Luxembourg and Highfield Princess head British and Irish challenge for Sunday's lucrative Hong Kong International Races

The Longines Hong Kong International Races is the end-of-year finale with many of the world's top-class horses competing for four Group 1 races worth a combined £11.95 million (€13.94m). 

The meeting at Sha Tin on Sunday features a galaxy of international runners and riders vying to add their names to an illustrious roll of honour. 

Hong Kong Cup (8.40am)

The most valuable race of the day kicks off the Group 1 action with the Longines Hong Kong Cup, which is worth £3.6m and run over 1m2f. 

The race has been won by several top-class runners from Britain and Ireland, including Alexander Goldrun, Fantastic Light, Falbrav and the Ed Dunlop-trained Snow Fairy, who was the last British runner to win in 2010. 

Although there will be no British-trained runners this year, Ireland will be represented by Luxembourg, who was half a length behind Auguste Rodin in the Irish Champion Stakes on his last start and will run in Hong Kong for the first time. 

Likely rider Ryan Moore won the race in 2016 on Japanese runner Maurice but Aidan O'Brien has never won the contest, with his runner last year Order Of Australia finishing 11th of 12. 

The race went instead to Romantic Warrior under James McDonald and the five-year-old, who won the Cox Plate last time, will line up again in a bid to land a fifth Group 1. 

Ascot's Champion Stakes third Horizon Dore is also entered for French trainer Patrice Cottier. 

Hong Kong Mile (8.00am)

The £3.2m Hong Kong Mile last went to a British-trained runner in 2004 when Firebreak won under Frankie Dettori for Saeed bin Suroor, who is the leading overseas trainer for the meeting with four wins. 

Golden Sixty: has a formidable record in this race with two wins and a second Credit: Hong Kong Jockey Club

Although Britain has gone without a winner since then, the race has been won by many high-profile horses, including dual winner Golden Sixty, who will have his first run since April but carries a formidable record into the race after two wins and a second in three starts. 

Last year's winner California Spangle also returns, having finished behind Golden Sixty on the pair's last meeting, while Irish 2,000 Guineas runner-up Cairo and the Group 2 Prix du Muguet winner Tribalist make up the European challengers. 

Hong Kong Sprint (6.50am)

The John Quinn-trained Highfield Princess, winner of the Prix de l'Abbaye in October, will seek to cap another lucrative year with success on her first start in Hong Kong when she takes on up to nine rivals in this sprint. 

The 6f race, which is worth £2.6m, has never been won by a British runner and has gone the way of Hong Kong for eight of the last nine years, including 2022 winner Wellington under Ryan Moore. 

Highfield Princess: winner of the Prix de l'AbbayeCredit: Edward Whitaker

The leading jockey, who stepped in when Wellington's regular rider Alexis Badel was sidelined through injury, also won in 2020 on Danon Smash for Japan, the only country to have won all four Group 1 races on the card. 

This time Moore is likely to team up with Aidan O'Brien on Breeders' Cup third Aesop's Fables, but the bar is set by Lucky Sweynesse, who has finished outside the top three just once in 20 starts when sixth in this race last year. 

Hong Kong Vase (6.10am)

Although Britain has never won the Group 1 sprint, they have a strong record in the Hong Kong Vase over 1m4f, with eight wins since the inaugural running in 1994. 

Among the winners of the £2.4m contest was Luso, who won in 1996 and 1997 for Clive Brittain, and top-class mare Ouija Board in 2005 for Ed Dunlop, who landed a second Vase in 2012 with Red Cadeaux. 

The Simon and Ed Crisford-trained West Wind Blows features among the entries after being placed in several Group races this year under Jamie Spencer. Unlike Highfield Princess's regular rider Jason Hart or champion jockey William Buick, Spencer has not secured a visiting jockey's licence for the meeting, so the ride on the four-year-old has gone to James McDonald.

Ryan Moore will partner Warm Heart, who was beaten by just a neck in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf by Inspiral last month. 

The French runner Junko is also entered after his latest win in the Preis von Bayern, while Japanese runner Shahryar sets the standard on ratings after finishing just over a length behind Auguste Rodin at Santa Anita. 

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