Glass Slippers provided Europe with a first ever win in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint with a gutsy triumph for Yorkshire-based trainer Kevin Ryan at Keeneland.
It was also a first Breeders' Cup success for jockey Tom Eaves who was happy to track the early pace from stall six, saving ground on the inside before navigating a passage through the pack inside the final furlong.
When finally seeing clear daylight, the recent Prix de l'Abbaye runner-up picked up in terrific style to burst to the front and although getting a little lonely late on, she was always in command as Eaves waved his stick in delight as they hit the wire.
Imprimis looked a shade unlucky having been badly checked when trying to mount his challenge at the same time as Glass Slippers (8/1) made her move and it was left to Wet Your Whistle and Leinster to finish strongly and close down the winner late on.
Ryan – having just his second Breeders’ Cup runner – said: “It’s been a funny year for us in the UK, and with this filly you have to plan her races out as she is a filly who improves as the year goes on.
“We knew she goes round a bend very well, as she had won at Chester, and Tom had a word with Ryan Moore who told him to take his time and opt for the shortest route. Being over five and a half furlongs that extra half a furlong was massive.
“She has always been a good traveller and thrives wherever she goes, although she had not been this far, but through the week as she was drinking and eating well we got happier with every passing day.
“It’s great that she will be back for another season next year and if things go to plan I would love to come back to run in this race at Del Mar.”
Ryan’s only other Breeders’ Cup runner, East, was second to Newspaperofrecord in the Juvenile Fillies Turf in 2018.
“This is what we do the job for and I’m very lucky to have had some very good horse,” he went on.
“I wasn’t able to attend my first Breeders’ Cup, but it’s great to come out here and this filly is very special.”
Delighted owner Terry Holdcroft said: “I’ve been breeding horses for over 40 years and she is the best I’ve ever bred.
“It’s lovely that we kept her and didn’t sell her. Kevin has put an incredible amount of time and detail into training the filly.
This is a day I will never forget
“We had a programme at the start of the year and we didn’t budge from it. We won a qualifying Group One in Ireland and only just missed out on the Abbaye and one of the reasons to keep her in training is that things might change – we haven’t been able to go racing at home and it was such a great opportunity to be able to come here and watch her run.”
Eaves said: “Kevin knows this horse like the back of his hand and he told me he couldn’t have been happier with her. I didn’t chase the pace and waited and rode my luck. There was a lovely gap for us rounding the turn.
“This is a day I will never forget.”
