KZN awards

7 AUGUST 2014


Champions Season had a profound effect on the lists of nominees for the national Equus Awards to be held in Johannesburg next week and by the same token the KwaZulu-Natal Racing Awards.

For the most part the Equus nominations mirror those of the KwaZulu-Natal Awards that will be announced at a glittering function to be held in the Elangeni Hotel on 11 September 2014.

To qualify for the KwaZulu-Natal Racing Awards a horse must be either trained by a trainer permanently domiciled in KwaZulu-Natal while horses from visiting stables qualify on the basis of having three or more runs in KwaZulu-Natal during Champions Season, two runs in the case of juveniles.

Champion 2yo filly

Same Jurisdiction

Champion 2yo colt

Harry’s Son

Champion 3yo filly

In the Fast Lane

Champion 3yo colt

Legislate

Champion Older Male

King Of Pain

Champion Older Mare

Beach Beauty



Champion Sprinter

Via Africa

Champion Middle Distance

Legislate

Champion Stayer

Hot Ticket

Ashburton Trainer Of The Year

Duncan Howells

Clairwood Trainer Of The Year

Charles Laird


Dennis Drier – Champion Trainer

Summerveld Trainer Of The Year

Dennis Drier

Apprentice of the Year

Donovan Dillon

Champion Jockey

Anton Marcus

Owner Of The Year

Markus and Ingrid Jooste

Champion Breeders

Summerhill Stud

Champion Trainer of the Year

Duncan Howells

Anita Akal Special Award

Craig Peters

Racing Personality of the Year

Anita Akal

Groom of the Year

Jabu Mdludlu

Horse Of The Year

Legislate

12 SEPTEMBER 2014

Vodacom Durban July winner Legislate was the big winner at Thursday night’s KZN Racing Awards held at the Elangeni Hotel in Durban.

Justin Snaith’s runner garnered Horse of the Year honours as well as Champion Three-year-old Male and Champion Middle Distance runner.

On hand to collect the trophies were co-owners John Freeman, Dennis and Gael Evans along with Sue and Chris Snaith on behalf of the recently married Justin who was on honeymoon. Legislate’s groom, Jabu Ndludlu, was voted KZN Groom of the Year.

Duncan Howells dethroned the two perennial champions, Dennis Drier and Mike de Kock, as KZN Champion Trainer by number of winners. Howells also collected the trophy as Champion Trainer at Ashburton from where he saddled the two award-winning fillies Via Africa and Same Jurisdiction.

Equus Champion Via Africa was a shoo-in for Champion Sprinter while Same Jurisdiction, who was controversially overlooked at the Equus Awards gained some measure of satisfaction for her owners when voted Champion Two-Year-Old filly.

Paul Lafferty’s Equus Champion Harry’s Son was a certainty for the Champion Two-year-old Colt while two Cape Town raiders, King Of Pain and Hot Ticket collected awards for Champion Older Male and Champion Stayer respectively.

Equus Champion In The Fast Lane garnered the award for Champion Three-year-old Filly making it a red letter night for the Snaith stable.

Six of the awards in the horse categories were also winners at the national Equus Awards, underlining just how important the three-month Champion Season is on the racing calendar.

Anton Marcus was again KZN’s Champion Jockey by number of winners while Donovan Dillon, soon to come out of his time, was KZN’s Champion Apprentice.

Derek Brugman, Racing Manager to Markus and Ingrid Jooste, was on hand to collect the trophy on their behalf as KZN’s leading owners.

A special award was made to Hector Lawrence who celebrated his 101st birthday on the night and who gave an amusing speech on his first visit to a racecourse. Lawrence was a stalwart owner and breeder from the KZN Midlands in the middle of the last century.

The full list of winners is:

2yo filly - Same Jurisdiction
2yo colt - Harry's Son
3yo filly - in the Fast Lane
3yo colt - Legislate
Older Male - King Of Pain
Older mare - Beach Beauty
Sprinter - Via Africa
Middle distance - Legislate
Stayer - Hot Ticket
Ashburton Trainer of the Year - Duncan Howells
Clairwood - Charles Laird
Summerveld - Dennis Drier
Apprentice of the Year - Donovan Dillon
Jockey - Anton Marcus
Owner – Markus and Ingrid Jooste
Breeders – Summerhill Stud
Trainer of the Year - Duncan Howells
Anita Akal Special Award - Craig Peters
Racing Personality of the Year - Anita Akal
KZN Groom of the Year - Jabu Mdludlu
Horse of the Year - Le