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Irish Times
17 hours ago
- Sport
- Irish Times
Underestimating Jonquil could prove costly in vintage Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot
A decade of evidence indicates that quality control can rise and fall in Royal Ascot's Commonwealth Cup, although Friday's renewal looks like being firmly on an upswing. A potentially vintage renewal contains a number of horses that could contend for outright sprint championship honours by the end of the season. The brief for Europe's first ever European Group One sprint for three-year-olds might have been written with last year's champion juvenile Shadow Of Light in mind. Godolphin's star ran a fine third to his stable companion Ruling Court and Field Of Gold in the 2000 Guineas, quickening up and looking a likely winner only for his stamina to peter out. He was barely past the post before the Commonwealth Cup was being mooted as a perfect fit. READ MORE It hasn't prevented a bumper field of 22 lining up, with two other Group One winning two-year-olds travelling from Ireland . Colin Keane has chosen to stick with his old ally Babouche over Juddmonte's other big hope, Jonquil, and she again takes on old rival Whistlejacket who she comprehensively beat at Naas last month. A handful of other progressive sprint types also take their chance, including a US hope in Shisospicy, whose Qatar ownership have claimed Oisin Murphy to ride. Murphy rode Shaquille to win the Commonwealth two years ago. He proved himself top-notch by subsequently landing the July Cup and the first Commonwealth winner was an undisputed champion in Muhaarar. The decision to go sprinting is not surprising considering the depth of mile talent at Juddmonte's disposal If subsequent winners such as Eqtidaar (2018) and Advertise (2019) underlined how it can be enough to peak on a single day, this latest edition could prove a level above that. Shadow Of Light is a worthy favourite and a peak-form Babouche is a worthy contender. With that said, underestimating Jonquil's chance might prove costly. Keane's discard has been picked up by Christophe Soumillon, a Commonwealth Cup winner on Perfect Power three years ago. Oisin Murphy riding Jonquil to victory at Newbury Racecourse in April. Photograph:Jonquil was just a head off Henri Matisse in the French 2,000 Guineas when running a remarkable race. Both the winner and his subsequent French Derby winning stable companion Camille Pissarro came from off a very strong pace. Jonquil, in contrast, sat just off it and when headed close home by Henri Matisse rallied to notable effect. That was under Oisin Murphy, who also rode him to win the Greenham on quick ground. The decision to go sprinting is not surprising considering the depth of mile talent at Juddmonte's disposal. With Murphy claimed and Keane opting for Babouche, the Commonwealth cards may end up falling in Soumillon's favour. Friday's other Group One is the Coronation Stakes, where a trio of Irish-trained fillies will try to become the 18th from this county to win since the war. Joe Murphy's Irish Guineas third, Cercene, is joined by the Ballydoyle pair Exactly and January. Ryan Moore's call to ride the latter is significant considering Exactly ran well in last month's controversial French Guineas. That saw Zarigana get the classic in the stewards' room. The French star will be the focus of attention in this Coronation although the supplemented Falakeyah could prove a potent threat. An Oaks programme looked likely for Falakeyah after a resounding Pretty Polly success at 10-furlongs. Instead, she drops in trip for this. A stall-two draw could help her adopt front-running tactics again and she may prove very difficult to peg back. [ Colin Keane labels Field Of Gold 'the best I've ridden' after securing first Group One Royal Ascot win Opens in new window ] [ Colin Keane appointed as Juddmonte's number one jockey in Europe Opens in new window ] Johnny Murtagh twice won the King Edward VII Stakes as a jockey and could have a major shot at saddling the winner of the so-called 'Ascot Derby' this time. Zahrann has a little bit to find with rivals such as Amiloc and Wimbledon Hawkeye on official ratings, but looks to be rapidly progressive. He came from off the pace to win at Listed level in Leopardstown last time and previously sluiced up on quick ground in Cork. Joseph O'Brien runs three in the Sandringham Handicap although it is Dancing Teapot that looks intriguing off a low weight. Chris Hayes comes in for the spin on a full sister to Dancing Gemini, who won nicely at Gowran on her last start and sports first-time cheekpieces. Signora caught the eye on her Naas debut in a Group Three and should step up considerably for that in the Albany Stakes.
Forbes
11-06-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
Will Victoria Cameron Become The NCAA's Newest Track And Field Star At Nationals?
