2009 Horse of the Year Age of Jape is a non-runner in protest against discriminatory measures
Anyone who was looking forward to the race of the year in Prague in the Yoko Gold Cup in Sunday’s races leading up to the controversial Fortuna Czech Derby at Auto Hase Park Prague Velka Chuchle Racecourse is in for a big disappointment. Age of Jape, 2009 Horse of the Year in the Czech Republic and also in Slovakia, unbeaten in his last 12 races, has been scratched from the list of runners and has left the race for his challengers. His first run on a Czech racecourse this year has been cancelled, and after the earlier withdrawal of Shamalgan from the Derby it means that Prague cannot look forward to seeing either of the two most highly-rated Czech stayers.
We are not going to be able see the Czech ace of last year take on the outstanding Slovak horses Camill and Ryan (assuming noone finds a way to stop these foreign passport holders from running ...).
What reasons have been given for this? "Age of Jape is not running in protest against the decision of the Jockey Club to discriminate against foreign horses in the Derby and in other races," reports František Holčák [trainer of Age of Jape]. "The directors of the Jockey Club have made a really bad decision that can have unforseen consequences. Imagine where we would be if the Italians were to finesse us out of their steeplechases." These are the words of a trainer often said to prefer running his horses in the Czech Republic and Slovakia rather than taking them for international confrontations. "If horses come here from abroad, it is up to us to face them. If Czech racing is going to take this direction, as indicated by last week’s decision, we can just shut ourselves in, race amongst ourselves and share out the winnings. But that is not the kind of racing we want."
What are the future plans for Age of Jape after boycotting the race in Prague. "He was a bit tired after winning at Bratislava [in a tight finish against Ruten]," Holčák says. "We are now looking for a race for him abroad. We have to take advantage of the fact that foreigners still allow us into their races," Holčák adds, referring to the shame brought on Czech horse racing in connection with the Fortuna Czech Derby.
(Translated from the Czech language Paddock Revue web pages)
Needless to say, the English language pages of Paddock Revue are shocked by the decision of the Czech Jockey Club to change the rules at the last moment to eliminate two Slovak-trained horses from the Czech Derby.