Golden Slipper / Andy Morris / 02 March 2009 / Leave a comment Bet Now

Where does the Slipper fit?

And why does this great race for two-year-olds capture the imagination of a nation?

Each year you can count on the connections of 16 babies paying just on $32,000 to line up to race for first prize of $2millon. Sometimes the fee is higher - with those of a forgetful bent having to dig a little deeper into the pocket to find the $150,000 late entry fee to get their own surprise packet (i.e. Rostova) into the race.

The AAMI Golden Slipper Stakes (G1) is Australian racing's greatest tease.

How hard can it be to get a horse ready to run 1200 metres at Rosehill Gardens on a pleasant autumn Saturday in Sydney?

Very.

For the Golden Slipper defies logic. And dares you to defy nature.

Thoroughbreds don't mature until they are least four years of age. Until then their bones are constantly growing. A two-year-old racehorse in human terms is about 8. Therefore the Golden Slipper wouldn't be out of place as a novelty event at a Little Athletics carnival - just requiring a touch more skill from the mums and dads to get them into the gates.

But the Slipper is far from child's play now.

Since Todman saluted at 6 to 1 on in 1957 the race has managed to change the shape of thoroughbred racing. We don't have to look too far back to see just how much.

In 2008 Sebring not only proved a triumph for the business of syndication but the colt delivered a windfall for his owners that dreams are made of.

By More Than Ready out of Purespeed he broke, if only temporarily, the firm grip Danehill and his sons had on siring the winner of the race - this time they had to settle for Flying Spur being the sire of mum Purespeed!

In a pre-recession climate of excess it was not a hard decision to retire him to Widden Stud (after suffering soundness issues) and he'll stand for perhaps $50,000 a serve in 2009. That values him somewhere near $15 million - not bad for a $130,000 purchase at the 2007 Magic Millions sales.

How appropriate too that he should join 2005 Slipper winner Stratum at Widden with the spirits of Golden Slipper winners Marscay, Vain and Todman looking down on the wonderful property.

For all intents and purposes the Sebring story epitomises what the Golden Slipper is all about. Taking risks with fragile young horses in search of untold riches.
Minimising risk is the surely the key to success. Early maturers with bomb proof natures are almost a pre-requisite while trainers do all they can to avoid shin soreness issues (sales of ice always strong in March and April) to keep the babies happy.

From a punting perspective the Golden Slipper can be a conundrum.

There are so many avenues leading into the race that the marrying up of the fillies form with that of the colts and geldings can prove a nightmare.

So much so there have been just 3 odds-on winners in 51 years - Todman, Fine And Dandy and Sky High - and they all won in the first 4 years of the race!

To answer the question 'where does the Slipper fit'?

It is at the top of the tree - it's the race that drives a vibrant breeding industry; captures the imagination of punters and thoroughbred racing fans and sets the agenda for classic racing the following season.

At $35 entry to Rosehill Gardens it is money well spent to view the Slipper.

Since it was first run in 1957, the AAMI Golden Slipper has been Sydney Turf Club's showpiece event. It is the world's richest race for 2 year old thoroughbreds and its impact on thoroughbred racing and breeding industries is second to none.

Commencing with Todman in 1957, Star Kingdom's Golden Slipper winning descendants have left their mark on the vast majority of this nation's feature races.

The race's history also includes record winning efforts by Tommy Smith, Lee Freedman, Clarry Conners, Ron Quinton, Shane Dye and Gai Waterhouse.

Gai Waterhouse recently commented on the race, 'The Golden Slipper epitomises Australian racing - it's all about youth and it's all about speed.'