Chrome dazzles all to win Homowo final Cup race
The 6th and the final race meeting to round off the Homowo Meeting was marked with keen competition among the horses, with winners receiving the coveted cups at stake for keeps.
The new sensation on the track, Chrome, continued with its winning streak – with six straight wins, maintaining an unbeaten record for the six meetings for the Homowo races.
Emerging on the tracks from the Novice Division where newly-entered Ghanaian-bred horses made entry, Chrome made mince meat of other challenges through which it got promoted to combined 4C, 4B and 3B Division.
It then won all the four races in the division and was again promoted to the current top Division of 2A/2B/3A for the Cup race.
Therefore, when the top division horses came under the starter’s orders at a distance of horses 1,600 metres, (8 furlongs), it was Mr K and Obiaa Se Eye who set the pace with Simply Great, Secret Lady and Chrome following in that order.
As they negotiated the first bend, Jockeys Davis Ahinakwa and Romeo Nettey mounted on Secret Lady and Simply Great respectively tried anxiously to move to leading position for the ultimate prize.
As the horses got to the last bend, Jockey Joshua Adjei Mensah, who was riding on Chrome, released her from behind to overtake the front-numbers and romp home comfortably to win the horse Racing Association (GH) Cup in a time of 2 mins: O secs, leaving Secret Lady and Obiaa Se Eye for the 2nd the 3rd place respectively.
There was an upset and surprise in the Novice Division races when little known horse, By His Grace with Jockey B. Kotey, outran all the top contenders to lift the Joel Duncan Williams Challenge Trophy in a 1,400 metres (7 furs) distance. Favorites such as Super, ridden by Jockey S. Musa and Pegasus mounted by Jockey Joshua Mensah, came 2nd and 3rd respective in a time of 1 min: 51 secs.
In the 1st race of the day, Jupiter, ridden by Jockey Joseph Lamptey won the Green Butterfly Cup over a distance of 1200 metres (6 furs) in a time of 1 min; 36 see with Zaku and 1 know My level following in that order.
Before the start of Saturday races, the Horse Racing family gathered as the Turf club received the sad news of the demise of Samuel Jimmy Oko Okpoti, the sole administrator of the club secretariat.
According to the news, he was hit by a speeding car on his way to the Turf Club, that fateful Saturday.
He has since buried at the La cemetery on Tuesday in accordance with Islamic customs.
Meanwhile, horse-racing at the Turf club would break for two weeks.
By Lawrence Markwei
