Henrietta Knight described training her first winner for the Queen as a big thrill after Harvest Song sprang a 40-1 surprise at Fontwell.
Knight, who trains at West Lockinge, near Wantage, was sent the beautifully bred four-year-old after he failed to shine in two starts on the Flat for Sir Michael Stoute.
A son of champion sire Sadler’s Wells out of a Nashwan mare, La Mouline, Harvest Song cost 290,000gns as a yearling.
But after proving a flop on the Flat, he had been well beaten in his previous two starts for Knight at Stratford and Kempton.
However, the penny clearly dropped at the Sussex track as he landed a maiden hurdle at massive odds under Faringdon-based jockey Will Kennedy by five lengths from Hadron Collider.
“I wasn’t totally surprised because he works very well at home,” said Knight.
“It is lovely to have a winner for the Queen and great that she supports a yard like ours. It was a big thrill for us all.”
And Harvest Song’s victory gained royal approval from the Queen.
“I saw her at the Windsor Horse Show and she was very pleased, and I have spoken to her since,” added Knight.
The West Lockinge handler has trained runners for the Queen in the past, but without troubling the judge.
“It meant a lot to us,” she said. “We have had a few horses for the Queen, but they have had training problems.”
Harvest Song will now have a break, but Knight believes he could have a bright future.
“Obviously, he has been very backward and he has taken time, but he is going to be a nice horse,” she added.
“He stays well and jumps well and is going to be a nice chaser.”
It was also the Queen’s first winner at Fontwell since 1949 when Monaveen, who she part-owned with the late Queen Mother, won.
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