Victoria Cameron (center) was second in the women's 100 meters at the NCAA West First Round in ... More College Station, finishing in 11.01 seconds. Victoria Cameron wasn't supposed to be here. At least, that wasn't the plan initially, with the Tarleton State University sophomore hardly envisioning a future at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships coming out of Stephenville High School. Didn't matter that Cameron came up just seven-hundredths of a second short of Sha'Carri Richardson's Class 4A 100 meter record at the UIL State Outdoor Championships in May of 2023. Nor did it matter that anyone with eyes could see she had an innate ability to run fast. Cameron had already committed to play soccer at Tarleton State, just a couple miles down the road from where she grew up. And two years ago, she was committed to it. But then, maybe a month before her college start – or maybe as she put her hands on the fence overlooking the pasture at home where her family's favorite cow grazed – things flipped. 'I realized I couldn't really leave track,' said Cameron, who lives about four miles from her college campus, in a town of just over 20,000. 'Like, there was this attachment to it.' What a decision that turned out to be. As Tarleton State made its full-fledged transition to the NCAA Division I in July of 2024, Cameron exploded as a track athlete in 2025, reaching indoor nationals in March before another national qualification came in May. '(I) just want to put my hometown college on the map,' she said. Cameron enters the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Thursday at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon with the eighth-fastest wind-legal time in college at 11.01 seconds, securing that effort at the NCAA Division I West First Round in College Station. Still, there's a star quality that seems to encircle her. Take a moment from regionals, for instance. Cameron was recognized inside a restaurant …in College Station, Texas. 'It just makes me happy to have seen that,' she said. 'Like, if my name's out there, my college's name is out there.' That being said, Cameron currently splits her time between two sports. This fall, she logged 230 minutes in 18 games with the Tarleton State's women's soccer team, scoring a goal and generally cutting her teeth in the collegiate game. A few years ago, University of Kentucky track and field legend Abby Steiner did the same. On the track, however, Cameron is an exceptional sprinter. From her first outing at 100 meters at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays in March to her most recent performance at the Regional Championships – a timeline spanning six meets – Cameron only got better with time, clocking progressive performances of 11.33, 11.25, 11.05 and 11.01 over her last four meets. In the same venue where she won a state-championship winning 100 meter time of 11.35 seconds in 2023, Cameron ripped off a wind-assisted 11.09 inside Mike Myers Stadium. A few weeks later, in Denton, Texas, she ran a wind-legal 11.22. 'I love seeing my times go down over time,' she said. 'Nothing feels better than having a PR so, I don't know, my love for the sport just kind of helps put everything in place.' In May, Cameron was named the WAC Conference's women's track athlete of the year. This weekend will mark the first time over the outdoor season she will race outside Texas. The bigger question lies in wake: Will she be able to break 11 seconds? Cameron is on the cusp of a barrier that few women in college history have ever reached. Her career best 11.01 is 71st in U.S. history and she's just outside the NCAA's top 25 all-time performances. 'As soon as I got to the line, I had an overwhelming feeling of just being able to lock in,' Cameron said of her race. 'And then when I came out of the blocks, I kind of knew I was behind, but the biggest key to that race was just having patience throughout it all.' That being said, the college sophomore isn't perfect. In the prelims at indoor nationals in Virginia Beach, Virginia, a poor start hindered her first 20 meters and she suffered at the line, running 7.38 seconds–a little over two-tenths off of her career-best 7.16. Cameron said her focus this spring has been about fixing those issues. She's been working on block starts and her reaction time. While the first variable is physical, the second is in some ways mental. 'My reaction time over the season has proven to be a hit or miss – either I'm last out of the blocks, or I'm right up with everyone,' she said. 'So I could definitely improve.' Tarleton State sophomore Victoria Cameron qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the ... More women's 100 meters at the NCAA West First Round in May. It would be unfair to say that Cameron is the favorite heading into nationals. Four women enter NCAAs with season bests under 11 seconds – TCU's Indya Mayberry, LSU's Tima Godbless, Ohio State's Leah Bertrand and Florida State's Shenese Walker – while Cameron would have to secure two nearly perfect races across two rounds to claim victory. But there's no doubt she's chasing the moment. On Thursday, she'll bring the Tarleton logo to Tracktown, a revered site for track and field greatness. 'As my coach would say, 'I don't want it to be a 'Tarleton-Question-Mark,' I want it to be a 'Tarleton-Exclamation-Point,'' Cameron said. 'That's the goal here.' Leaving her indoor performance behind her, Cameron insists anything can happen this weekend in Eugene. The first objective is reaching the final. The second will be to give herself a shot to win it. 'I believe really anything is possible within track and field due to the fact that it's not a very forgiving sport,' she said. Indoors, the girl with the fastest time ended up false starting, so anything can happen. So you just gotta give it your all and believe that you're going to win it before you run it. Nationals begins on Wednesday starting at 1:30 p.m. at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. You can follow live results here. Men's and women's competition will alternate days, with the men's first round action beginning on June 11, the women's first round following on June 12 and then men's and women's finals taking place on June 13 and June 14. The women's 100 meter first round will kick off at 5:15 p.m. PST on June 12. In the men's competition, Minnesota is looking to win its first national team title since 1948.
