Andre Klein is the General Manager at Warwick Racecourse. In his latest column with the Observer, he looks at some of the top talent on show so far this season.
FINALLY, the flat season is making way for jump-racing action and the track surfaces are being reported consistently as heavy, with no mention of firm to be seen.
This means just one thing – ‘It’s our time of year’.
The Warwick season officially got underway at the tail end of September, but after three meetings in quick succession, the fixture list sees us to take a month-long break.
This does gives us a chance to catch our breath but from now on, through to the end of May, the action will come thick and fast.
Have we seen a superstar on the track yet? Well there have been some of the top names already in action around the country making their seasonal debuts but here are a couple of horses that you should put in your black book.
Local trainer Olly Murphy’s young hurdler, Overthetop looked like a serious machine when winning at Carlisle at the end of October.
It’s too early to talk Cheltenham, but it’s hard to believe he isn’t up to that grade.
Another one to stay on the right side of is the four-year-old mare, Floressa, trained by Nicky Henderson who won with any amount in hand at Worcester the day before.
Talking of talent, next Friday we are hosting our fourth Sporting Icon Race Day.
This year we are looking forward to welcoming the incredible Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson as a special guest.
I was in Sydney when she won four Paralympic Gold Medals, landing the 100m, 200m, 400m and 800m. An amazing achievement.
Since then she has gone on to become a household name and one of the busiest woman in sport, holding an array of positions in bodies such as the UK Sports Council and Women Sports Foundation.
She is also a cross bench peer in the House of Lords.
It will be a real honour to have host her at Warwick as a guest in our Sporting Icon Brunch. Tanni is regarded as one of the most inspirational and motivation speakers in the country.
Looking ahead, we have just four meetings remaining in 2019.
On Friday, November 8 it’s Sporting Icon Raceday, on Wednesday November 20 we have the Winter Warmer, followed by our Christmas meeting on Wednesday December 12.
We then finish with the New Year’s Eve meeting, which will definitely be a fantastic way to close out 2019.
