Glorious Goodwood Racing 2013: Magnolia Cup Takes Centre Stage on Ladies Day

Nine amateur female jockeys saddled up to open up proceedings on Ladies Day at Goodwood, with jeweller Philippa Holland taking victory in the Magnolia Cup for the second successive year on Bellevue Beauty.

She took to the racecourse alongside a celebrity cast including TV presenter Francesca Cumani and retired tennis player Tim Henman’s wife, Lucy.

TalkTalk's Dido Harding shot to the front early on before Holland showed her experience to navigate her way to the front of the field and hold on to win on the Tom Dascombe-trained horse.

It offered a light-hearted alternative to the day’s championship racing as over 20,000 people made the journey to Goodwood to have a flutter, although any suggestion that the race was trivial was dispelled after the Telegraph revealed the strenuous training schedule of Holland in the buildup to the race:

“The adrenaline has been flowing since first thing this morning, it’s the most amazing feeling – you become aware of the stands and the people around you and then suddenly it’s the line,” said Holland, according to the official website. “All you want to do is carry on going.” 

Goodwood is known for its style and elegance, and the jockeys were suited up in a fine array of classy silks. The race raised thousands for charity and looks set to become a permanent fixture on the Goodwood race card after three successful outings.

In the day’s more competitive racing, retired England footballer Michael Owen produced a winner with his co-owned Brown Panther taking the Artemis Goodwood Cup:

The former Liverpool, Real Madrid and Manchester United striker also had a stake in Bellevue Beauty, and it capped an entertaining day for Owen who was involved with the launch of BT’s new sport service just hours later.

Richard Kingscote jockeyed the Dascombe-trained horse over the two-mile course to claim victory ahead of Ahzeemah by three furlongs.

Their success was helped when 3-1 favourite Mount Athos found themselves penned in early on; they never recovered as the six-year-old fell away towards the end.

“There is a lot of heritage in this race and it’s a fabulous race to win,” said Owen according to the Portsmouth News, “He’s full of stamina.”