Despite being the oldest horse and pitted against some of the country’s best horses, Kaapstad from Angermund Racing Club was on Saturday crowned the winner of the Standard Bank handicap.
Held at the Okahandja Turf, Kaapstad claimed top honours in the handicap 1 400m dash, taking home N$5 000.
He was followed by Stoute Man from Eamon Freygang, who took home N$3 000, while Unbroken Promises finished third and pocketed N$1 000.
Speaking to New Era Sport yesterday, Ryno Angermund, who is the chairman of the Angermund Racing Club, said the event went as planned, and he was impressed with the level of competition displayed.
“It was a great event; many horses were entered, and the jockeys showed up and gave a good show. The response from the fans and horse owners was overwhelming,” he noted.
“The competition was tough, as top horses that were supposed to win were proven otherwise, and those that had come to the event as underdogs were the ones that pulled off a surprise,” he said.
In the Import A-Division 2 000m race, Black River, also from Angermund Racing Club, won, followed by Otjinene’s Von Trota in the second position and Freedom Fighter from Ovitoto Racing Club coming in third.
In the Import A-Division 1 000m, Nan from Okahandja Racing claimed victory, while Mr F from Eamon Freygang ended in second position and W Christians’ Able Surprise third.
Angermund added they hope to have more such competitive events, which encourages growth of the sport.
“This was an exciting event, and we would like to have more of those, as it motivates horse owners to invest in the sport. With the mission of popularising the sport, I think its best we have more such events because it gives growth to the sport, which is still growing amongst Namibians,” he added.
The event was sponsored by Standard Bank Namibia.
The next races are scheduled for 5 November in Gobabis.
– mkambukwe@nepc.com.na