18/12/2022  Shatin  Race 3

BABY CRYSTAL began awkwardly, shifted out and bumped ATOMIC ENERGY which then shifted out away from BABY CRYSTAL when unbalanced, resulting in VALHALLA and NOBLE ONE being crowded for room inside HAPPY HORSE which on jumping began awkwardly and inconvenienced EXCELLENT FIGHTER which itself was leaning on the outside of its stall and began awkwardly. ORIENTAL SPIRIT and SOARING PENGSHAN bumped on jumping. SUPER FAST DRAGON stumbled at the start. Approaching the 700 Metres, BABY CRYSTAL, which was travelling keenly, was awkwardly placed inside the heels of ATOMIC ENERGY. Passing the 400 Metres, BABY CRYSTAL shifted out and brushed HAPPY HORSE which became unbalanced. VALHALLA was shifted out away from the heels of HAPPY HORSE in consequence. Near the 350 Metres, SOARING PENGSHAN shifted in and brushed the hindquarters of EXCELLENT FIGHTER which became unbalanced and shifted out, inconveniencing SOARING PENGSHAN. After this, EXCELLENT FIGHTER had some difficulty obtaining clear running. BEAT HOLLOW was held up for clear running from near the 150 Metres until passing the 100 Metres. SOARING PENGSHAN had some difficulty obtaining clear running approaching the 150 Metres and then close to the finishing line was shifted out away from the heels of DOUBLE SHOW. As NOBLE ONE was improving into tight running between BABY CRYSTAL and ORIENTAL SPIRIT passing the 150 Metres, ORIENTAL SPIRIT shifted out away from EXCELLENT FIGHTER, resulting in NOBLE ONE being hampered and taken in onto BABY CRYSTAL. Close to the finishing line, EXCELLENT FIGHTER and DOUBLE SHOW raced tight. When questioned, Z Purton stated that in a barrier trial in which KA YING WARRIOR participated last Tuesday, the horse did not begin well and then, in his opinion, travelled only fairly throughout the trial. He said after standing well in the barriers today, KA YING WARRIOR got its head down abruptly as the start was effected which required him to take his right hand away from the rein to brace himself. He said this resulted in KA YING WARRIOR losing a considerable amount of ground. He added that after travelling a short distance he became quite concerned regarding KA YING WARRIOR’s action as the horse was not striding out fluently and did not feel comfortable in its action. He said he continued to allow KA YING WARRIOR the opportunity to improve its action, however, in the early stages the horse would not stretch out and as he had concerns over the horse’s wellbeing, particularly given that it had recently been withdrawn from a race due to a right front leg issue, he eased it down in the middle stages. A veterinary inspection of KA YING WARRIOR immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. Having regard to the manner in which KA YING WARRIOR began today and the evidence provided by Jockey Purton in respect of the horse’s action, the Stewards ruled that the horse must undertake a series of satisfactory consecutive barrier trials and be subjected to an official veterinary examination before being allowed to race again. A veterinary inspection of VALHALLA immediately following the race did not show any significant findings. EXCELLENT FIGHTER and DOUBLE SHOW were sent for sampling.