Royal Ascot-winning breeders recognised at King George Diamond lunch

Winning breeders from this year's Royal Ascot were recognised for their achievements at a lunch held at Ascot racecourse on the Friday of the Qipco King George Diamond weekend.

The annual event, in its sixth year of taking place at the racecourse, was attended by 49 guests including representatives from Coolmore, Juddmonte, Shadwell and smaller breeders.

The attendees were back at Ascot for the first time since the 2019 meeting, having had to dial in on Zoom last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The breeders received a strawberry dish with an engraving of their horse’s name on it, while they were also invited to the parade ring for photographs.

Steve Piper, breeder and part owner of Oxted, said: “It's a wonderful thrill to breed and own a Royal Ascot winner.

"For Ascot racecourse to recognise this and extend such generous hospitality is very special. It is a very welcome initiative for which I thank Ascot racecourse warmly.”

Guy Henderson, chief executive at Ascot, said: “We were so pleased to be able to welcome many of the breeders from this year’s Royal meeting back to Ascot for a celebration of their success at the weekend.

“It goes without saying that breeders are the foundation of the industry and often their stories go untold or unrecognised so it was a real pleasure for us to be able to celebrate their achievements.”

Read more

Bremontier strikes gold to provide Haras du Logis' Ultra with his first winner

From Towcester to Tokyo: ex-chaser Glenfly ready for world stage

Adayar racing into history for illustrious grandfather Galileo

Pinatubo to miss Australian season due to viral eye infection