Hong Kong International Sale 2002
Date: |
13 December
2002 |
Time: |
4:30 pm
- Cocktails
5:10 pm - Introduction and
Bonus Presentation Ceremony
5:30 pm - Lot 1 to be presented for sale |
Venue: |
Hong Kong
Convention and Exhibition Centre |
RECORD
PRICE AT HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL SALE 2002
A bay colt by Desert King fetched a record price
of HK$4.8-million Friday evening at the Hong Kong International Sale
2002.
Trainer John Moore made the record winning bid on
Lot 23 for a partnership comprised of George Chang, a Hong Kong shipping
magnate, and Dr. Andrew Wong, a prominent Hong Kong neurosurgeon.
Only minutes earlier, Lot number 19, a grey colt
by Danehill, had sold for a record price of HK$4.7-million. That purchase
was made by Rusty M. Shroff, MBE, a Hong Kong real estate developer.
That colt will be trained by Geoff Lane.
A total of 35 lots were sold at the sale, for a gross
of HK$49.9-million. This figure was down 11.45% percent from the record
gross of $56,350,000, achieved at the 2001 edition of the sale, when
38 lots were auctioned.
The average price this year, HK$1,425,714, was down
3.86% from the average of $1,482,895 achieved last year.
"All in all, we have to be happy with the results
this year," said Winfried Engelbrecht-Breges, executive director
of racing for the Hong Kong Jockey Club. "Our buyers are discerning
about conformation and open-minded about pedigrees. We saw some very
wise bidding tonight."
Bidding actually started slowly , but increased in
intensity as the sale went on. None of the initial 15 lots lured anywhere
near HK$2-million for closing bids, but with Lot 19 a breakthrough took
place, and prices tended to be more impressive from that point onward.
No other horse, though, could match the aggressive
bidding accorded Lot 23, whose pedigree had gained the attention of
many Hong Kong bloodstock agents in the weeks prior to the sale.
Desert King, himself a son of Danehill, was a champion
four times in Europe. Lot 23's dam, Very Droll, was a multiple stakes
winner in Australia. Very Droll has also produced the champion and multiple
Group 1 winning filly, Ha Ha, and the multiple stakes winner, Dry Humour,
both of whom are three-quarter siblings to Lot 23.
Moore, not surprisingly, assessed Lot 23 as "great
purchase." He said he felt particularly rewarded that Dr. Wong
was a partner in the colt's ownership.
In the early 1980s, Moore's brother-in-law, a jockey
named Phillippe Paquet, took a terrific fall and suffered severe injuries
during track workouts. Dr. Wong saved Paquet's life. Moore's family
has felt indebted to the neurosurgeon ever since.
Shroff stated that Lot 19 was his primary target
for purchase going into the sale. "I saw him breeze at Sha Tin
last Sunday, and was highly impressed," Shroff said. The colt is
out of Swiftsynd, a course record-setting daughter of Swift Gun, and
is a half-brother to the multiple Group 2 winning gelding, Le Zagaletta.
The evening's festivities began with the awarding
of HK$1-million to Peter Kwan, the owner of Wyndam Easy, who was the
top money-winning graduate of the 2001 edition of the sale. Trained
by David Hayes, Wydham Easy has earned HK$2,121,500 racing in Hong Kong
during the past 12 months.
Interestingly, the top seven graduates in terms of
Hong Kong earnings from last year's sale were all bred and raised in
the Southern Hemisphere. This is also true of all four horses who were
sold for prices in excess of HK$2-million at this year's sale.
It should further be noted that all four boast Danehill
as their sire or paternal grandsire. He, by far, remains the most popular
stallion whose name graces the Hong Kong International Sale catalogue.
A prize of HK$1-million will again be awarded to
the graduate of the 2002 sale who achieves the highest Hong Kong earnings
between now and June, 2004.
This marked the third consecutive year that a record
price was bid for an individual lot at the Hong Kong International Sale
- - in each case, Danehill was either sire or paternal grandsire.
