 Former champion sprinter Schillaci has been honoured by today's announcement
of a new award for the best performed sprinter over the Melbourne autumn carnival.Points will be allocated to the first five placegetters in five
Group One events over the next seven weeks.
The horse with the highest number of points will then win
the Schillaci Silver Arrow, a unique trophy which has been fashioned in the shape of an
arrow.
The series will kick off on Saturday with the running of
the $402,000 Group One Lightning Stakes at Flemington and continue with races at
Caulfield, Moonee Valley and Flemington.
The other races in the series are the $1,012,000 Blue
Diamond Stakes (Caulfield on February 23), $352,000 Oakleigh Plate (Caulfield on February
23), $752,500 Newmarket Handicap (Flemington on March 9) and the $270,000 Australia Stakes
(Moonee Valley on March 23).
The winning horse in each of the races in the series will
gain six points. The next four placegetters, from second through to fifth, will get four,
three, two and one point respectively.
The brainchild of the award was Racing Victoria's General
Manager of Racing Danny Curran.
David Christensen, one of Schillaci's owners, and Damien
Oliver the regular hoop of the top sprinter were both presented with framed memorabilia at
today's launch.
Schillaci, who died on November 15 last year was one of
Australia's best and most loved sprinters.
A flashy grey, Schillaci was one of Lee Freedman's early
stars on the track and helped establish the trainer as a household name throughout the
country.
During an illustrious career the sprinter won eight Group
One races, and was placed in another six.
It was a rapid rise for the gelding who just three starts
after winning a Maiden at Kyneton he would win the first of eight Group One events.
Had he not lost the Group Two Canterbury Stakes to Alishan
on protest he would have had a winning run of seven races.
The son of Salieri retired with 36 starts for 16 wins, 6
seconds and 6 third amassing an impressive $2.3 million.
His final run was in the 1995 Stradbroke Handicap, where he
ran a close second to Rouslan in a race which cost his rider Shane Scriven a suspension.
SCHILLACI'S WINS
1st 22/09/91 Kyneton 3yo Maiden Handicap (1100m) D Beadman
1st 25/11/91 Sandown 3yo Restricted 1MW (1000m) D Oliver (record)
1st 15/02/92 Flemington Lightning Stakes Group 1 (1000m) D Oliver
1st 22/02/92 Caulfield Oakleigh Plate Group 1 (1100m) D Oliver (record)
1st 07/03/92 Flemington Newmarket Handicap Group 1 (1200m) D Oliver
1st 20/04/92 Randwick The Galaxy Group 1 (1100m) D Oliver
1st 30/05/92 Eagle Farm QTC Cup Group 2 (1200m) D Oliver
1st 24/10/92 Moonee Valley Moir Stakes Group 2 (1000m) D Oliver
1st 16/01/93 Sandown Rubiton Stakes Group 3 (1000m) D Oliver (record)
1st 14/02/93 Flemington Lightning Stakes Group 1 (1000m) D Oliver
1st 27/02/93 Caulfield Futurity Stakes Group 1 (1400m) S King
1st 13/03/93 Moonee Valley Stanley Wootton Stakes Group 3 (1200m) D Oliver
1st 27/03/93 Rosehill George Ryder Stakes Group 1 (1500m) D Oliver
1st 15/10/94 Caulfield Caulfield Sprint Group 3 (1100m) D Oliver
1st 14/01/95 Caulfield Rubiton Stakes Group 3 (1000m) P Payne
1st 04/03/95 Caulfield Futurity Stakes Group 1 (1400m) R Griffiths
PIC - Quentin Lang. |