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Ally Wollaston pips British teenager Cat Ferguson to Tour of Britain title
The teenage prodigy Cat Ferguson came within a hair's breadth of executing a memorable overall win in her debut Tour of Britain, but was outsprinted by her rival Ally Wollaston at the climax of the final stage in Glasgow. The pair came into the final sprint tied on time, after Wollaston had erased the 19-year-old Ferguson's overall lead. Bonus seconds for third place in the final sprint, behind the stage winner, Lorena Wiebes, was enough for the New Zealander to snatch the overall win. Advertisement Related: 'They named a sandwich after me': Luke Rowe on life in the peloton, cobbles and Welsh riders 'I was lucky that there were a lot of seconds up for grabs,' Wollaston, riding for FDJ-Suez, said. Wiebes, SD Worx-Protime teammate to the absent defending champion, Lotte Kopecky, rescued her team's race with a peerless stage win. 'We've had some bad luck this week with crashes and lost GC hopes because of it,' Wiebes said, 'but wrapping up the week with a stage win feels great.' Yet it was Wollaston's day and her turns of speed in the intermediate sprints chiselled relentlessly away at Ferguson's narrow lead until only a single second separated the pair in the overall standings. Advertisement After beating Ferguson yet again, in the third sprint, Wollaston asserted herself in the final dash to the line to take the biggest win of her career. 'The plan was to get as many seconds as I could, and unfortunately Cat was on my wheel for every single one, so it really came down to the last sprint,' she said. 'There was definitely a moment where I thought, 'I just cannot do this today.' My teammates really helped me, and pulled me to the front for the final.' The Aucklander's success came at Ferguson's expense and the teenager from Skipton crossed the finish line in tears as she realised she had lost the overall lead. 'I would have loved to have won. I am gutted, but she was the strongest today,' Ferguson, of the Movistar team, said. 'If you had told me at the beginning of the week that I'd be second, I would have been over the moon, so I can't be too disappointed.' Advertisement Victory began to slip from Ferguson's grasp in the series of intermediate sprints centred on Glasgow Green, in which she and her Movistar team were consistently overpowered by Wollaston and her FDJ-Suez team. A mid-race puncture also forced an unwelcome bike change and left Ferguson chasing the peloton on the fast circuit. 'It was eventful for sure,' Ferguson, who also won the points and best young rider classifications, said. 'There was always something going on during the intermediate sprints. I had a puncture, but I didn't want to change the bike, because I felt OK, [but] then it was slowly going down.' Try as she might, the teenager was unable to prevent Wollaston's track racing experience from eroding the hard-fought gains made in Saturday's stage, through the rainswept hills west of Kelso. In the final crucial sprint, Wollaston's team put her in a better position on the last bend. 'I got a bit chopped up on some corners and really that was it,' Ferguson said. 'Ally went away and I knew that was it.' Advertisement But Ferguson, winner of the junior world road race and time trial titles last season, can take heart from a consistently strong performance throughout the four day race. The race's most dramatic moments came in the hills around Kelso in Saturday's attritional and rainswept 143.8-kilometre third stage. As others suffered, Ferguson flourished. The stage, marked by two major crashes, proved catastrophic for the overnight race leader, Kristen Faulkner, who suffered a series of mishaps and finished more than three minutes behind Ferguson. The 19-year-old, who had said 'I love it when it rains' following a win earlier this season, was true to her word on Saturday, showing true grit and bike handling skills, particularly on the greasy Kelso cobbles at the finish. Ferguson described the torrid conditions around Kelso as 'really horrible,' but said 'the rain brings out the racer in me and gives me more adrenaline'. Advertisement Meanwhile, as Ferguson pondered what might have been, a tearful Lizzie Deignan rolled to a halt in Glasgow, after completing her final day of racing on British roads. Describing her feelings as 'very close to the surface', Deignan, who retires at the end of this season, said her final day racing in Britain was 'emotional.' The 36 old described the Glasgow stage as 'fast and technical and scary, but really fun as well'. 'The crowd were amazing and the team committed 100%,' she said. 'We were against all odds today, but we didn't give up.'
