I hope th 2021 season will be similarly good for me! – teh interewiev with Cornelia Fraisl

CORNELIA FRAISL

I HOPE THE 2021 SEASON WILL BE SIMILARLY GOOD FOR ME!

AUTHOR: KRZYSZTOF ROMANIUK PHOTOS: SŁUŻEWIEC RACECOURSE

Cornelia Fraisl began her career as a trainer with great success. Her Arabian horses raced at a high and even level throughout the entire 2020 season and her Thoroughbreds added a few wins (also in hurdle races). This resulted in a very confident second place in the trainer’s championship (44 wins) and the recognition with the title „Discovery of the Year”. There were also triumphs in the higher category races, in which Gatsby de Bozouls won two Stake races whereas Sjabahar ‚OA’ and Samonlau ‚OA’ won one such race each.

“Of course I am very pleased with my first season as a trainer,” confirms Cornelia Fraisl. “I hope to be in the fight for the top places in the championships again and I hope my horses will win several prestigious trophies. I am happy to work with a very nice group of people. I have a strong group of riders. After the last season I started working with an experienced jockey Viktor Popov. Of course, there is also a very talented apprentice jockey Dastan Sabatbekov and a student-rider Natalia Stasiowska. The atmosphere in the team is great, everyone feels motivated. The only thing left is to wait for the season to start!”

Dutch duo aims high

I have a lot of hopes for two Arabians, who were already at the top of their class at the age of three. I am talking about the Dutch-bred horses Sjabahar ‚OA’ and Samonlau ‚OA’. They are not early maturing horses, but nevertheless they demonstrated very good performance already in their first season. After all, they beat the very strong Mayar Al Khalediah in the Europejczyk Stakes. The winner of that race, Sjabahar, was still such a big kid. He matured over the winter, became stronger, and looks beautiful. I can see the class in him. Samonlau was getting on slowly. He won the Amurath Stakes (beating Echaron), but I don’t think he quite felt the sense of racing yet. Now he has become more ambitious and competitive, so this should also translate positively to his results.

Bieshan and Parhess, two French-bred Arabian horses who are yet to make their debut, give a good impression. I like them in training, but I will be able to judge their talent only after their first performances at the racetrack. I expect improvement from the talented mares, Djenah and Farielle. Last year they were a bit too nervous, but now they are more balanced. Harimella de Bozouls has a lot of potential. I only regret that she did not grow bigger because she is a bit short; she is not even 150 cm. Out of the remaining “Bozouls”, Haslan, the debuting Hadjour and Hosco, who had three rather unsuccessful starts in France, should run well.

Polish-bred 4 year olds make a positive impression. Kenjiy and Kimani have developed and matured a lot. They look beautiful and move well. They will be prepared for the Derby, so I hope they will deserve enough for this start. Sidane had a minor injury. He has not

changed much over the winter, but he is very keen to work and compete so he should certainly do pretty well. Then there is Azar who moves pretty well and could be seen at the group level in the Polish competition. Ezyr and Zika came back to the owner because they did not make much progress.

Veterans like a good old wine. Interesting youth

You might think that 11-year-old Ouzbeks du Panjshir should have had enough of running, but it is quite the opposite. I have a feeling that year after year he is more and more eager and energetic. The same goes for the chestnut Purhib. There is no pressure of expectations on them, so they will keep competing as long as they show a desire to do so. Out of the four six-year-olds Guajok de Bozouls stood out last season. However, in the second part of the season his character hindered him from achieving better results. I like Galito de Bozouls who is making progress. Frehel and Guarf are showing a stable level, although they lack a bit of flash. The five year old Iago looks fantastic. He is also a late maturing horse, who still has something to prove. Mokha d’Arusula is a solid mare in the group, while Summer ‚OA’ seems ready to move on, because she is not so nervous anymore.

I have fewer purebred Arabian 3-year-olds this year, but they promise to be better. I like the French Al Jassim, Andarawus Dream, Azamh and Brahim. I hope for the best from them, although they are not very early horses. The fillies Idya des Aubepines and Love Awam sired by Al Mamun Monlau are very interesting. Perhaps they will be the first to show their talent. Irdia de Bozouls and Ivory de Bozouls should be solid, whereas the German Bashar Ibn Sayf seems to be a horse that will prove himself later.

Out of the three Polish horses Sensational is quite heavy, so Satchmo will start earlier. Pianora is a small, but ambitious filly and she will probably start in Wrocław.

Irresistable stands out among Cornelia Fraisl’s Thoroughbreds

Irresistable is a really talented filly. Her two convincing victories at the age of two were no coincidence. It is true that she competed in races for Polish bred horses, but

Sjabahar ‚OA’ i Samonlau ‚OA’

Summer ‚OA’

you could see that she has a sparkle in her. After all, she has a very interesting pedigree; her dam - Irkucja was one of the best in her year class and won the Oaks, while her sire Silvaner was a top stayer. This suggests that Irresistable should have no problems with a longer distance and this is what she seems to be doing during training. Her starting plans and target races will be determined by her first performances at the age of three.

Iskra, the other daughter of Silvaner, grew from a rather delicate mare to a nicely built and promising one. She was given a rather easy last season and should therefore prove solid. Russian Rhapsody, who is yet to make her debut, seems a bit weaker. She was constantly suffering from some minor ailments which delayed the start of her career.

Percy is doing well after his neutering and stay in the paddocks at our stud. He became definitely calmer and I am planning to prepare him for long distance races in Wrocław. The four year olds, Kiero and Dream Come True, will compete in hurdle races. The former did very well in this competition at the age of three, while the mare is just starting in this discipline but she jumps promisingly. I also train three two year olds. Russian Symphony is extremely tall, which is quite characteristic for Star Poker’s offspring. She is still growing and I hope she will stop soon. I really like the colt Taktik. He comes from the first year from a very good Tantal, from a solid female family. I have some hopes for him, but we will rather see him in action in the second half of the season. A filly sired by the stallion Guilian, who really gives good offspring, was purchased at a German online auction. She seems to be quite early, is nicely built and proportional. She is developing even better than I expected”, concludes Cornelia Fraisl.

EXPERT’S EVALUATION: Cornelia Fraisl - a trainer who proved to be the „queen” of Arabian horse training already in her first year. I expect she to maintain a high level. Out of the group of 4 year old and older horses I would definitely draw the attention of the fans to the ‚OA’ horses, Samonlau and Sjabahar, who stand a good chance of fighting for high places in higher category races. Out of the young horses two stallions stand out: Al Jassim sired by the Qatari champion Assy and Azamh sired by Azadi.

Michał Kurach Służewiec iTV Expert

EXPERT’S EVALUATION

Mokha d’Arusula