So again, today we have another throwback even further than 2018 back to the year 2012 and one of my earliest and fondest memories on the racecourse, Champions Day at Ascot and catching a glimpse of the mighty Frankel as he signed off his career doing what he did best - winning.
I Was There - Frankel by Niamh Townsend
In 2012 I was still relatively new to the horse racing world. That year had seen Camelot come so close to winning the Triple Crown after a last gasp success in the 2000 Guineas and an easy win in the Derby, Homecoming Queen was a shock winner of the 1000 Guineas, Colour Vision and Frankie Dettori won the Gold Cup and the Australian sensation Black Caviar was successful by the narrowest of margins in the Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot.
However, when it comes to the 2012 season, one horse reigns supreme. A bay colt by the great Galileo and impeccably trained by the late Sir Henry Cecil. With a total of 5 group 1 wins that year, including the highest-rated performance in Timeform history with his 11 length demolition in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot, there could only be one possible 'Horse of the Year' – Frankel.
I went to Doncaster on St Leger day with my dad in 2012 with the hope that we would see Camelot make history and become the first horse in 42 years to win the elusive Triple Crown. When it became apparent that was not meant to be I was incredibly disappointed along with almost every other fan of racing (who had not backed the 25/1 outsider Encke). For me, though, there was a silver lining. Even though I would not get to see a Triple Crown winner I would get to go and see the horse that many had dubbed to be the best ever by the time the season had ended. On the five hour journey home from Doncaster, my dad announced that he was going to get tickets for Champions Day to go and see the great Frankel in his last ever race.
That month between the St Leger and Champions Day was just like the build up to Christmas. It seemed to last forever. I remember going to school during that last week before the big day and being incredibly excited – but of course the majority of my friends who didn't know a thing about horse racing had no idea what I was getting so enthusiastic about. Having said that, though, there were also a number of people that I had not pegged as being interested in horses let along racing, but even they had heard of Frankel as the media coverage that week circulated around the great horse.
Since I had only been following racing since the start of the year I did not really understand how Champions Day was going to work and just how big an occasion it was. All of my attention fell on Frankel and his race so I was in for a surprise when I arrived on the day and saw just how high the quality of racing was actually going to be. Champions Day was still a new concept as it had only been up and running for a year, and whilst the first year did produce a day of brilliant racing, including a fantastic win for Frankel in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, but it was really in 2012 that Champions Day became the season finale everybody wanted it to be – Frankel made that happen.
The hour building up to Frankel's swansong saw his long-time rival, Excelebration, won the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes easily, not only confirming his own class, but emphasising Frankel's. If a horse as good as Excelebration, who beat proven group 1 horses with considerable ease, had been made to look ordinary by Frankel then just how easily would Frankel win that afternoon?
Before the Champion Stakes the parade ring was packed, I've never seen it so busy at Ascot in the times I've subsequently visited, as everyone crowded around to try and catch a glimpse of the magnificent Frankel. He was one of the last in, but you could tell when he arrived as he was the only horse racing that afternoon that received a round of applause before he had even won the race. The first time you see Frankel, you are instantly captivated. He knew he was a champion and he surely looked like one – out of every other horse in that six runner field, Frankel by far looked the best.
Positioned in the grandstand, the entirety of Ascot and the racing public waited in anticipation for the Champion Stakes to get underway. For a horse that had taken so long to learn how to settle, as the gates opened to get the race off and running it seemed as if Sir Henry Cecil had done his job almost too well as Frankel completely missed the start. He was only giving the others a head start, they would need it if they were going to have any chance of serving it up to the champion. Whilst Ian Mongan aboard Bullet Train looked around for the horse he was meant to be setting the pace for, he simply couldn't spot him. Frankel instead was settled behind Nathaniel, the horse that he had beaten into second in his very first race over two years previously.
If there was a moment of doubt at the start of the race, all of that was expelled when Frankel cruised to the lead in the straight and was shaken up to quicken away from the French champion Cirrus Des Aigles. It was the perfect farewell for the best horse many have ever seen, and I am incredibly honoured to say that I was there.
That day sparked a tradition for me as I now go to Ascot on Champions Day every year. I've seen some of the best racehorses in recent years including Noble Mission, Almanzor, Found, Minding – the list goes on and on. In 2017, the Frankel story continued as Cracksman stormed home to win his first group 1 in the race that his sire before him made his own 5 years previously. I know that there are people out there that don't like the concept of Champions Day and where it sits in the season, but for me it is one of the highlights of my year every year.
There is no doubt in my mind that Frankel is the best horse I've seen, probably the best horse I will ever see. The story of my visit to Champions Day to see the highest rated racehorse of all time win his final race is one that I will be telling for the rest of my life. The impact Frankel had on the sport is immense and now it looks as if his offspring will continue to make sure that their sire's influence remains in racing for a long time to come.
Considering I was only 11 years old when I went to Champions Day for that first time I have no doubt that the experience had a huge influence on my own future in the sport. It meant that my interest was maintained and enhanced. To see a horse as fantastic as Frankel in my first year of being a racing follower I was incredibly lucky; lucky in the sense that I was interested in time to see him race.
Frankel is 10 now, it has been over 5 years since he won the Champion Stakes. We have seen champions come and go since then – Australia, Golden Horn, Treve, Minding – but none of them can hold a candle to the brilliant Frankel.
Image from The Racing Post
0 Comments