Emmy Award-winning director Simon Wincer confirms that principal photography for The Cup will commence in Australia on May 31. The veteran filmmaker who has crafted classics such as The Man From Snowy River, Lonesome Dove, and Free Willy has already completed second unit photography for The Cup at two key venues: The Curragh in County Kildare, Ireland, site of Dermot Weld’s training center; and Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, home of the Melbourne Cup, the world’s most prestigious two-mile handicap.
It’s official – the Cup is going on tour and hitting the road in preparation for the 150th running of the world’s greatest two-miler. Damien Oliver and a host of other racing legends farewelled the $150,000 trophy from Flemington Racecourse this morning.
VRC deputy chief executive Sue Lloyd-Williams said that the 2010 edition of the Melbourne Cup will be the biggest sporting and social event in the city’s history.
The 2010 trophy, which was crafted from 18-carat gold by Hardy Brothers Jewellers, is patterned after the super-sized 1930 version, which was won by incomparable Phar Lap. The newly minted chalice will travel to 10 international destinations before returning to Australia in August for a 32-city tour.
The great Doriemus, a champion stayer who won the Caulfield Cup-Melbourne Cup double in 1995 with Damien Oliver up, was rushed into surgery last week and narrowly survived a life-threatening bout of colic. The emergency surgery was performed at the Werribee veterinarian clinic.
Now a resident of Living Legends at Woodlands Historic Park immediately adjacent to the Melbourne Airport, Doriemus has been spending retirement lounging around with the likes of Saintly, Rogan Josh, Brew, Fields of Omagh, and his old rival Might And Power, who denied Doriemus a second Melbourne Cup in 1997 by the slimmest of margins.
Damien Oliver guided New Zealand-bred Zavite to victory in New Zealand’s most prestigious Thoroughbred race, the $1M Auckland Cup. Trained by Anthony Cummings, the seven-year-old gelding upped his career earnings to $1.9M.
“I rode him back further than I expected, but I just wanted him to relax, and when we got to the 700m the other horses weren’t going nearly as well as him, so I just popped him in there,” Damien told the Waikato Times. ”He’s really hit form at the right time. He really put it together last run and the stable has held him in great form.”
This is a preview of Damien Oliver Pilots Zavite to Auckland Cup Glory. Read the full post »
Here’s a first look at the movie poster for The Cup, which Executive Producer Kirk D’Amico and his team at Myriad Pictures took to the American Film Market last month in Santa Monica. The poster and a synopsis ran at Collider.com.
Based on the determined looks etched across every face pictured on the poster, you would think there is not a single lighthearted moment in the film. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
A lot of comments about my recent Huffington Post piece on the avalanche of media coverage at the Melbourne Cup Carnival versus the minimalist approach exercised by American newspapers at the Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Santa Anita.
This article by Tony Arrold ran in The Australian on Monday. Arrold, who is the newspaper’s Sydney racing writer, brings up several points, and he got me thinking:
Damien Oliver has raced all over the world – Europe, Asia, and even out of the way places such as Mauritius. Should Ollie give it a go in the States?
First, there was the epic career at the track: 10 wins from 22 starts, nearly $3 million in prize money, and an astonishing six Gr. 1 races in 1987 for Hall of Famer Bill Mott, including the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Hollywood Park.
Then, at stud, Theatrical proved himself yet again for more than two decades. According to BloodHorse.com, he sired 81 stakes winners, including three-time Japanese champion Hishi Amazon, Irish champion 3-year-old male Zagreb, Irish champion filly Theoretically, and French classic winner Madeleine’s Dream. He was also the sire of top North American runners and millionaires Royal Anthem, Geri, Astra, Shakespheare, and Mrs. Lindsay.
My livelihood is based on a simple concept: I ask questions, listen to answers, and then piece together my thoughts in a compelling manner. Which is why I am absolutely intrigued by the one question that I am continually asked about writing The Cup.
Let’s hope this video clip, which ran at the launch of The Cup at Flemington, answers this question once and for all.
Emmy Award-winning director Simon Wincer confirms that principal photography for The Cup will commence in Australia on May 31. The veteran filmmaker who has crafted classics such as The Man From Snowy River, Lonesome Dove, and Free Willy has already completed second unit photography for The Cup at two key venues: The Curragh in County Kildare, Ireland, site of Dermot Weld’s training center; and Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, home of the Melbourne Cup, the world’s most prestigious two-mile handicap.
It’s official – the Cup is going on tour and hitting the road in preparation for the 150th running of the world’s greatest two-miler. Damien Oliver and a host of other racing legends farewelled the $150,000 trophy from Flemington Racecourse this morning.
The great Doriemus, a champion stayer who won the Caulfield Cup-Melbourne Cup double in 1995 with Damien Oliver up, was rushed into surgery last week and narrowly survived a life-threatening bout of colic. The emergency surgery was performed at the Werribee veterinarian clinic.
