Quality all the way at Longines Irish Champions Weekend

Post-Galway, yesterday’s launch of the fourth annual Longines Irish Champions Weekend, at the Merrion Hotel, served as a timely reminder that, as well as doing extended, multifaceted festivals particularly well, Irish racing can also serve up the very best of what the sport can offer in two special late-season afternoons.

This year’s renewal takes place on September 9 and 10, with Leopardstown opening the show, and The Curragh taking over with a Sunday serving at the Kildare venue, which remains under construction and will have a restricted capacity, as was the case for the Derby and Oaks.

Much has been made of the use of the course during the building process, but the truth is that neither day of Champions Weekend is likely ever to attract a crowd comparable to those which thronged Galway from Monday to Friday. And that is a shame, as this is the easiest sell of all time: some of the most regally bred and brilliant thoroughbreds on the planet converging on this island to provide a show to match the