Will Some of the Absent European horses

[NoChanceToDance]

From RP........

by David Conolly-Smith
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GERMAN trainer Peter Schiergen, enjoying a purple patch this autumn, is planning a global assault this autumn with the prolific Quijano - starting on Sunday in the Canadian International at Woodbine in Toronto.

European-trained horses have won eight of the last 11 runnings of the Can$2million (£1.01m/€4.45m) event, won by the likes of Secretariat and Dahlia in its heyday back in the 1970s.

More recently, horses like Singspiel, Royal Anthem and Sulamani have taken the 1m4f event, won last year byCollier Hill after a memorable final-furlong tussle.

This weekend's renewal looks certain to feature the usual strong transatlantic team, with the Sir Michael Stoute-trained Ask, Aidan O'Brien's Honolulu and France's Irish Wells likely runners alongside Quijano, who won Germany‘s most prestigious race, the Grosser Preis von Baden, on his most recent outing last month, beating Deutsches Derby winner Adlerflug by a neck.

Quijano gained notoriety in the spring when he completed a sequence of ten successive victories with a hat-trick in Dubai. “He travelled over at the end of last week and is in great form,” said Schiergen.
“I don't know too much about the opposition, but Quijano goes on any ground except heavy, and we are expecting a bigrun from him,” added the trainer. “He could follow up in either the Japan Cup or Hong Kong Vase.”

Quijano will be ridden by stable jockey Andrasch Starke, who partnered Schiergen's Schaiparelli to another Group 1 win in Italy on Sunday.

Schiaparelli, like Adlerflug, is now finished for the season but stays in training in 2008.

However, another smart German performer who could be on his way to the Far East soon is Arc sixth Saddex. “He has had a light season,” said trainer Peter Rau.

“We have entered him both for Japan and Hong Kong. He ran up to expectations in Paris; we were hoping for a better placing, but he just did not quicken the final furlong and a half.”