgow Times
Trailblazing referee Uriah Rennie dies aged 65
The Jamaica-born official grew up in Sheffield and oversaw more than 300 matches starting with his breakthrough appointment as Derby hosted Wimbledon in August 1997. The game was, however, abandoned to due floodlight failure. The Sheffield and Hallamshire County Football Association posted on X: 'We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of our former chair and trailblazing referee, Uriah Rennie. We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of our former Chair and trailblazing referee, Uriah Rennie. Uriah made history as the Premier League's first Black referee, officiating over 300 top-flight matches between 1997 and 2008. He broke down barriers, shaped our football… — Sheffield FA ⚽️ (@SHCFA) June 8, 2025 'Uriah made history as the Premier League's first black referee, officiating over 300 top-flight matches between 1997 and 2008. He broke down barriers, shaped our football community and inspired generations to come. 'Our thoughts are with Uriah's family and friends at this difficult time.' Rennie became a FIFA-listed referee in 2000 and joined the select group of professionals one year later, with his retirement coming in 2008. In November 2023 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Sheffield Hallam University for his distinguished contributions to sport and his work with South Yorkshire communities. However he told BBC News in April how, while on holiday in Turkey last year, he felt severe pain in his back and doctors discovered he had an inoperable neurological condition that left him wheelchair-bound. 'I spent a month laid on my back and another four months sitting in bed,' he said. 'They kept me in hospital until February, they found a nodule pushing on my spine and it was a rare neurological condition so it's not something they can operate on. Incredibly sad to hear of the passing of referee Uriah Rennie. A pioneer, trailblazer and a bloody good ref. Rest in peace, Ref. — Stan Collymore (@StanCollymore) June 8, 2025 'No one has told me I won't walk again, but even if someone did say that I want to be able to say I did everything I could to try.' Former Liverpool and Nottingham Forest striker Stan Collymore posted on X: 'Incredibly sad to hear of the passing of referee Uriah Rennie. A pioneer, trailblazer and a bloody good ref. Rest in peace, ref.' Rennie had been the honorary president of Sheffield side Hallam FC at the time of his death while both Sheffield United and Wednesday also paid tribute to the referee, saying the clubs' 'thoughts are with his friends and family at this time.'
