Marie Cruz shock fans at Ga Homowo Cup

New entrant jockey Enoch Okoe left thet Accra Turf Club  a hero last Saturday afternoon after trekking several metres from behind to overtake his contenders to finish first in the Division 4C race of the second day meeting of the Ga Homowo Cup competition.

Riding Marie Cruz,  a horse that has never won a race at the venue this year, Okoe  rode on it  to beat  Dante which had veteran jockey ,Joseph Lamptey in the saddle to finish  within a time of 1:41 seconds over a distance of 1,200 metres.

“Today is the first time I am taking part in this competition and I am delighted to win this race. In the whole of La I am a champion and nobody can defeat me. It is true that Marie Cruz has never won a race here but I wanted to teach them a lesson with that same horse,” Okoe told the Graphic Sports in a post-race interview.

Two new horses namely, Cocoglover and Captain from the stables of Coconut Grove Beach Resort, who made their first appearances in the division, placed third and sixth respectively to the admiration of their owners and spectators.

The two horses, ridden by Samuel T. Madu and Moses Amoah, set the spectators in a jubilant mood with their performance as they gave their contenders a run for their money but could not win the ultimate.  The trip proved a disappointing one for Ebenezer Ampah (Young Man), who finished last  among the eight riders.

In the Division 4B event, which was ran over a distance of 1,200 metres (six furlongs), Bonanza, owned by Doreen A.A. Brown and ridden by Joseph Lamptey continued to prove its supremacy after leading all the way to finish in a time of 2:00 minutes to outshine his main rivals Copter (Moses Anum) and Alvaro (Daniel Kotey), who placed second and third respectively. 

The maidens Division, which was keenly , saw Amora (Ebenezer Adjetey) beating competition from Jack (Illiasu Sulley) and Blessing (Moses Amoah) to finish first within an average time of 2.23 minutes over six furlongs to go home with the bragging rights.