Latest news with #AgaKhan
The Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Unbeaten horse ‘who never stops improving' sparks huge Derby shake-up with shock £75,000 entry in Epsom race
AN unbeaten superstar who 'never stops improving' has sparked a huge Derby shake-up - after being supplemented at a cost £75,000. The Francis-Henri Graffard-trained Midak, who is owned by the family of the late Aga Khan, is one of 20 still in the £1.5million race. 1 Three from three in his career and seemingly destined for greatness, the Footstepsinthesand colt was one of two added to the race on Monday. Juddmonte stumped up the massive figure to add the Henri-Francois Devin-trained New Ground as well. Aidan O'Brien confirmed 9-4 favourite Delacroix, Lambourn and alarming market drifter The Lion In Winter as his big three for Saturday's blockbuster. Ruling Court, Charlie Appleby's 2000 Guineas winner, stood his ground too. He's been the one for money in recent days with Delacroix a slight drifter having previously been hammered in. Dante winner Pride Of Arras for Ralph Beckett was among those confirmed as well. Seven horses in all were withdrawn, including James Owen's Royal Lodge winner Wimbledon Hawkeye and O'Brien's Shackleton. Betfred spokesperson Matt Hulmes said: "We have added unbeaten Prix Greffulhe winner Midak into our betting at 14-1 while Juddmonte's New Ground is available at 16-1. "It is only fitting that the famous green and red silks of the late His Highness Aga Khan are carried in the Betfred Derby in a year we remember him. "The addition of these two French contenders is fantastic news for the race. "It affirms the Betfred Derby as the leading test of a thoroughbred, enhances the race and provides another consideration for punters to a fascinating renewal". While Coral's David Stevens added: "At this stage it looks as if Ryan Moore will be on board Delacroix in Saturday's Derby. "And if that is the case his mount looks certain to start favourite, although Ruling Court has closed the gap at the head of our betting as the Godolphin colt seeks his second Classic win." Latest Betfred Derby odds 9-4 Delacroix 4-1 Pride of Arras, Ruling Court 6-1 The Lion In Winter 10-1 Damysus 12-1 Lambourn 14-1 Midak 16-1 Stanhope Gardens 20-1 Nightwalker, New Ground 33-1 Tornado Alert 50-1 Tennessee Stud 66-1 Puppet Master. Sea Scout, Tuscan Hills, Lazy Griff 100-1 Al Wasl Storm. Green Storm, Nightime Dancer 200-1 Rogue Impact . A responsible gambler is someone who:
Irish Examiner
2 days ago
- General
- Irish Examiner
€900k period home with O'Malley political clan links is for sale in Limerick
pt Corbally, Co Limerick €900,000 Size 246 sq m (2648 sq ft) Bedrooms 6 Bathrooms 3 BER Exempt ROSENEATH House could give period drama Downton Abbey a run for its money, given the 'Who's Who' of Limerick nobility that lived there. Over its c 200-year history, the Limerick Georgian property has housed men of the cloth, doctors, politicians, military officers — even an Aga Khan trophy winner. If the latter sounds like a Julian Fellowes plotline, here's another: One unfortunate resident died of 'severe scald and shock in her bath' at Roseneath. High drama indeed. The roots of this stately-looking Corbelly home on Mill Rd can be traced to a former mayor of Limerick, Pierce Shannon. He granted a lease to a Robert Rodger in 1837. Roger invested £1,200 to build Roseneath, which had the same purchasing power as buying 80 horses, 224 cows, 2,000 stones of wool, a great deal of wheat, and pay the wages of skilled tradesmen for 6,000 days - or so says the currency converter. The house went between various Rodger ownerships, before being left to a son-in-law, Charles Broderick Garde, from Ballymaloe Cottage, Cloyne, Co Cork, in 1876. In the 1880s, it passed to the George family of Limerick City, before being sold in 1897 to Mary Jane O'Brien, whose unfortunate sister, Emma Margaret Hobson, died in the bath in 1907. By the 1940s, it was associated with Limerick political royalty, in the ownership of Desmond J and Úna O'Malley, parents of Dessie, founder of the now-defunct Progressive Democrats. (Desmond J was brother of politician Donagh). After the O'Malleys came Major John Gerard O'Dwyer, a member of the Irish showjumping team that won the Aga Khan trophy at the RDS in 1928. Limerick surgeon Edmund A O'Connor had it next, before it was sold in 1956 to Daniel O'Connell, a Limerick-based motor trader. Rosneath has been in O'Connell family ownership since. An impressive property about 3km from the city centre, near secondary school St Munchin's College and primary school Scoil Íde, it comes with an outdoor swimming pool, walled gardens, kitchen garden/orchard and outbuildings. Accommodation is expansive: kitchen, breakfast room, reading room, shower room and three bedrooms on the ground floor; dining room, drawing room and three more bedrooms overhead. It's being sold by joint agents Savills and auctioneer, Joe Wheeler. Michael O'Donovan, of Savills, says the house is in 'pretty good condition', albeit investment would be needed to modernise. Given the calibre of the house and its location, he's expecting overseas interest. 'It's a good period house, in good grounds, and there's always an international piece to something like that. I expect good interest, too, from the local Limerick trade-up market. There aren't too many period homes available in that location,' the agent says. VERDICT: Ideal buyers would be an owner-occupier family with the bobs to future-proof.