The Guardian
08-06-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Ally Wollaston pips British teenager Cat Ferguson to Tour of Britain title
The teenage prodigy Cat Ferguson came within a hair's breadth of executing a memorable overall win in her debut Tour of Britain, but was outsprinted by her rival Ally Wollaston at the climax of the final stage in Glasgow. The pair came into the final sprint tied on time, after Wollaston had erased the 19-year-old Ferguson's overall lead. Bonus seconds for third place in the final sprint, behind the stage winner, Lorena Wiebes, was enough for the New Zealander to snatch the overall win. 'I was lucky that there were a lot of seconds up for grabs,' Wollaston, riding for FDJ-Suez, said. Wiebes, SD Worx-Protime teammate to the absent defending champion, Lotte Kopecky, rescued her team's race with a peerless stage win. 'We've had some bad luck this week with crashes and lost GC hopes because of it,' Wiebes said, 'but wrapping up the week with a stage win feels great.' Yet it was Wollaston's day and her turns of speed in the intermediate sprints chiselled relentlessly away at Ferguson's narrow lead until only a single second separated the pair in the overall standings. After beating Ferguson yet again, in the third sprint, Wollaston asserted herself in the final dash to the line to take the biggest win of her career. 'The plan was to get as many seconds as I could, and unfortunately Cat was on my wheel for every single one, so it really came down to the last sprint,' she said. 'There was definitely a moment where I thought, 'I just cannot do this today.' My teammates really helped me, and pulled me to the front for the final.' The Aucklander's success came at Ferguson's expense and the teenager from Skipton crossed the finish line in tears as she realised she had lost the overall lead. 'I would have loved to have won. I am gutted, but she was the strongest today,' Ferguson, of the Movistar team, said. 'If you had told me at the beginning of the week that I'd be second, I would have been over the moon, so I can't be too disappointed.' Victory began to slip from Ferguson's grasp in the series of intermediate sprints centred on Glasgow Green, in which she and her Movistar team were consistently overpowered by Wollaston and her FDJ-Suez team. A mid-race puncture also forced an unwelcome bike change and left Ferguson chasing the peloton on the fast circuit. 'It was eventful for sure,' Ferguson, who also won the points and best young rider classifications, said. 'There was always something going on during the intermediate sprints. I had a puncture, but I didn't want to change the bike, because I felt OK, [but] then it was slowly going down.' Try as she might, the teenager was unable to prevent Wollaston's track racing experience from eroding the hard-fought gains made in Saturday's stage, through the rainswept hills west of Kelso. In the final crucial sprint, Wollaston's team put her in a better position on the last bend. 'I got a bit chopped up on some corners and really that was it,' Ferguson said. 'Ally went away and I knew that was it.' Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion But Ferguson, winner of the junior world road race and time trial titles last season, can take heart from a consistently strong performance throughout the four day race. The race's most dramatic moments came in the hills around Kelso in Saturday's attritional and rainswept 143.8-kilometre third stage. As others suffered, Ferguson flourished. The stage, marked by two major crashes, proved catastrophic for the overnight race leader, Kristen Faulkner, who suffered a series of mishaps and finished more than three minutes behind Ferguson. The 19-year-old, who had said 'I love it when it rains' following a win earlier this season, was true to her word on Saturday, showing true grit and bike handling skills, particularly on the greasy Kelso cobbles at the finish. Ferguson described the torrid conditions around Kelso as 'really horrible,' but said 'the rain brings out the racer in me and gives me more adrenaline'. Meanwhile, as Ferguson pondered what might have been, a tearful Lizzie Deignan rolled to a halt in Glasgow, after completing her final day of racing on British roads. Describing her feelings as 'very close to the surface', Deignan, who retires at the end of this season, said her final day racing in Britain was 'emotional.' The 36 old described the Glasgow stage as 'fast and technical and scary, but really fun as well'. 'The crowd were amazing and the team committed 100%,' she said. 'We were against all odds today, but we didn't give up.'
