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Thoroughbred breeders from around the country will gather at the Sir Don Rowlands Event Centre at Karapiro on Saturday for the much-anticipated National Breeding Awards.
For the last two years the awards, sponsored this year by AGrowQuip, have been without a public celebration, now finally the recipients can be honoured by their peers.
Amongst the awards to be presented are the Sir Patrick and Justine Lady Hogan Breeder of the Year Award, the Broodmare of the Year Award sponsored by Arion Pedigrees and the Small Breeder of the Year sponsored by Luigi Muollo.
The nominees for the prestigious Breeder of the Year Awards are; David Ellis and Karyn Fenton Ellis, the Dennis Brothers, Little Avondale Stud, and Waikato Stud. The nominees for the Small Breeder of the Year are; Don Goodwin, Ray Johnson and the Estate of the Late Martha Johnson, and Scott Williams.
The Broodmare of the Year Award nominees are: Baggy Green, Opulence, and Shez Sinsational.
David Ellis and Karyn Fenton-Ellis bred the Gr.1 New Zealand Oaks (2400m) winner Belle En Rouge and along with Julia and Mark Walker bred the Gr.1 Manawatu Sires' Produce Stakes (1400m) winner Maven Belle.
The Southland-based Dennis Brothers bred two Group One winners as well, the Thorndon Mile (1600m) winner The Chosen One and the Gr.1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) winner The Perfect Pink in partnership with Milan Park principal Tony Rider.
Little Avondale Stud bred the sensational Gr.1 Newmarket Handicap (1200m) winner Roch'N'Horse as well as Gr.2 Llinthgow Stakes (1200m) winner Justacanta, and Group Three winners Belluci Babe and Charm's Star, the latter in partnership with Peter and Chrissie Algie.
Waikato Stud had another stellar season breeding 13 stakes winners including five at Group One level and 17 black type placed horses. Their Group One winners were Mo'Unga who won the Winx Stakes (1400m), Probabeel who won the Caulfield Stakes (2000m), Noverre who won the New Zealand 2000 Guineas (1600m), Never Been Kissed who won the Flight Stakes (1600m), and Tiptronic who won the Zabeel Classic (2000m).
The Small Breeder of the Year is awarded to a breeder with five or less mares. Auckland breeder Don Goodwin is a nominee for the deeds of the Gr.1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) winner Verry Elleegant, who also won the Gr.1 George Main Stakes (1600m) and Gr.1 Chipping Norton Stakes (1600m).
Fellow nominee Ray Johnson bred the Gr.1 Doncaster Mile (1600m) winner Mr Brightside, and Scott Williams bred the dual Group One winner Levante.
Don Goodwin's mare Opulence is the reigning Broodmare of the Year and she is nominated once again, due to Verry Elleegant's three Group One wins and her brother Verry Flash's win in the Listed Rangitikei Gold Cup (1600m).
Baggy Green received her Broodmare of the Year nomination as the dam of the stakes winners Tofane, No Compromise, and the Group One placed Benaud. She was recently sold to Yulong Investments as part of Valachi Downs' dispersal sale.
Former top race mare Shiz Sensational, owned by Peter Gillespie and Bill Gleeson, left two stakes winners in the season under review – Sinarahma, whose three wins were all at stakes level, and House of Cartier, who won the Gr.3 Metric Mile (1600m) and the Listed Feilding Gold Cup (2100m).
The three Champion stallion trophies - Dewar (Australasian earnings), Centaine (Worldwide earnings) and Grosvenor (New Zealand earnings) will be presented on the night, along with the Personality of the Year, Mary Lynne Ryan Young Achiever sponsored by AgBuild and the Seton Otway AGrowQuip Horse of the Year. There will also be a presentation to each of the breeders who bred a Group One winner last season.