Irish Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
Proven course performer Deressa out to secure valuable prize in €200k Gowran Classic
Beware of bookies bearing gifts is normally sound advice, but not at Gowran Park's bank holiday Monday fixture where free entry to the track is being sponsored by the Irish National Professional Bookmakers Association. It coincides with a second running of the €200,000 Irish Stallion Farms Gowran Classic, the richest race of the year at the Co Kilkenny course. The winner will receive free entry into the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby later this month or into the Juddmonte Irish Oaks if a filly is successful. That proved the case a year ago as Fleur De Chine was successful for Jessica Harrington . The Moone trainer has two of the 11 runners lining up at Gowran Park this time for a race designed to try to boost opportunities for middle-distance bred horses in Ireland. Harrington's number one jockey Shane Foley has opted for Nancy J. READ MORE Top-rated is the Ballydoyle filly Heavens Gate, who landed a valuable sales race as well as a Group Three last year. However, she has failed to fire in a pair of starts this season and beat only two home in the French 1,000 Guineas. This trip of almost 10 furlongs could stretch her stamina. Joseph O'Brien has four shots, with And So To Bed the apparent first choice. But it is Deressa that could prove a solution. She has won twice already this season at Gowran to reach a rating of 93. Of all the runners, the filly bred by the late Aga Khan shapes perhaps as the one most open to progress. A stall one draw is no impediment to her chances either. The other bank holiday fixture is in Listowel, Co Kerry, where champion jumps jockey Paul Townend will fancy his chances of winning on both his mounts. La Note Verte is a course bumper winner from last year who goes in the opening hurdle, while Blood Destiny's rating makes him a standout in a later chase. In other news, Monday will also see an important latest forfeit stage for next weekend's Betfred Epsom Derby and it is set to see the unbeaten Aga Khan colt Midak supplemented into the 'Blue Riband' at a cost of £75,000 (about €89,000). Epsom's authorities have titled this year's Derby in honour of the late Aga Khan, who died in February. Shergar was the first of five Derby winners to carry his famous green silks. Midak won the Prix Greffulhe at Saint-Cloud on his last start, after which his trainer Francis-Henri Graffard recommended a tilt at Epsom. 'He's unbeaten in three starts, we know he gets the trip, he's got the right kind of character to be able to handle Tattenham Corner and all the noise that comes with the Epsom Derby,' Zahra Aga Khan, daughter of the late Aga Khan, said. 'It's nice to have a runner this year because the race is being run in honour of my father, and [Midak's] done everything he should to be a valid runner in the Epsom Derby.' Another potential supplementary entry into the Derby from France is the Juddmonte-owned colt New Ground. Pour Moi, in 2011, was the last of 10 French-trained Epsom Derby winners.
