Royal Ascot 2024 once again showcased the prowess of Irish-trained horses, reinforcing Ireland’s esteemed reputation in the world of horse racing. This year’s event was a testament to the exceptional skill and dedication of Irish trainers, particularly Aidan O’Brien, whose horses delivered remarkable performances on one of the sport’s grandest stages while captivating those checking the horse racing odds.
From thrilling finishes to dominant victories, the Irish contingent once again left a lasting mark on the meeting with over 10 wins across the five days. In this article, we will rank the best Irish-trained winners at Royal Ascot 2024, celebrating their achievements and the trainers who guided them to glory.
Kyprios – Gold Cup
Where better to start than with the Ascot Gold Cup? The two-mile and three-furlong contest is one of the feature races of the flat racing season, and this year’s renewal saw the redemption of Kyprios at the iconic Berkshire venue.
The O’Brien-trained horse missed the majority of last season through injury and, thus, missed the chance to defend his Gold Cup crown 12 months ago. However, he made up for lost time when justifying favouritism and beating Trawlerman to the line by a length.
Auguste Rodin – Prince Of Wales’s Stakes
In another prestigious contest landed by Ballydoyle and Coolmore, Auguste Rodin added the Group 1 Prince Of Wales’s Stakes — the feature race on the second day of Royal Ascot — to his ever-growing list of top-class honours.
Auguste Rodin’s form has been his and miss since the four-year-old won the Epsom and Irish Derbies last year, but he was on tune when staying on well in the closing stages to beat French challenger Zarakem by just less than a length.
Porta Fortuna – Coronation Stakes
Having been narrowly beaten in her two previous runs at the Breeders’ Cup last November and her seasonal reappearance in the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket, Porta Fortuna had been knocking at the door, and it was only a matter of time before she got back to winning ways.
That victory eventually came in the Coronation Stakes, as Donnacha O’Brien’s fantastic filly headed Opera Singer — who is trained by his father Aidan — going into the final furlong and kept on to beat her by a length. Porta Fortuna has since followed up with another Group 1 win in the Falmouth.
Belloccio – Copper Horse Handicap
Willie Mullins is best known for his outstanding dominance on the National Hunt racing circuit, surpassing the 100-win barrier at the Cheltenham Festival earlier this year. However, he also boasts his fair share of Royal Ascot winners, and he extended that record in June.
The king of Closutton was eyeing the Gold Cup with Vauban, and while he just missed out on the places in that race, Mullins didn’t return to Ireland empty-handed, as two-time champion jockey William Buick steered Belloccio to glory in the final race of the opening day.
Other notable Irish winners include Illinois in the Group 2 Queen’s Vase, Port Fairy in the Group 2 Ribblesdale Stakes, Fairy Godmother in the Group 3 Albany Stakes and Bedtime Story in the Listed Chesham Stakes.
And that concludes our round-up of Irish-trained winners at Royal Ascot in 2024. No doubt, there will be a number of new Irish-trained horses in the coming year’s race too…
Suzanne Ashton, Founder of Everything Horse (Est, 2012), has a BA Hons in Marketing Management and a Diploma in Equine Science. Suzanne has ridden and owned horses all her life and has twelve years of experience in marketing, writing, design, SEO, and website creation.