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
'Special Horse': Favorite Patch Adams Powers Clear In Woody Stephens
'Special Horse': Favorite Patch Adams Powers Clear In Woody Stephens originally appeared on Paulick Report. Patch Adams confirmed on Saturday what his connections suspected all along--he's a sprinter. Advertisement The Into Mischief colt proved to be a burgeoning sprint star on Kentucky Derby Day at Churchill Downs for trainer Brad Cox, who subsequently brought his talent to Saratoga, where on the Belmont Stakes undercard the former potential classic hopeful revealed an elite aptitude at a shorter distance in the $500,000 Woody Stephens (G1). Luis Saez roused Patch Adams from just off the pace and he stormed down the center of the track to dispatch Madaket Road and pacesetter Macho Music for a 2 1/4-length victory. Madaket Road hung on for second, and Big Truzz was third another 3 1/4 lengths back. Champion Citizen Bull was fourth and Macho Music faded to finish seventh. 'It was a pretty exciting stretch (run)," Saez said of Patch Adams, the 3-1 favorite in field of 10 3-year-olds "This horse, I really like him. He was working pretty well and today he came with a good run." Advertisement Saez hustled Patch Adams right out of the gate and the pair stalked the pace set by Macho Music and Madaket Road through swift fractions of :22.11, :44.40, and 1:08.73 through six furlongs. While gaining ground near the quarter pole, Patch Adams was hustled to the outside and came charging into contention. He got in front in the final furlong, drew clear. "He was in a perfect spot the whole way," Saez said. "And, man, when he came to the top of the stretch he gave me a pretty good turn of foot.' Time for the seven furlongs 1:21.35 on a track rated as muddy. Patch Adams returned $8.80 for the win. Advertisement Patch Adams earned his first stakes victory Saturday and entered following a 2 1/4-length win sprinting 6 1/2 furlongs on May 3 at Churchill. Under some consideration for the Kentucky Derby earlier this year when he was fourth in a pair of graded stakes on the classic trail. He had, however, shown his preference for sprinting earlier, earning a career-best 98 Beyer Speed Figure for his 10 1/2-length triumph to break his maiden in his second start going the Woody Stephens distance in November at the Louisville track. 'Obviously it took him two starts to break his maiden, but when he did break his maiden he was very impressive at Churchill Downs," Cox said. "We thought he would stretch out based off the way he breezed and how he galloped out and worked with the pace before the [Grade 3] Southwest Stakes. Didn't break that day and didn't really get a good trip in the [Grade 3 Tampa Bay Derby] obviously. It is kind of odd to have a horse that breaks as well as he does going one turn but couldn't get out of the gate going two turns. Once again, horses will make you scratch your head sometimes. We kind of scratched our heads this winter and into the spring, but he turned it around at Churchill Downs and we cut him back and he responded again today." Patch Adams was bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm, which campaigns him with China Horse Club Inc. "He showed that he's a seven-furlong horse the day he broke his maiden and has been telling us what he wants to do," said Elliott Walden, President, CEO, and Racing Manager of WinStar Farm. Advertisement 'One turn is what he wants to do. He's an Into Mischief out of a Distorted Humor mare (Well Humored); the second Grade 1 winner we have had this year like that along with Tappan Street. Two different types, Tappan Street wants to go longer than this one, but I think he could get a mile. 'We'll probably come back for the [Grade 1, $500,000 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial on August 23 at Saratoga]. He ran kind of quick back here and been at it all year; gone to Oaklawn, gone to Tampa — and he's not a super big horse. He's a special horse. I think he's got more there and will be really tough running back. It's just exciting to win a Grade 1 with a really well-bred colt from the family of [WinStar-owned Dubai World Cup winner] Well Armed — a great family that's been very good to us.' This story was originally reported by Paulick Report on Jun 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
