ASCOT REPORT SHERGAR CUP TEAMS TAKING SHAPE. TO BE RUN ON SATURDAY AUGUST 7 2010.

ASCOT RACECOURSE PREPARE FOR THE 2010 RUNNING OF THE DUBAI DUTY FREE SHERGAR CUP.



The teams for this year’s Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup at Ascot a week on Saturday (August 7) are close to being finalised, with stars like six times British champion jockey Kieren Fallon, three times French champion Christophe Soumillon and five times Irish champion Pat Smullen signed up in the last 10 days for the world’s premier international jockeys team competition.



Both Soumillon and Smullen will be making their Shergar Cup debuts, while Fallon has not participated in it since 2004. All three of the Rest of the World jockeys – three times South African champion, Anton Marcus, top Japanese rider, Yasunari Iwata, and Melbourne’s reigning champion jockey, Luke Nolen – will be making their UK debuts.



Just four jockeys need to confirm their participation once they know whether they will be required by their retained stables – Ryan Moore and William Buick for the Great Britain team, Richard Hughes for the Ireland team and Frankie Dettori for the European team.



Great Britain

Hayley Turner (Captain)

*Ryan Moore

*William Buick



Ireland

Kieren Fallon (Captain)

Pat Smullen

*Richard Hughes



Europe

*Frankie Dettori (Captain) (Italy)

Christophe Soumillon (Belgium)

Umberto Rispoli (Italy)



Rest of the World

Anton Marcus(Captain) (South Africa)

Yasunari Iwata (Japan)

Luke Nolen (Australia)


* to be confirmed



At The Races, for whom this is a stand-alone afternoon card, will be the host broadcaster for the Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup and will be looking to capture the whole flavour of the event.Racing will start an hour later than in previous years at 2.10pm, with the 12 jockeys signing autographs between 1pm and 1.30pm and the Opening Ceremony following straight on from that.



In the races, the jockeys will wear team colours for the first time, with the ROA having given its support to the initiative which should help bring alive the team competition more vividly for racegoers on the track and ATR viewers at home.



As last year, cheerleaders will be dancing in front of the stands when the horses reach the start before each race and they will dance again once each race is over to the winning rider’s team anthem.The anthems this year are:



Great Britain: Kasabian – Fire

Europe: Alphabeat – Fascination

Ireland: U2 – Elevation

Rest of the World: Black Eyed Peas – I Gotta Feeling



After the Closing Ceremony and presentation of the Shergar Cup, the Silver Saddle trophy for the top points-scoring jockey and the Dubai Duty Free Ride of the Day award, a free 80’s concert will take place in the Old Paddock with stars like Boy George, former Ultravox front man Midge Ure, Belinda Carlisle, the Christians, Captain Sensible, Cutting Crew and Johnny Hates Jazz entertaining the crowds.



Only a few tickets for Premier Admission (£35, but £31.50 if booked in advance) remain to be sold although there are still plenty of General Admission tickets available (£25, but £22.50 if booked in advance). All accompanied under 18’s are admitted free and there will be lots of additional free children’s entertainments.



Colm McLoughlin, Managing Director of Dubai Duty Free, said: “We are delighted with the way the day is shaping up and look forward to another exciting competition.



“We are very pleased that special guests Joe Mercer and John Reid will be joining us to judge the Dubai Duty Free Ride of the Day, a new award we introduced last year that we expect to be keenly contested once again.”



Ascot Head of Communications and International Racing Nick Smith commented: “In recent years the Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup Day has been our best attended race meeting outside the five days of Royal Ascot and there should be another fantastic atmosphere here next Saturday.



“It’s great to have a lot of new faces in the competition this year, all with tremendous international or domestic achievements to their name. For instance, it will be fascinating to see Frankie Dettori riding alongside fellow countryman Umberto Rispoli, the young rider who last year smashed Frankie’s father’s all-time record for the number of winners in an Italian season.



“And it will be just as interesting to see Yasunari Iwata from Japan, the only rider from his country to win Australia’s greatest race, the Emirates Melbourne Cup, riding alongside an up-and-coming Aussie star, Luke Nolen.



“Overall we have an outstanding array of jockeys taking part and a great line-up of acts for the post-racing concert. It all points to a vintage Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup Day and with advance bookings on a par with last year, we should be on for another crowd not far short of 30,000.”



