THE MEN AT THE HELM FOR IRISH CHAMPIONS FESTIVAL

Staging the two-day Irish Champions Festival every year demands leadership of the highest quality and both Mark Clayton and Brian Kavanagh are counting down to the big weekend.

Taking place at Leopardstown on Saturday, September 12 with the Curragh staging the second day 24 hours later, seven Group 1 races are down for decision with over €5 million in prize money.

Englishman Mark Clayton, who spent 12 years steering Southwell Racecourse, was appointed CEO of Leopardstown Racecourse in October last year but only took up his new role last January.

Weeks later, things didn't go according to plan for the Dublin Racing Festival under his watch when a certain storm Chandra got in the way, forcing the first day to be delayed for 48 hours.

"The whole team did phenomenally well," reflects Clayton."I was quite fresh there at the time of the DRF but the team delivered a very good event on that Monday, thank goodness for St Brigid whose bank holiday it is!"

Now it's the turn of the stars on the flat and Clayton is excited ahead of their fixture on Saturday.

"This is the pinnacle of our flat season and is something to behold. We've been looking forward to this ever since we got our flat season underway back in April. It's the creme de la creme, isn't it."

Shin Emperor (Yoshito Yahagi) lined up in the last two renewals of the Royal Bahrain Champion Stakes but no Japanese participation this weekend is disappointing, admits Clayton.

"We've been working really hard getting the International flavour to it and it's a shame that this year there won't be any influence from Japan but that is a relationship we'll be keeping up so maybe next year or the year after we may attract them over, with the French too. It's a shame Calandagan (Francis Graffard) isn't making it over for the Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes but everybody has their priorities," adds Clayton who hasn't given up on another big name showing up.

"We're keeping our fingers crossed about Ombudsman. I've been across to Mr Gosden twice this year and I spoke to the yard last week and the feeling for me is that it's 50-50. They'll do what's right for the horse but we're very hopeful that Juddmonte International winner Item (Andrew Balding) will travel."

Ticket sales for the first day of the Irish Champions Festival at Leopardstown are going well, according to their boss. "We're slightly up year-on-year but we have a little bit of hospitality to shift.

Overall, we're really looking forward to greeting a slightly larger attendance than last year, weather permitting, and it'll be a great atmosphere with quality racing. We have three Group 1s on the day and the Curragh have four so it's a hell of a weekend."

Doncaster is a track that Clayton holds close to his heart and with next Saturday clashing with the St Leger, he reflects back to his time spent there in another leadership role.

"I was at Doncaster for seven years and I remember when ICF was born there was a level of disappointment at Doncaster that the Irish were moving in and grabbing that weekend and seemed to be doing a very good job in doing so.

Doncaster have the 250th running of the St Leger on Saturday and this is the 50th anniversary of the Irish Champion Stakes so it is a race really steeped in history, not to the degree of the oldest classic but it's a hell of a day, Doncaster and Leopardstown."

After this weekend, the show moves on to Christmas as Clayton adds:

"As soon as the ICF is over we continue our planning and implementation stage for Christmas which is such a big beast as the phones start ringing straight after ICF."

Peter Roe, Head of Racing at the HRI racecourses, is also looking forward to the Festival and said of the Leopardstown ground: "We've had a hard summer and have been watering hard but that means the ground we'll race on this Saturday has been minded all summer and it's in great shape. A bit of rain won't go astray but the grass growth is good and the track is looking well."

Roe is expecting several overseas raiders including Item's stablemate Blue Bolt who defeated Aidan O'Brien's Irish 1,000 Guineas heroine Precise on her last two starts.

"The minute she won the Falmouth at Newmarket Andrew Balding said she'd be coming over here so we're looking forward to that. While he has had runners at Leopardstown before Andrew has never been over to see them run there. Karl Burke has told me he'll have a lorry load of horses coming over. All these people are looked after and have a good experience when they come to Leopardstown and that's a great testament to the Irish Champions Festival."

Brian Kavanagh, who spent 20 years overseeing a golden period for Irish racing as CEO of HRI, returned to take the reins again at the Curragh in late 2021, a venue where he spent several years driving the ship as general manager before he took over at the semi-state body.

"I'm greatly looking forward to the weekend - one of my favourites of the year. On Sunday we will stage 4 Group 1 races one after the other which is really exciting and preparations are going well. Ticket sales are good — we are sold out for hospitality and general admission is selling well."

Looking ahead to the racing, Kavanagh adds: "For the racing purist, we have the final Irish Classic of the season in the Comer Group International Irish St Leger, together with a further 3 Group 1 races. Scandinavia should be the star attraction in the Leger taking on a strong field of UK and Irish contenders.

Likewise in the Bar One Racing Flying Five, July Cup winner Commanche Brave will lead the home defence and will be challenged by a host of leading British sprinters.

Epsom Oaks winner Thundering On is expected to run in the Moyglare Jewels Blandford Stakes and there is a better than evens chance we will see a 2027 Classic winner or two in the Moyglare Stud Stakes and Goffs Vincent O'Brien National Stakes."

Looking back on the year so far at the Curragh, Kavanagh is happy.

"We are having a good year at the Curragh with increased crowds at the Guineas, Derby and Oaks meetings. We have just completed our August schedule with the hugely popular Pat Smullen Race Day in aid of Cancer Trials Ireland. We have focussed on trying to make the experience at the Curragh as enjoyable and engaging as possible, and there are several additions this year that we're particularly excited about.

Over the years, we've seen the day develop as a celebration of racing, style, entertainment and family and we are very conscious that the day feels welcoming and accessible to families and newcomers."

This year for Champions Day Two we will have live music from Ceili Cottage, The Rolling Tones and violinist Nicole Lonergan, while Champions Hall will host the popular Conversations with Robbie Irwin, bringing some of the leading personalities from the racing world closer to our racegoers."

Some old favourites will be on show too, as Kavanagh points out: "The Parade of Champions in association with Treo Eile and sponsored by Moyglare Stud will be another highlight. It celebrates the second careers of some much-loved former racehorses, and this year we will have, among others, Cheltenham Gold Cup hero Native River, Hurricane Ivor, Irish St Leger winner Sonnyboyliston and Ice Cold In Alex parading on Sunday."