The Cup will be a Benchmark 90 event with qualification on a points basis. Photo / 123RF
Connections of New Zealand-bred horses deep on stamina will have a lucrative Australian target to aim at next year.
The Jericho Cup has been revived in its centenary year and will be run over 4600 metres at Warrnambool in November, 2018, for a stake of A$300,000.
The event is the
brainchild of Melbourne racing enthusiast Bill Gibbins and is dedicated to the Australian Light Horse and their Middle East contribution during World War I. "The Jericho Cup is limited to Australasian-bred horses, but the remaining programme is open to all comers," Gibbins said.
"This will not be a centenary event, then forgotten about for another 100 years. It will be an annual event that can grow to be an Australian icon."
Approaching the end of WW1, the Australian Light Horse were planning a major offensive against the Turkish Empire. In order to lull the enemy into believing nothing unusual was afoot, a race meeting was organised on the eve of the assault.
