York has been buffeted by fierce headwinds - but it remains a shining example to all racecourses

For those connected to other racecourses, it may at times be frustrating to see so much praise heaped on York. The reality is all the praise is entirely warranted. This was again obvious during a marvellous Ebor meeting that did, however, show even York cannot escape the headwinds battering racing.

It was actually an autumnal westerly wind that caused one of the problems to hit York during its most important week of the year. There was undoubtedly a bias towards horses positioned close to the far side up the home straight. One positive of that was it meant jockeys were much less minded to fan out across the track after turning for home. For those of us who prefer things how they used to be, it was great to see the Juddmonte International and Ebor finishes played out against the far rail.

The International has been staged since 1972 but never with more runners than it had on Wednesday, when City Of Troy produced that defining performance of his career to this point. It was a magnificent running of a contest that this year had not simply a record turnout but also record prize-money at £1.25 million.