After two years off the calendar because of the pandemic, the Korea Cup and Korea Sprint finally return for their respective fifth editions at Seoul Racecourse on Sunday September 4th. Boasting International Group 3 status for the first time, the races feature a typically diverse set of runners from around Asia and beyond competing for purses in each race of 1 Billion Korean Won (approximately S$1,000,000).
Singapore will have representation on the big day with CELAVI set to travel to Seoul. The Michael Clements trained mare, a winner of eight from eighteen at Kranji, has been accepted into the Korea Sprint (1200M), a race which grew out of the Asia Challenge Cup which was won by Singapore-trained El Padrino in 2015. Celavi’s regular jockey Louis Beuzelin is to partner Celavi in the big race.
Japanese horses have won the Sprint on two occasions, with Graceful Leap in 2017 and Moanin a year later. This year RAPTUS, a dirt specialist with nine wins from twenty-one, is the representative from Japan. Most of those have been at 1400M but that was true too for Moanin, in 2018.
Hong Kong’s Korea Sprint challenger is COMPUTER PATCH. Jimmy Ting’s sprinter may not have won for some time, but he spends his time racing alongside the best at Sha Tin and ran an excellent 2nd to Wellington in the Group 1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize in April. Hong Kong won the inaugural Korea Sprint with Super Jockey in 2016 and Sha Tin based gallopers have consistently out-performed expectations, including when the unheralded Fight Hero went down by a Head to Moanin in 2018.
Mick Appleby brings three-year-old sprinter ANNAF from the UK. He had a luckless run in the Stewards’ Cup at Glorious Goodwood but has held his own in other big sprint handicaps and his wins have come on the all-weather. He may well relish the conditions in Seoul.
The Korean sprinting division is strong and in EOMA EOMA, the visitors will find a worthy adversary. MORFHIS is also a multiple Group winner while BLACK MUSK is one of the up-and-coming stars of the division. Busan-trained Blue Chipper won the Korea Sprint in 2019 and went on to run 3rd in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile at Santa Anita two months later.
Japan-trained horses have won every edition of the Korea Cup (1800M) that they have contested and this year, SEKIFU is the one who gets the opportunity to maintain that record. A three-year-old, he has a slightly different profile to previous winners London Town and Chrysolite, but he won the Hyogo Junior Grand Prix as a juvenile and is already well-travelled having earlier this year run a close 2nd to Pinehurst in the Saudi Derby at Riyadh before an unsuccessful tilt at the UAE Derby at Meydan. On his return to Japan, he ran 2nd in the Unicorn Stakes at Tokyo, and he has solid claims in the Cup.
UK based trainer Jane Chapple-Hyam has been a firm supporter of the Cup since its inception with her Solar Deity running in the inaugural edition and Ambassadorial 3rd in 2019. Chapple-Hyam brings INTELLOGENT, a seven-year-old, who has racked up almost US$1Million in prize money in a career that has been mostly spent in France but has included trips to Saudi Arabia and the USA. Since being transferred to Abington Place in Newmarket this Spring, Intellogent has been running in the big Heritage Handicaps and scored a superb 2nd in the Royal Hunt Cup at Royal Ascot in June.
The final international entrant in the Cup is Hong Kong’s KINGS SHIELD. Frankie Lor, newly crowned as Hong Kong’s Champion Trainer, also knows what it takes to be successful on the sand at Seoul, having brought Glorious Artist over for a creditable 4th – a neck behind Chapple-Hyam’s Ambassadorial – in 2019.
For the locals, 2019 winner MOONHAK CHIEF returns but most eyes will be on RAON THE FIGHTER, a winner of ten from twelve so far and currently the hottest property in Korea racing. 2021 Grand Prix Stakes winner HAENGBOK WANGJA is also set to start, as is last year’s Korea Derby winner Winner’s Man. DOLKONG, winner of the 2019 Curlin Handicap at Meydan, also appears on the list but is a doubt having not raced since the tail end of that year. He has though successfully navigated a series of barrier trials in recent months.
The Korea Sprint has a local post time of 15:35 with the Korea Cup following an hour later at 16:35 local Seoul time.
