York's Ebor Festival proves it is one of the best meetings Team GB Racing delivers

KING OF THE KNAVESMIRE -- Paul Mulrennan, who rode Meccas Angel to victory for the second year running in the Coolmore Nunthorpe at Yorks Ebor Festival. (PHOTO BY: racingfotos.com)

It was very much a game of two halves, with the first two days bathed in summer sunshine and the second two ravaged by rain and wind. But when the final whistle blew, the consensus of opinion was that York's Ebor Festival had been an end-to-end thriller.

Sorry about the footballing metaphors. It seems that not even the Olympics can camouflage the start of a new season. But you know what I mean. Certainly you will if you spent a day or four on the Knavesmire last week, lapping up some of the best entertainment Team GB Racing can deliver.

The trendy riposte to those who object to turning the sport into an artificial singing and dancing circus for the alcohol-fuelled masses is that racing should be fun. Well, if York’s meeting wasn’t fun, packing in as it did top-class, competitive racing, on a majestic racecourse, among sensibly-sized crowds that created a pleasant and comfortable atmosphere, then I don’t what is.

It definitely seemed to float the boats of Irish owners Aidan ‘Red’ Shiels and friends, judging by their wild celebrations after HEARTBREAK CITY’S runaway romp in the Ebor itself. Celebrations that even surpassed those the previous day of another owner, Clive Washbourn, who let rip with abandon when his juvenile colt, CONTRAPPOSTO, flew home to snatch second in the big £60,000 Convivial Maiden as a 50/1 shot.

Fun for those whose passion for racing runs as deep as Shiels’s and Washbourn’s equates to revelling in the kind of performances and storylines that emerged from York’s showpiece festival. Here’s my potted day-by-day review, complete with a handful of horses to follow:

DAY ONE (WEDNESDAY)

When the Ebor Festival was washed out by heavy rain in 2008, Juddmonte International Day became the first of four to be abandoned. This time round, the day belonged to POSTPONED, authoritative winner of the near £1 million Group One.

Roger Varian’s 5yo dismissed doubts not only about the wellbeing and form of the yard’s string, but also, and more significantly, the horse’s dubious record over 10f. One of the rare astute uses of a pacemaker, coupled with an eminently sensible ride by the brilliant Andrea Atzeni, put the fears to bed as Postponed made full use of his stamina to stride clear from the 3f pole.