FIXTURES - RACE CARD

Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby
27/06/2010

The high point of the year with some of the world's top horses competing in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby. The 1st of 8 races kicks off at 1.45pm but gates open earlier to allow for the thousands of racegoers to soak up the atmosphere.

Make no mistake this is the biggest party of the year at an Irish racecourse and is not to be missed, where the beautiful people dress-up, turn-out and party-on all day. The occasion is impervious to weather conditions and there is always that essential feel-good factor which cannot be induced artificially at an occasion - it's either there or it's not and Irish Derby Day has got it in abundance.

The Scene
"And straight I will repair
To the Curragh of Kildare
For it's there I'll find tidings of my dear"

is the melodic precursor to the race itself and the crowd sings along to the song of Kildare as the runners make their way down to the starting stalls. There is a buzz of expectancy like for no other race in the calendar. This is wildly exciting and not just because it's a great spectacle but also because of the meaning and resonance of the race.

The Irish Derby often decides which is the best 3-year-old colt in Europe as it performs the role of a junction of sorts, attracting horses that ran in the big races earlier in the year and getting them to face each other in a dramatic showdown. It is truly a major world event in horseracing. It features some of the finest racehorses in the world (collectively worth millions of Euro) owned, trained and ridden by masters of their professions, competing for a prize of 1.25 Million Euro.

Fashion partner Kildare Village will offer a fabulous prize for the Most Stylish while lovers of food can enjoy gourmet delights from some of the leading restaurants in the Irish Derby Food Village

Schedule (not confirmed)

1.45pm Dubai Duty Free Full of Surprises 2yo Maiden 6f
2.15pm Dubai Duty Free Sapphire Stakes 5f
2.15pm Dubai Duty Free Double Millionaire Premier Handicap 8f
3.15pm Ladbrokes Railway Stakes 6f
3.50pm National Lottery Sweepstakes Race 6f
4.30pm Woodies DIY Celebration Stakes 8f
5.10pm Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby 12f
5.50pm Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship Handicap 16f