Jockey Kieran Shoemark celebrated a first Group 1 triumph aboard Lady Bowthorpe in the Qatar Nassau Stakes, the highlight on day three of the Qatar Goodwood Festival.
The 10/3 winner Lady Bowthorpe had been running well in prestigious contests all season and appeared to relish her first assignment over 10 furlongs. Like her jockey, the popular 5-year-old mare was registering a first Group 1 success.
Trained by William Jarvis, Lady Bowthorpe sat fourth for much of the contest as 9/4 joint-favourite Joan Of Arc made the running. Shoemark challenged wide as the race developed in the home straight, quickening clear for a length and a half victory from Zeyaadah (7/1).
Joan Of Arc held on for third, a half-length behind the runner-up, with the other 9/4 joint-favorite Audarya never threatening in fifth.
Shoemark said: “I'm pretty speechless to be honest. Lady Bowthorpe is such a special mare. I just feel lucky to be a part of her. It's fantastic for the whole team, Emma Banks, William Jarvis.
“I know this horse so well and I can tell what form she is in just by cantering to the start. She took a hold of me cantering down and I knew she was in good form. She likes a bit of give in the ground, the question mark was the 10 furlongs. In all her previous races, her last furlong has been her best furlong so it didn't concern me too much.
“Lady Bowthorpe bumped into an absolute champion in Palace Pier in the Lockinge. She was unlucky in the Falmouth where things didn't go her way as we hit traffic problems that day. It's all worthwhile now. I'm delighted that we're going to be able to celebrate tonight and really enjoy this. It's a massive team effort.
“She's a special filly and has done nothing but improve with age. She is a credit to her owner Emma who is an incredible woman who fills me with absolute confidence. I'm just delighted.
“In the last day or so, I've been imagining crossing the line in front, but I think it will not sink in until later. Without sounding too confident, I always believed if I got myself clean and sober that I would get to where I wanted to be.
“My career is back on track now. I'm really enjoying the racing and to be involved in these huge days is what it's all about. I've won a Group One today, but I'm already looking forward to the next one.”
This was a first Group 1 success for Jarvis since Grand Lodge captured the St James's Palace Stakes in 1994.
The trainer said: “We knew Lady Bowthorpe was smart when she won the Valiant Stakes at Ascot as a four-year-old. She was exceptional in the Dahlia Stakes and she's a very, very smart filly.
“I think after she won the Dahlia Stakes that was when I, personally, thought that she should have the Nassau Stakes on her radar and we sort of worked back a little bit.
“Having said that, she hasn't missed a beat, we went Dahlia, Lockinge, Royal Ascot, Newmarket, she's a very tough mare.
“I've been dying to run her over 10 furlongs for a long time but events transpired against us until today. Anyway, I think she has proved that she's even better over 10 than she is at a mile.
“I've never lost faith in myself as a trainer. Quite a lot of other people may well have done, which is why we've only got 28 or 29 horses in the yard.
“However, I've got a lovely bunch of staff working for me and they've never lost faith in the way that we operate and they give me everything.
“We are a family unit and there is a lot of loyalty involved, including with Kieran who I am delighted for.
“There was a lot of pressure from outside people saying should we do this or that or leave Oisin Murphy sitting in the weighing room, but it never really crossed out minds.
“I am thrilled for Kieran. He is a delightful young man who has impeccable manners. He obviously went through a bad place but he came out through the other end. He is a delight to work with.”
Lady Bowthorpe's owner Emma Banks said: “Kieran gave Lady Bowthorpe an amazing ride. He deserves this, it is his first Group One – it's all of our first Group One apart from William who had one back when the dinosaurs were doing it.
“It's fantastic. I was sitting next to Luca Cumani who half a furlong out looked at me and said 'you've got this'. If Luca Cumani says that then you know you've got it.
“I'm so proud of Lady Bowthorpe. I'm proud of Kieran who had a lot of pressure and he has had some bad luck on her and today we won.
“I pay the bills, that's all I do really. William is a fantastic trainer, he has lots of my horses. They are not all as good as this one unfortunately.”
Shadwell's Angus Gold said of the runner-up: “If you told me a year ago Zeyaadah would win a Listed, a Group 3 and be second in a Group 1, I would have been very excited at the thought of that. So I am thrilled.
“She will stick at that sort of trip. Jim [Crowley] didn't mention the ground. She won on bottomless, but I don't think that was for her. Jim did say she was moving beautifully.
“It a great result for Emma Banks and William Jarvis.”
Audarya's rider William Buick said: “I would say that Audarya just didn't pick up on that ground. She won on fast ground at Royal Ascot and whilst she has run well in some big races on similar ground to today, the difference was that it is just so tacky and gluey. For me, it was the ground that was the issue today.”
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