A grand total of 17 Cinderella-hopefuls threw their names into a hat in order to line up in the Gr1 HSH Princess Charlene Empress Club Stakes for fillies and mares over 1600m to be run on the Royal Raceday at Turffontein on 13 April.
They won’t, however, be eyeing a little glass slipper for a fit, but will be aiming to claim a piece of the R1 million stakes on offer.
Oh Susanna – Cape star could run (Pic – Chase Maujean Photography)
Not that they’re a bunch of paupers. On the contrary, the 17 fillies and mares entered so far are the royalty of South African racing.
Bold statement you say? Well, the numbers back it up.
Here are the entries:
| 1 | Oh Susanna (AUS) | (4F) | 60 | 119 | A | Justin Snaith | |
| 2 | Cascapedia (IRE) | (5M) | 60 | 110 | BA | Mike de Kock | |
| 12 | Fresnaye | (4F) | 60 | 110 | A | Joey Ramsden | |
| 14 | Redberry Lane | (5M) | 60 | 107 | BAT | Sean Tarry | |
| 10 | Secret Potion | (4F) | 60 | 107 | A | Geoff Woodruff | |
| 3 | Al Danza | (5M) | 60 | 106 | A | Geoff Woodruff | |
| 9 | Fiorella | (4F) | 60 | 102 | A | Duncan Howells | |
| 11 | Sylvan On Fire | (5M) | 60 | 100 | A | Candice Dawson | |
| 4 | Camphoratus | (4F) | 60 | 95 | A | R A Hill/S R Hill | |
| 17 | Cashel Palace | (4F) | 60 | 93 | AT | Alec Laird | |
| 13 | Rouge Allure | (5M) | 60 | 93 | BAT | Stephen Moffatt | |
| 8 | Tamarina | (4F) | 60 | 89 | AT | Alec Laird | |
| 15 | Nafaayes (AUS) | (3F) | 57.5 | 107 | A | Mike de Kock | |
| 6 | Celtic Sea | (3F) | 57.5 | 106 | BA | Sean Tarry | |
| 16 | Ghaalla | (3F) | 57.5 | 102 | A | Mike de Kock | |
| 7 | Running Brave | (3F) | 57.5 | 99 | A | Paul Matchett | |
| 5 | I Like It | (3F) | 57.5 | 92 | BAT | Stephen Moffatt | |
| (17) | |||||||
Between them, the 17 ladies have recorded no less than 73 wins, and earned more than R16-million in stakes.
Considering their combined 258 runs, their winning strike rate is a staggering 28%.
They will, however, not be the only royalty at Turffontein come 13 April.
Her Serene Highness Princess Charlene of Monaco has confirmed her attendance.
The Royal Race Day is an annual event held in honour of Princess Charlene at the Turffontein Racecourse in Johannesburg and as always it will feature a very strong charity component focusing on children.
- Press release published by Phumelela Gaming & Leisure on 25 March 2019
