Champions Day At Ascot: Horse Racing – Live

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Preamble

Hello from Ascot racecourse successful Royal Berkshire, wherever nan entity is grey but nan forecast is dry, nan going is bully connected some nan consecutive and information courses and first seven-race Champions Day paper will get underway pinch nan Long Distance Cup astatine 12.55pm (all times BST).

This is nan 15th moving of Champions Day since nan paper was created arsenic an end-of-season showcase for nan champion of British Flat racing, and not only nan first pinch a seven-race programme, acknowledgment to nan summation of a £250,000 juvenile contest, but besides nan first ever day astatine a British way with 5 Group One races connected nan schedule.

That is acknowledgment to an upgrade to nan opener from Group Two status, while what has go a acquainted tally of 4 Group One races successful a statement will footwear disconnected pinch nan Champions Sprint astatine 2.05pm and decorativeness pinch a flourish arsenic a top-notch section goes to station for nan Champion Stakes astatine 4.05pm.

Calandagan, nan King George victor present earlier successful nan season, is edging towards Ombudsman successful nan betting for nan characteristic arena this morning, but John Gosden’s colt seems definite to group disconnected arsenic nan favourite astatine astir 7-4 and his jockey, William Buick, has plentifulness much to look guardant to too arsenic he is besides aboard Trawlerman, odds-on for nan Long Distance Cup, and Words Of Truth, nan lukewarm favourite for nan Two-Year-Old race.

The Buick treble comes retired astatine astir 9-1 and nan bookies could beryllium looking astatine a chunky payout if it is still live aft 2 legs, while Field Of Gold, a hugely awesome victor of nan St James’s Palace Stakes present astatine nan Royal gathering earlier blotting his copybook astatine Goodwood successful July, will besides beryllium celebrated pinch acca-builders successful nan Queen Elizabeth II Stakes.

Oisin Murphy will beryllium crowned champion jockey during nan afternoon, but today’s paper could conceivably person an effect connected nan yet-to-be-finally-decided title for nan Flat trainer’s title. Aidan O’Brien has a commanding lead of astir £600,000 complete Andrew Balding, who is successful move astir nan aforesaid magnitude up of John and Thady Gosden, but nan Gosdens will person hopes of a double pinch Field Of Gold and Ombudsman is nan 2 astir valuable races connected nan card, while Balding has respective runners pinch a chance including Kalpana, the favourite for nan Fillies & Mares title astatine 2.45pm.

This is arguably nan first Champions Day that lives up to nan billing arsenic envisaged erstwhile nan paper was launched backmost successful 2011 (when only nan Champion Stakes and nan QEII had Group One status). All 7 races this day will beryllium unrecorded connected ITV Racing, and you tin dual-screen to your heart’s contented pinch our liveblog, which will transportation each nan news, views, betting moves and results until nan past runner successful nan Balmoral Handicap is backmost successful its box.