Passage is Rite result for Weld

INTERNATIONAL campaigner Dermot Weld avenged the narrow defeats of Vinnie Roe and Vintage Crop in the Gold Cup as Rite Of Passage gallantly claimed the highlight on Ladies’ Day at Royal Ascot yesterday.

The Curragh maestro is no stranger to global success with trophies from two wins in the Melbourne Cup as well as the Belmont, American Oaks and American Derby amongst numerous other prizes decorating his Rosewell House base.

The stayers’ showpiece on day three of the Royal meeting was one major event to slip though his grasp though, with Vinnie Roe finishing a neck second in 2002 and Vintage Crop also runner-up by three-quarters of a length in 1994.