South Wales Argus
3 days ago
- Sport
- South Wales Argus
Unbeaten Midak to be added to the Derby mix
The late Aga Khan was no stranger to success at Epsom, with one of the most famous Derby winners of all, Shergar, amongst his host of Classic scorers at the Downs track. His daughter Princess Zahra has now confirmed that Francis Henri-Graffard's unbeaten Midak will tackle the British showpiece as his next assignment after enhancing his reputation at Saint-Cloud in the Prix Greffulhe. She told Racing TV: 'He's unbeaten in three starts, we know he gets the trip, he's got the right kind of character to be able to handle Tattenham Corner and all the noise that comes with the Epsom Derby. Midak remains unbeaten with a straight-forward success in the Prix Greffulhe at Saint-Cloud!🇫🇷 Another progressive type for @GraffardRacing and @AgaKhanStuds! — At The Races (@AtTheRaces) May 9, 2025 'It's nice to have a runner this year because the race is being run in honour of my father and he's done everything he should to be a valid runner in the Epsom Derby.' She added: 'When Midak won his last race, I asked Francis 'this is a Jockey Club horse isn't it' and he said 'we can't as you have another runner for that race and there is also another horse in our stable'. 'I then asked 'what are you thinking of doing' and he just looked at me and replied, 'Epsom'. We all thought it would be lovely to have a runner in the race and he has ticked all the boxes and there is no reason not to run him.' Midak's trainer has been a regular visitor to the UK in recent seasons and landed the King Edward VII Stakes with Calandagan and the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes with Goliath last year. Trainer Francis Henri Graffard would love to win the Derby (John Walton/PA) Calandagan will again visit British shores as part of the Frenchman's Epsom team, but it is the lure of Derby glory that is causing most excitement. Graffard said: 'The Derby at Epsom is a dream race for me, I have walked the course and my grandfather would always talk to me about the Epsom Derby. 'We have this horse Midak who needed supplementing for either the Prix du Jockey Club or Derby, so I said to Princess Zahra 'you already have two runners in the Jockey Club, so why not give it a go in the Derby'. 'British racing has very kindly named the Derby in honour of His Highness the Aga Khan this year, so we will take our chance.' Ladbrokes make Midak a 10-1 shot for Classic glory.
North Wales Chronicle
3 days ago
- Sport
- North Wales Chronicle
Unbeaten Midak to be added to the Derby mix
The late Aga Khan was no stranger to success at Epsom, with one of the most famous Derby winners of all, Shergar, amongst his host of Classic scorers at the Downs track. His daughter Princess Zahra has now confirmed that Francis Henri-Graffard's unbeaten Midak will tackle the British showpiece as his next assignment after enhancing his reputation at Saint-Cloud in the Prix Greffulhe. She told Racing TV: 'He's unbeaten in three starts, we know he gets the trip, he's got the right kind of character to be able to handle Tattenham Corner and all the noise that comes with the Epsom Derby. Midak remains unbeaten with a straight-forward success in the Prix Greffulhe at Saint-Cloud!🇫🇷 Another progressive type for @GraffardRacing and @AgaKhanStuds! — At The Races (@AtTheRaces) May 9, 2025 'It's nice to have a runner this year because the race is being run in honour of my father and he's done everything he should to be a valid runner in the Epsom Derby.' She added: 'When Midak won his last race, I asked Francis 'this is a Jockey Club horse isn't it' and he said 'we can't as you have another runner for that race and there is also another horse in our stable'. 'I then asked 'what are you thinking of doing' and he just looked at me and replied, 'Epsom'. We all thought it would be lovely to have a runner in the race and he has ticked all the boxes and there is no reason not to run him.' Midak's trainer has been a regular visitor to the UK in recent seasons and landed the King Edward VII Stakes with Calandagan and the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes with Goliath last year. Calandagan will again visit British shores as part of the Frenchman's Epsom team, but it is the lure of Derby glory that is causing most excitement. Graffard said: 'The Derby at Epsom is a dream race for me, I have walked the course and my grandfather would always talk to me about the Epsom Derby. 'We have this horse Midak who needed supplementing for either the Prix du Jockey Club or Derby, so I said to Princess Zahra 'you already have two runners in the Jockey Club, so why not give it a go in the Derby'. 'British racing has very kindly named the Derby in honour of His Highness the Aga Khan this year, so we will take our chance.' Ladbrokes make Midak a 10-1 shot for Classic glory.
