If The Everest was supposed to be big, bold and brash with more than a dash of controversy, then the genesis of Sydney’s other mega-money spring race might be a little more languid and far more strategic.
In fact, its very roots can be traced back to the old Harold Park paceway – an inner-city parcel of land now strewn with housing developments as far as the eye can see.
Glen Boss interacts with the crowd after winning the Golden Eagle aboard Kolding in 2019.Credit:Getty
Peter V’landys once lorded over the precinct in his capacity as harness racing boss. One of the state’s major harness races each year is the Chariots Of Fire, an event exclusively for four-year-old standardbreds.
It seemed a strange restriction at the time, but the Chariots has evolved into one of the marquee events on the Australian calendar.
“I used the same thought pattern there as I did here,” V’landys said of the Golden Eagle, Sydney’s $10 million thoroughbred race which will be run at Rosehill on Saturday.
“I went to the trainers and asked them, ‘at what age is a horse at its peak where its mature enough to give its best performance?’ They always say four, and that stayed in my head.”
While The Everest has clearly been racing’s great disruptor, with crazy amounts of money thrown at it and hushed backroom deals to parachute horses into the race generating year-round speculation, the Golden Eagle’s aim is more simplistic: get the best four-year-olds across the world to meet in one spot.
Its placement on the same day as Flemington runs its traditional Derby Day meeting revered as Australia’s premium thoroughbred showcase has ruffled feathers.
The likes of Melbourne’s premier jockey Jamie Kah will head to Sydney to ride in the Golden Eagle instead of being at home. The world’s most popular jockey, Frankie Dettori, will ride in the harbour city for the first time having been lured for the Golden Eagle and will also skip the Melbourne Cup to stay in Sydney.
It’s the type of scenario that would have been unfathomable just a few years ago, when there was an annual pilgrimage south for Cup week.
Conversely, Sydney’s No.1 rider, James McDonald, will ride in Melbourne on Saturday, and most trainers and jockeys are now choosing to be at the meeting where they think they have the best winning chances.
But in just four years, how well is the Golden Eagle working?
“It is now the second-richest race in Australia, and it’s also our No.2 wagering race [behind The Everest],” V’landys said. “You can see we’re creating races for the public and the fan. The way you analyse a race to see whether it’s successful or not is the wagering on the race.
“We also wanted to incentivise trainers and owners to keep their horses in work instead of standing as a stallion or going overseas. We think horses are at their best at four, and we also wanted an event for western Sydney.
“We believe we’ve got one of the best two-year-old races in the Golden Slipper, one of the best three-year-olds in the Golden Rose, and then the Golden Eagle gave the grand slam of races. That’s why we went with it.”
If raw numbers are any guide, the push to keep more three-year-old colts in training for their four-year-old season instead of being retired to stud might be working.
This year’s race will have nine stallions engaged, including two imported Europeans having their first start for Australian trainers.
But of the bunch, perhaps only Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott’s Golden Rose winner In The Congo would have a ready-made stud career. The others are still chasing major group 1 wins to broaden their commercial appeal as stallions.
The best four-year-old in the country, Anamoe, bypassed the Golden Eagle and went on to win the Cox Plate last week against older horses, showing there’s still a way to go to ensure every top four-year-old stays in Sydney.
“I think the race has legs, no doubt,” said Godolphin Australia boss Vin Cox as head trainer James Cummings prepares to run Vilana on Saturday. “It’s a $10 million race and it warrants attention for obvious reasons.
“I’m conflicted in that I think it’s badly placed and I’m a board member of the VRC, so I’ll probably say that every day of the week.
“It’s not a stallion-making race, and it will be a long time before it is. But it could very quickly become that if we put it in as part of a pattern to the benefit of all colts and participants.”
The previous winners in its short history have also helped the cause.
Kolding (2019), Colette (2020) and I’m Thunderstruck (2021) have all graduated to win group 1 races after success in the Golden Eagle, which sits above the Melbourne Cup as Australia’s second-richest race.
And this year’s event will have the greatest depth yet, as well as a major bout of drama after Racing NSW handicappers lifted the rating of high-priced import Welwal last Friday. The horse leapt several other hopefuls on the order of entry and scraped into the final field.
“Certainly with the race now at $10 million, you’ve got more connections turning their attention to the race and the depth has certainly increased, and so has the cut-off point for qualification,” Australian Turf Club general manager of racing James Ross said.
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