The largest nation on earth have no qualms about claiming one more as their own sporting hero, despite his Eton-education and his base being in a dormant English Wiltshire village.

Alex Hua Tian, 18, tall, handsome marketable, has achieved Beckham-like status in his native land as the first Chinese Olympic equestrian. He is also the only one.

Alex has been under the wing of Australian Olympians Clayton and Lucinda Fredericks at Little Cheverell, near Devizes, since Beijing got the Games eight years ago.

In early days in England he rode ponies with great success. In the intervening years he acquired a string of event horses, eight, the magic lucky number in China.

Four of them are qualified for Beijing, more accurately Hong Kong for the horse events are held this weekend at Beas River in the former British colony.

Besides his Australian mentors Alex Hua Tian has a British dressage teacher, Jane Gregory, and his horse adviser is leading British vet Clive Hamblin.

But A

• Read Full BLOG

I didn’t count them all in and I didn’t count them all out at Newbury races last Sunday (like a mob of looters hot footing it from Harare Woolworths many of those who'd grabbed their goody bags, courtesy of Sheikh Hamdan, scuttled off sharpish).

The official estimate that at one time there were the best part of 18,000 men, women and children on the racecourse was credible though there were more heading out than coming in shortly before the first for the unique, free, Dubai International Arabian Race Day.

I’ll bet the booty wasn’t anywhere near as valuable as that the media hauled home from the lunch to launch Hamdan’s big day: fifty snouts were in that particular trough and to a man they failed to turn up and reciprocate the gesture last Sunday.

The Racing Post didn’t publish the results (which they extended to Niigata, Frankfurt and Vichy on Monday) and consigned a bland report to page eight which included invaluable information from High Street bookmakers that betting interest was “negligible”.

• Read Full BLOG

I was pinioned under my radio therapy machine the other day when the operator says, “We know who you are”.

Thank God I thought, they’ll not be treating my bunions by mistake.

“You’re The Scout from the Daily Express. What’s going to win the 4.0 at Haydock?”

I had time to contemplate the consequences of giving a loser…which is the James Bond film where he’s strapped to a couch with a laser beam approaching his nether regions?

Racing has the laser of economic depression trained on it - the forthcoming Sales will expose the good health or otherwise of the game.

Our rulers' best shot, so far, to inject some vitality is the introduction of the Sovereign Series, a multi-million pound competition announced this week for the winners of the top ten Flat races.

It is scheduled to begin in 2010.

When the big idea's godfather, Racing UK, was founded I asked them where was the business plan to fund the station

• Read Full BLOG

At the first meeting open to the public, Impeller a nine-year-old gelding, fractured a pastern as he crossed the finish line last Wednesday and was destroyed.

His death follows that of St Andrews who suffered a fatal injury at Great Leighs at the end of April.

Animal Aid horseracing consultant Dene Stansall, himself the owner of two horses, said: “The British Horseracing Authority have a duty of care towards the horses that run on British racecourses. Animal Aid is therefore calling on them to suspend racing at Great Leighs until they have completed a thorough investigation into the deaths."

It had been touch and go whether the first new track in Britain since 1927 went ahead last Wednesday: the BHA were querying whether emergency services for humans were fit for purpose almost up to kick-off.

Animal Aid were the happiest people that the meeting got the go-ahead. They’d singled it out for an anti-whip demonstration and would have looked p

• Read Full BLOG

Dermot Weld was almost adamant after Casual Conquest’s most convincing victory in the Derrinstown Stud Trial promoted him to the head of the Epsom betting that his colt was unlikely to run.

“My first reaction is that he will go to Chantilly for the French Derby,” said the trainer on May 11.

Weld was making the point that the £75,000 the colt’s owners would have to fork out for the final entry stage, next Monday, was, if not daylight robbery, a bit over the top.

“I don’t know how British owners put up with the system,” he said.

Walter Haefner of Moyglare Stud Farms is American – and there’s only one Epsom Derby.

Weld’s Derby record, six runners no places, contrasts with his distinguished record worldwide.

In 2003 he fielded the last Guineas winner to run in the Derby, Refuse To Bend also owned by Moyglare, but though it started favourite he didn’t stay.

That was the doubt, or so we thought, abou

• Read Full BLOG