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NICHOLAS GODFREY |
Weblog: It's a funny old world
How Sea The Stars ceased to exist by Saturday night
CERTAIN racing folk, vitally concerned about the sport's wellbeing, have been known agonise over the need to see ourselves as others see us.
On Saturday night, nobody needed waste too much time on that particular subject. On Saturday night they didn't see us at all, because we did not exist.
Anyone tuning in to the BBC's main prime-time news slot after one of the most memorable Eclipses in the event's history would not have known the race had happened. That's the race of the season, featuring a Derby winner proving himself the best racehorse on planet - and it did not merit a single mention, not even after the rugby, tennis and, astonishingly, the cycling.
No disrespect intended to enthusiasts of those particular sports - I am quite partial to a bit of Tour de France myself - but has racing's stock really fallen that low?
It wasn't that long ago that Saturday's big race would habitually be accorded a brief mention on the nightly news bulletin, with even the less significant contests usually accompanied by five seconds of race-finish coverage.
Not a dicky bird this time, though. Admittedly, the BBC has a vested uninterest, but Sea The Stars won his Derby in front of their cameras at Epsom, and here he was, thrillingly confirming his claims to joining the pantheon. Yet not a solitary sausage did it merit.
And the disturbing thing for all lovers of racing is that such an oversight can hardly be regarded as a surprise. I am not quite sure whether this says more about horseracing's status in the grand scheme ofthings or the BBC's opinion of the sport. Probably both, but either way it doesn't augur well.
At least the victory wasn't wasted on those closest to Sea The Stars, notably his young owner Christopher Tsui, who was so overwhelmed in the aftermath.
I had first-hand evidence of the fainting drama, having taken my two-year-old daughter to Sandown for the day. Straight after the Eclipse, the Godfrey family positioned itself alongside the walkway where the horses come back off the track, not far from the spot where I got Sir Gordon Richards' autograph about 35 years ago.
Ian Balding was standing next to our pushchair, having rushed to the rail eager to applaud a wonderful winner that must have taken him back to the days of Mill Reef, when Mr Tsui duly appeared along the walkway with an associate from the direction of the paddock.
It was clear that all was not well as he looked ashen-faced, which isn't easy for a guy of Chinese descent. Tsui soon keeled over, overcome from the draining combination of heat exhaustion and excitement.
With Balding supporting the owner from our side of the rail, a couple of us ran off to get find water in the nearby racecourse restaurant - I phoned the office en route, which possibly explains why I wasn't first back with the jug. Shameful, I know, but when the going gets tough, the tough turn pro, as Hunter S used to say before he loaded the shotgun.
Anyway, thankfully this wasn't a matter of life and death and the overwrought Tsui was soon revived and led off by medical staff for a once-over before assuming his rightful place in the winner's enclosure.
To be frank, he didn't look too clever there, either, but his presence prompted a hearty cheer to match those for John Oxx (evidently deriving special pleasure from putting a spanner in the Coolmore works) and an emotional Mick Kinane (those old lips were quivering, I tell you).
Plainly, the Eclipse meant plenty to all of them, and quite a bit to the assembled thousands at Sandown, even if it meant nothing to the BBC.
It is their loss. The unfortunate thing is that it is oursas well.
PS - Don't say you weren't warned about the Eclipse, as it was written here in black and white on Friday: "An older horse wins the Eclipse, a three-year-old wins the King George." Oops.
Oh well, guess you can't be right all the time - people would only get bitchy - and at least the Sandown contest provided a clash worthy of mention alongside Mtoto and Reference Point, the subject of my most recent post.
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