Gross receipts this year were the second highest
in the sale's history.
For the fourth consecutive year, the Keeneland Association
of Lexington, Kentucky, handled auction chores.
INTRODUCTION
HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL
SALE TAKES PLACE FRIDAY
Thirty-seven colts
and geldings, obtained by the Hong Kong Jockey Club through private
transactions and at major vendues on three continents, were guided through
public gallops Sunday at Sha Tin Racecourse.
All are scheduled
to be auctioned this coming Friday, 13 December, at the 2002 edition
of the Hong Kong International Sale of two-year-olds (and one three-year-old)
at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
For the fourth consecutive
year, auctioning responsibilities will be handled by the Keeneland Association,
Inc., of Lexington, Kentucky. Keeneland is the world's leading thoroughbred
sales company, handling thousands of transactions through its auctions
each year. Keeneland's head auctioneer, Ryan Mahan, will have the gavel.
Last year, 38 horses
were auctioned at the Hong Kong International Sale for gross receipts
totaling HK$56,350,000. "That was an all-time record for us,"
said Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, the Hong Kong Jockey Club's executive
director of racing.
"I'm not sure
we can surpass that figure this year," Engelbrecht-Bresges said.
"But we do have a stronger catalogue in 2002. In my mind, it's
the strongest we've ever offered for any of our Hong Kong sales."
Dan O'Donnell, a
bloodstock agent based in Hong Kong for the past 14 years, agrees. "In
pedigrees, this year's sale bears the highest standard we've ever had,"
O'Donnell said. "The horses also have suitable conformations for
racing here. There will be many opportunities Friday for a buyer to
obtain a credible racehorse for a reasonable price."
The catalogue includes
seven sons of Danehill, who was a European champion during his racing
days, and is now one of the most popular sires in the world. At last
year's Hong Kong International Sale, a colt by Danehill out of the stakes-producing
Darshaan mare, Caraniya, fetched a record price of HK$4.5 million.
Further included
in this year's catalogue are sons of Alhaarth, Desert King, Diesis,
Gentlemen, Grand Lodge, Royal Applause, With Approval and Woodman, all
of whom were champions during their own racing careers.
Horses selected for
this year's Hong Kong International Sale have gone through a rigorous
examination process, "which includes three complete vettings, drug
testing and three sets of X-rays," said Engelbrecht-Bresges. "You
won't find a sale anywhere with higher qualifying standards than ours."
"Our function
with this sale is not to make a profit," said Hong Kong Jockey
Club Chairman Ronald Arculli. "Rather, it's to provide a service
for Hong Kong racing participants. There's also an educational purpose
involved - - to familiarize new owners with what the correct process
is when seeking to buy a racehorse."
As has also been
the case in prior years, a bonus of HK$1-million will be awarded to
the owner of the 2002 Hong Kong International Sale graduate who achieves
the highest cumulative purse earnings at the close of the 2003-2004
racing season in Hong Kong.
A pair of 2001 sale
graduates, Wyndam Easy and The Duke, are currently in a head-and-head
battle for the bonus that will be awarded at the culmination of this
year's 11 December racing programme at Happy Valley.
Interestingly, neither
horse sold for an especially high price at the 2001 sale. Wyndam Easy
brought a closing bid of HK$600,000. The Duke brought a closing bid
of HK$1.6-million.
To be eligible for
this year's bonus, a horse must be trained full-time in Hong Kong for
the period between December, 2002, and June, 2004 - - "which will
provide candidates with an extra six months, thereby eliminating the
need to push a young horse too far, too fast," Engelbrecht-Bresges
said.
Most of the horses
consigned to this year's Hong Kong International Sale were gathered
from yearling vendues such as Keeneland July, Saratoga August, Keeneland
September, Tattersalls October, Goffs Orby, Houghton, Deauville, New
Zealand Bloodstock , Inglis Easter and Magic Millions.
*updated on 10 December