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Wednesday evening Karis Teetan was the popular winner of the Longines International Jockeys Championship.

Teetan was favourite to win and said he felt the pressure before and was most relieved when he won, beating Ryan Moore by two points.  Moore rode a double on the night but unfortunately for him one of those winners was in a race that wasn't included in the Championship.

Race 8 which was the only Class 2 of the night saw local hero Vincent Ho win on Glorious Dragon with Teetan coming third on the favourite High Rev.

Thursday morning out at Sha Tin was very chilly and a slight drizzle as we watched the Coolmore trio of Magic Wand, Anthony van Dyke and Mount Everest work on the turf.  All three looked in good condition but the workout wasn't too strenuous.  Also out was the Sir Michael Stoute trained Zaaki, Melbourne Cup second Prince of Arran, Queen Elizabeth winner True Self trained by Willie Mullins, the last of the Japanese Persian Knight.

We retreated inside for the Press Conference run as always most capably by Steve Moran.  First up was Zac Purton who discussed his ride Aethero, the talented and promising 3yo sprinter which has involved Purton in a serious diet to reach the weight of 117lbs, the lightest he has had to do in a long time but he said it has been a carefully planned process and such is his desire to partner the horse that he was determined to succeed. He said that Aethero is not yet the finished product and has everything ahead of him.  Of his other rides he said that Exultant had done nothing wrong and has never let them down, and while there had been some alarm bells about Beauty Generation he was hopeful that the horse would perform at his best on Sunday.

Karis Teetan spoke about the special feeling he had when winning on Mr Stunning last year but this time he is on the new sensation Hot King Prawn whom Teetan described as "a proper horse with lots of ability".  However he said Aethero was super good and up there on the top level like Able Friend.  He felt that Ka Ying Star had enjoyed a good preparation for the race and has speed.  Time Warp needs to go forward and not feel threatened by horses coming up along side of him.

Japanese trainer Yasuo Tomomichi is responsible for Admire Mars who runs in the most competitive race of the day in the Mile.  When the horse appeared too relaxed after settling in to Hong Kong he gave him some hard work to focus him.  Christophe Soumillon was booked for the ride as he is a top jockey who knows Hong Kong.  Admire Mars has made steady progress through his career to date and his last run should have improved him.

Pia Brandt has been busy as she has been riding her horse Called To The Bar in his trackwork as well as all the other work required.  She said that her horse was at his best over 3000m and had found 4000m too far.  She felt that dropping back to 2400m would not be a problem but he would need to make a good start and that hopefully his great turn of foot would stand him in good stead.

The Barrier Draw then followed.  For the 2400m Vase Japanese runners Lucky Lilac and Deidre drew 1-2 with Eagle Way 3 and Called To The Bar 4.  This draw is not so important as there is a good run before the first turn.

The Cup over 2000m is a different story as there is a very short distance before the first turn then again there are only 8 runners this year.  They include QEII winner Win Bright who holds the track record and has drawn gate 8.  Magic Wand should be well positioned coming from gate 2 and the French 3yo filly Edisa who is the lightweight in the field will come from gate 4.  Last year's winner Glorious Forever comes from gate 5 and his older brother Time Warp will be next door in gate 6.

The Sprint has Aethero coming from gate 10.  Hot King Prawn has drawn 1 and Mr Stunning who will have Hugh Bowman on board on Sunday will come from gate 2.  The only Ausie in town In Her Time has gate 4 and Brenton Avdulla will be coming in to ride for Kris Lees.

Japanese star Indy Champ has probably the ideal gate in the Mile in 3 and fellow countryman Admire Mars has 4.  Ka Ying Star has he 1 and Zaaki 2.

It's shaping up to be a great day and the weather is supposed to be fair although still on the chilly side.