HKJC and Ka Ying Rising Begin Everest Trek

Meanwhile, a long-anticipated campaign in Australia is now a reality for Ka Ying Rising, with the Hong Kong Jockey Club securing a prized slot in The Everest and trainer David Hayes confirming his star sprinter will travel for the $20 million showdown. After months of negotiations during the Hong Kong season, the Jockey Club struck a two-year agreement with the Australian Turf Club (ATC), ensuring Ka Ying Rising will take his place in the 1200-metre feature at Randwick on October 18. For Hayes, the deal represents a major breakthrough. “I’m absolutely thrilled it’s been finalised and I’m thrilled the club has organised the best deal possible for the owner, which is the most important thing for me,” he said. Jockey Club executive director of racing, Andrew Harding, outlined the scope of the deal, which includes this year’s Everest and extends to future opportunities to showcase Hong Kong-trained talent or entice international sprinters to Sha Tin. “The club has entered into an agreement with the ATC for rights to use its The Everest slot,” Harding confirmed. “For this year, the club will use the slot to enable Ka Ying Rising to take part in The Everest. In future years, we will use the slot to either facilitate a Hong Kong horse running or to target Australian or New Zealand sprinters to come onto the Hong Kong International Races after The Everest.” Harding was clear that the slot is not about chasing prize money, but rather positioning the Hong Kong brand on a world stage. “Unsurprisingly, the opportunity to share in the prize money is not the club’s focus. What we want is to create an opportunity for a suitable Hong Kong horse to compete in the race on terms that are favourable to the Hong Kong owner,” he said. “Likewise, if at some point we make the slot available to a runner from Australia or New Zealand, the focus would be on attracting top-quality runners from there to campaign here in December.” The Everest’s 12 slots are traditionally valued at around A$700,000 each, representing the minimum prize money for horses finishing between seventh and 12th, with private deals between slot holders and owners often tailored to the horse’s prospects. Although terms haven’t been disclosed, Ka Ying Rising’s connections – the Ka Ying Syndicate – are expected to be the beneficiaries of one of the more lucrative arrangements seen in the event’s eight-year history. The gelding, unbeaten in eight starts, completed a perfect season with his Gr1 Chairman’s Sprint Prize win in April and has since enjoyed a freshen-up ahead of his next challenge. Hayes is now ramping up his workload and is conscious of the long break he faces before October. “If he doesn’t run, he’ll have an exhibition gallop,” the trainer said. “But in the back of my mind I’m wary that when The Everest hits he’ll be six months without a run, which is a long time.” A two-race Australian raid is under consideration, with the Russell Balding Stakes (1300m) at Rosehill on November 1 also in play.