Shadwell offers support for historic race

Dubai: The Shadwell Stud/EBF Stallions Harry Rosebery Stakes was named after Harry Primrose, 6th Earl of Rosebery who was a British politician and former Secretary of State for Scotland for a brief spell in 1945. He died at the age of 92 in 1974.

His father, Archibald Primrose, the 5th Earl of Rosebery, owned Ladas who won the Epsom Derby in 1894.

The race was introduced in the late 1960s and its most notable winner was Waterloo (1971), trained by Bill Watts, who won the Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot and the 1,000 Guineas.

The race was renamed the Harry Rosebery Stakes in 1998 and the following year was won by Khasayl, owned by Shaikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance. The winner was trained by Peter Walwyn in his last season as a trainer and ridden by Richard Hills.

Traditionally raced on the Thursday of the Ayr Gold Cup meeting, it was switched to the Friday in 2004 when Prince Charming, trained by John Gosden and ridden by Joe Fanning, prevailed.

In 2006 the race was won by Alzerra owned by Shaikh Ahmed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Chief of Dubai Police and Public Security.

In 2007, the Year of the Homecoming, the South Ayrshire Council donated the South Ayrshire Cup to be presented to the winner of the Harry Rosebery Stakes.

However, with Shadwell Stud offering their support, the Ayrshire Cup will be instead donated to the winner of the BAM Properties Ltd Handicap, a five furlong contest for three year olds.

Shaikh Hamdan’s retained rider Paul Hanagan has won the race twice in recent times for Richard Fahey, on Arctic Feeling in 2010 and Garswood in 2012.

Ten horses will vie for honours in the feature event on the opening day of Ayr’s famous Gold Cup meeting