More From The Gallops

Although there is no jump racing taking place this week, there is still plenty of work to do around the yard with all of the horses to be ridden out.  I have a couple of pictures from the gallops to share with you of Shoegazer, already a three times winner this season over fences and new recruit Kowloon as they completed solo pieces of work on the gallops.

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On the flat things are really starting to tighten up in the jockeys' championship with Richard Hughes now only one winner behing former champion Ryan Moore.  Hughes is flying at the moment having ridden 16 winners in the last fortnight to Moore's 5.  Surely all the Irishman needs to do to claim his first (and deserved) first title is to steer clear of injury and the Stewards.

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It's Shergar Cup day at Ascot tomorrow - the day that all the comentators dread!  While they have altered the colours slightly, once again the powers that be have decided upon very similar designs for the teams making it extremely difficult to determine between the different horses and their jockeys.  One thing is for sure, the callers certainly earn their money on this day and I wouldn't fancy their job tomorrow!

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I had to chuckle when I read a quote in the Racing Post from Nigel Gravette who is a part owner of Tom Sawyer who won at Yarmouth yesterday.  He said "the problem isn't between his ears, it's between his legs!"...I reckon there are a few lads around the yard with the same problem!

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It was another great day for Team GB at the Olympics yesterday and the women continue to do us proud with three wonderful gold medals in the dressage, boxing and taekwondo taking our gold medal tally to an incredible 25.  You did have to feel sorry for poor old Keri-Anne Payne though, she swam for almost two hours yesterday in the 10km open water swim and was just pipped for a medal by less than half a second - it looked a really physical and draining event and the sad thing for her is she is going to have to wait another four years to try to put things right.

Usain Bolt was once again peerless last night as he claimed the 200m mens' final and in the process become the first man to ever claim the 100m and 200m at successive Olympics.  His Jamaican countrymen followed him home in second and third and they must be an absolute shoo-in for the 4x100m mens' relay...providing they don't drop the baton of course!