New Zealand challenger Ethereal pipped Godolphin's Give The Slip at the post to land a historic victory in the Tooheys New Melbourne Cup at Flemington today. Richard Hill's mount made all the running in Australia's most famous race and looked to have done enough to win as he entered the final two furlongs of the two-mile contest. However, the four-year-old 30/1 hope was caught at the last second and had to settle for second place. David Elsworth's Persian Punch finished third at 12/1 in a field of 22, reduced by the withdrawal of Universal Prince and Kaapstad Way.
Ethereal is trained by Sheila Laxon, whose husband Laurie won the race with Empire Rose in 1988. Mrs Laxon is officially the first woman to train the winner in the Melbourne Cup since it first run in 1861. Another New Zealand woman, "Granny" McDonald, trained the 1938 winner Catalogue but was never credited with the achievement because Victorian state laws at the time prevented women from holding trainer's licences. "It just goes to show, anything a man can do a woman can do as well," said Mrs Laxon afterwards.
Ethereal's owners only decided to enter the four-year-old mare in the race after she won last month's Caulfield Cup, the traditional lead-up to the major event on the Australian racing calendar, and now has become only the 11th horse in 141 years to complete the Caulfield-Melbourne Cups double.
Winning jockey Scott Seamer, who was having his first ride in the Cup, said of the 9/1 winner: "She tried her heart out, she is one of the best horses I have been on. I decided to track Italian jockey Frankie Dettori on Marienband most of the way before making my run. When the other horse shot away, I had to be patient and just wait for my chance because I knew it would weaken towards the finish."
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
