Stepper Point Curragh success the sprint highlight of festival

Hopes that a Group 1 sprint can form part of the Champions Weekend programme are among long-term goals for Irish racing's new shop-window event which proved such a success last weekend.

Stepper Point's success in the Group 3 Flying Five at the Curragh on Sunday was the sprint highlight of a two-day festival which contained five top-flight events. Despite the current crop of star Irish-trained sprinters, Ireland does not have a Group 1 race over five or six furlongs.

With bumper attendance and betting figures for both Leopardstown and the Curragh, official sights are already being set on how to further enhance the new €3.7 million initiative in the years ahead.

"There will be a formal review of the weekend and there are lots of issues that can be addressed. There will be no resting on any laurels," said Horse Racing Ireland's chief executive Brian Kavanagh. "For instance, long term, we would love to get a Group 1 sprint onto the programme. We want to continue building up momentum in this event.

Goodwill

“One of the great things about Champions Weekend was watching all the groups involved working together, such as the European Breeders Fund, HRI, the Curragh and Leopardstown. It was great to see the goodwill behind making it a success,” he added.

The total attendance at Leopardstown and the Curragh over last weekend was 24,168, significantly better than official forecasts for just under 20,000.