International classes: Conor Swail opened Ireland's international account at the Horse Show, yesterday, with a sensational win on the Cruising mare Windgates Mystique in the Speed Stakes to score his first Dublin victory.
It was also a moment of triumph in a good week for owner Edward Cawley, who recorded his first win as a trainer when the home-bred Perfect Present scored in the handicap hurdle at Galway last Friday.
Swail and the nine-year-old Windgates Mystique set the pace with a flying clear in 51.66 seconds in the morning section. Although the time was beaten by both Lt David O'Brien and Cian O'Connor, they couldn't leave the fences standing. The Co Down jockey won the €2,400 prize.
"It got a bit hairy towards the end", Swail said. "A few came close to me, but David hit the last and Cian had the second last."
Second last in, Robert Smith gave it a real crack with the Irish-bred Gerry Maguire, but was almost a full second adrift at the finish for the runner-up spot ahead of Frenchman Michel Hecart. The French had their revenge in the afternoon feature, the Irish Sports Council Classic, when Laurent Goffinet came off best in a 17-horse decider.
The 37-year-old from Normandy has never gone further afield than Belgium in the 16 years he has been competing, but he got his Dublin debut off to a flying start when the nippy little stallion, Flipper d'Elle, left his rivals reeling in his wake.
Britain's Nick Skelton, displaying a streamlined figure, set the early pace with a clear in 44.4 seconds from the stallion Arko. Skelton, who broke his neck in a fall almost three years ago, made his international comeback last year, but has since shed two stone and his new-found athleticism paid off yesterday.
But it wasn't enough to keep him out in front for long, and next man in, Kerrygold league leader Harry Marshall, gave the Irish fans something to cheer about when roundly trouncing his British rival as Splendido rocketed through the finish in 43.8.
Even that only gave a temporary hold on the lead, with Dutchman Wim Schroder, sporting an electric blue jacket, swooping round almost a full second faster on Eurocommerce Montreal. The demotion of Irish hope, Marshall, was greeted with muted applause, but even the partisan crowd couldn't help but cheer when Frenchman Laurent Goffinet picked up the pace.
Goffinet, who features on the French team in today's Aga Khan Cup, may have got the leg-up on the smallest horse in the class, but Flipper d'Elle - which doesn't even make the 16-hand mark - is a little powerhouse and would have turned himself inside out rather than touch a twig.
Snaking round the Linda Allen-designed track, he was home and hosed in a scorching 41.36 for the win.
Fellow countryman Florian Angot came within half a second of the target, but was denied a French one-two when de Launay trailed off the last to leave Goffinet the welcome recipient of a €5,400 cheque from Irish Sports Coucil CEO John Treacy.