Approaching two veteran ‘captains’ of the industry to syndicate your champion for stud is akin to giving your son a kickstart and sending him to Oxford or Harvard!
That’s surely the rationale behind leading owner Ashwin Reynold’s move to syndicate ‘The People’s Champion’ Kommetdieding with the assistance of seasoned thoroughbred breeding professionals, John Freeman and John Koster.
Gavin Lerena steers Kommetdieding to an historic Met win as multiple Gr1 winners Jet Dark (Smanga Khumalo) and Linebacker (Grant van Niekerk) chase in vain (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
The news that the modestly priced yearling, who has boosted horseracing’s man-in-the-street popularity ratings over the past few season through his outstanding performances on the track, will return to the magnificent place of his birth after the Gr1 L’Ormarins King’s Plate and a swansong in the Gr1 WSB Cape Met, has been received with excitement and anticipation.
The simple fact – the fabulously versatile Kommetdieding was syndicated for stud in a matter of hours late last week and will return to multiple national champion base Klawervlei after the Met, where he will commence the second chapter of a fairytale that will be retold for decades to come.
The rags-to-riches story of the humble colt who went from obscurity to the unique Durban July/Cape Town Met double will go down in history as one of the great stories in South African racing folklore. Racing folk fondly claimed him as ‘The People’s Champion’.
A modestly priced yearling, within three months he started maturing and grew into a magnificent looking colt.
His proud owner came up with a masterstroke of a name, which means ‘bring it on, we’re ready’.
He won on debut over 1200m as a two year old and reeled off an undefeated sequence of four races at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth, culminating in a stunning victory in the Gr3 Politician Stakes in January 2021.
Kommetdieding wins the Klawervlei Sale race on debut under Sihle Cele (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
Ashwin’s phone started ringing, as big-time racing people from around the globe wanted to buy this talented youngster.
The offers were in the millions, but the soft-hearted Ashwin declined them all, saying this colt was for South Africa.
On Saturday 3 July 2021, Kommetdieding won the R2-million Vodacom Durban July as a three year old. In the process, the history books were updated as Ashwin Reynolds became the first racehorse owner of colour to win Africa’s most famous horserace.
Kommetdieding in his Durban July victory canter-past (Pic – Candiese Lenferna)
Again the offers came, and this time even greater than before. Ashwin was unyielding, opting to keep the colt in South Africa and instead to go for the 2022 Met in front of his adoring home crowd who had come to revere their favourite.
He duly won Cape Town’s most prestigious race, and in so doing joined the elite racing heroes Politician, London News, Pocket Power and Igugu. His trainer Michelle Rix also became the first female conditioner to win the prestigious race.
In his dream to keep the colt in South Africa and embark on a second career as a stallion, Ashwin has again pledged his unique support to the breeding ranks by sharing the Cape Kommet’s 5 year old racing career as part of the breeding deal. He will thus compete in the L’Ormarins King’s Plate and the Met for the proud new syndicate.
A seriously magnanimous gesture in which the two John’s have joined forces to repeat the success of the Captain Al syndication formula, and we must think shades of the What A Winter syndication success story where over 30 proud owners crowded the winner’s enclosure at Turffontein after the Equus champion had won the 2013 Gr1 Computaform Sprint!
After an outstanding performance where he came from near last over a trip well short of his best in The Bantry Bay Stakes at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Saturday, trainer Michelle Rix said that she felt that for the first time in her champion’s career that his mental maturity has matched his physicality.
Michelle Rix, Ashwin Reynolds and family watching Kommetdieding enjoying a roll at Milnerton (Pic- Racing News Social TV)
“He has always been an extremely laid back and gentle horse on and off the track. However, this season he has pushed himself to another level. While last year’s Cape season was spectacular, it is this year that I find myself extremely excited simply because of the vast mental improvement in the horse I’m working with!” she concluded.
What a terrific story for racing and of a horse that cost a mere R55 000 on the 2019 Klawervlei Farm Sale!
Kommetdieding is a son of Gr1 SA Derby / Gr1 Daily News 2000 winner Elusive Fort (Fort Wood) out of the three-time winning Captain Al mare Adorable.
He has won 6 of his 15 starts for stakes of over R3,7 million – and he is far from finished!
So why not bring them on, he is ready!
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