Further information:

Nick Smith, Head of Communications and International Racing, Ascot , 07771 791 449

Alistair Haggis, Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup Event Manager, 07761 896500




HISTORY
The Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup is one of the world’s major international jockeys’ competitions and was first staged at Ascot in 2000. Twelve top riders take part, three representing Great Britain, three Ireland , three Europe and three riding for the Rest of the World. The day features six races, all handicaps worth £30,000, with each jockey having five rides and sitting out one race. Points are awarded on a 15, 10, 7, 5, 3 basis to the first five horses to finish in each race and the team with the highest points total after the last race lifts the Shergar Cup trophy. The top individual points-scoring rider wins the Silver Saddle trophy and there is also the Dubai Duty Free Ride of the Day award.



Dubai Duty Free, the world’s number one airport retailer, has been involved with the Shergar Cup since its inception, and became title sponsor of the event in 2006.



PAST WINNERS OF THE “SILVER SADDLE” FOR THE LEADING JOCKEY AT THE DUBAI DUTY FREE SHERGAR CUP



2009 Team Points

Richard Hughes IRE 49 points

Fredrik Johansson EUR 30 points

Hayley Turner GBR 30 points

Neil Callan IRE 29 points

Hiroyuki Uchida ROW 27 points

Seamus Heffernan IRE 23 points

Alan Munro GBR 19 points

Gerald Mosse EUR 18 points

Ahmed Ajtebi ROW 10 points

Malesh Narredu ROW 10 points

Darryll Holland GBR 7 points

Andrasch Starke EUR 4 points



2008 Team Points

Gerald Mosse EUR 50 points

Yutaka Take ROW 37 points

Mirco Demuro EUR 26 points

Hayley Turner GB 25 points

Richard Hughes IRE 22 points

Russell Baze ROW 20 points

Halis Karatas EUR 18 points

Frankie Dettori GB 16 points

Jamie Spencer IRE 14 points

Seb Sanders GB 12 points

Kevin Manning IRE 8 points

Jorge Ricardo ROW 0 points



2007 Team Points

Hugh Bowman ROW 37 points

Hayley Turner GB 32 points

Kevin Manning IRE 28 points

Jimmy Fortune IRE 25 points

Yutaka Take ROW 25 points

Darren Beadman ROW 24 points

Frankie Dettori EUR 20 points

Martin Dwyer GB 15 points

Fredrik Johansson EUR 15 points

Declan McDonogh IRE 13 points

Kevin Darley GB 11 points

Andreas Suborics EUR 7 points



2006 Team Points

Ryan Moore GBI 50 points

Seb Sanders GBI 30 points

Frankie Dettori ROW 29 points

Jamie Spencer GBI 26 points

Gerald Mosse ROW 22 points

Doug Whyte ROW 21 points

Robert Winston GBI 20 points

Hayley Turner GBI 17 points

Glen Boss ROW 13 points

Michael Kinane GBI 10 points

Emma Jayne Wilson ROW 7 points

Yuichi Fukunaga ROW 3 points





2004 Team Points

Weichong Marwing ROW 37 points

Frankie Dettori ROW 31 points

Michael Kinane GBI 28 points

Kieren Fallon GBI 23 points

Jamie Spencer GBI 23 points

Dario Vargiu ROW 21 points

Damien Oliver ROW 17 points

Yutaka Take ROW 17 points

Gerald Mosse ROW 15 points

Kevin Darley GBI 13 points

Johnny Murtagh GBI 10 points

Darryll Holland GBI 5 points



2003 Team Points

Kieren Fallon GBI 43 points

Doug Whyte ROW 36 points

Shane Dye ROW 32 points

Fredrik Johansson ROW 29 points

Andreas Suborics ROW 20 points

Yutaka Take ROW 20 points

Pat Eddery GBI 19 points

Darryll Holland GBI 18 points

Mick Kinane GBI 10 point

Kevin Darley GBI 5 points

Frankie Dettori ROW 5 points

Johnny Murtagh GBI 3 points



2002 Team Points

Richard Hughes GBI 45 points

Mick Kinane GBI 30 points

Kieren Fallon GBI 28 points

Hiroki Goto ROW 27 points

David Flores ROW 20 points

Pat Eddery GBI 18 points

Craig Williams ROW 17 points

Andreas Suborics ROW 15 points

Gerald Mosse ROW 14 points

Kevin Darley GBI 10 points

Doug Whyte ROW 10 points

Johnny Murtagh GBI 6 points



2001 Team Points

David Flores ROW 45 points

Pat Eddery GBI 30 points

Mirco Demuro ROW 30 points

Richard Hughes GBI 27 points

Johnny Murtagh GBI 25 points

Gerald Mosse ROW 18 points

Mick Kinane GBI 18 points

Frankie Dettori ROW 15 points

Kevin Darley GBI 10 points

Norihiro Yokoyama ROW 10 points

Craig Williams ROW 7 points

Kieren Fallon GBI 5 points



The Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup a most interesting series of flat races bringing together the best riders from all around the world to compete.





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