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10.12.05

Phar Lap and the Melbourne cup

Phar Lap the world’s greatest racehorse Well as most Aussies know on the second Tuesday in November a horse race is held in which the whole nation stops; it’s called the Melbourne cup. Phar Lap’s first big win appears to have been the 1929 AJC Derby. A New Zealand horse as indeed most Melbourne cup winners seem to be he had a huge heart and I mean that literally; on his first race in Victoria the Victorian Derby he won it by lengths. He was ridden by a nobbled jockey and was third in the 1929 Melbourne cup; the fix was in by this time; he still managed wins in Sydney and Adelaide but it was being made hard for the horse and trainer. Certain characters were off laying bets and as a result in some races bets were refused on the worlds best racehorse He dominated the racing news of the day; certain members of the Victorian racing club of the time (who are nameless in this account) I presume did things to stop it. In Novevember 1930 he did of course make history and win the melbourne cup. The horse float vehicle would not start on the day of the cup; the local Police Sergeant fixed that saying well I have a couple of quid on him myself But then the Victorian Jockey Club of the day made it so hard than the horse was eventually sold to some one in California He died there as a result of Arsenic poisoning and the matter was hushed up; a sad day for all of Australia, I am only glad I don’t bet; for those who don’t know it was all made into a movie

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