Prix de Diane Longines – PROFILE AND QUOTES British Trainer Ed Walker Confident with American Gal
Ed Walker - Crédit Scoopdyga
PROFILE
Ed Walker is a British racehorse trainer based in Lambourn, West Berkshire—an established training centre located between London and Wales.
He began his training career in October 2010 in Newmarket—often dubbed the “Chantilly of England”—before relocating to Lambourn to accommodate the expansion of his stable. With a background in classical riding, Walker knew early on that he wanted to become a racehorse trainer. He tailored his professional experience accordingly, working in Australia, France, and of course England, under renowned trainers such as Roger Charlton and Luca Cumani. To date, he has saddled over 600 winners, including four Group 1 victories—the highest level in horse racing—three of which came in France: the Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp Longines in 2024 with Makarova, and both the Prix du Moulin de Longchamp and the Prix d’Ispahan in 2022 with Dreamloper.
His last three runners in France have all secured major wins. Among them is American Gal, who is set to line up in the Group 1 Prix de Diane Longines this Sunday.
QUOTES
Excerpts from the press conference held Tuesday morning by France Galop
“We're having a fantastic season in France. We've been very fortunate. Since I started training, we've won four Group 1 races—three of them in France. We love coming to your country, where we've enjoyed great success. The prize money is generous and the tracks are excellent. Of course, travelling is more expensive since Brexit, but we still thoroughly enjoy racing in France. The British calendar doesn’t offer black-type mile races (1,600 metres) before the Guineas.
After her third-place finish at Kempton, we thought it would be a good idea to come to France. However, she had never run on turf before, having only raced on synthetic surfaces. Her victory in the Prix des Lilas came against fillies who have since confirmed their form—Eponine and Relaxx placed second and fourth in the Prix de Sandringham, while Cankoura won the Prix Finlande.
It wasn’t Christophe Soumillon who recommended we run her in the Prix de Diane. We have great respect for his opinion, but he actually advised against it, thinking it might be a bit too much for her. In Chantilly, it was her turf debut; she had to set the pace and never even felt the whip. She’s a big filly who will improve further and be better over longer distances.
Of course, the race may prove too demanding, but she’s already won a Listed race, and we only have one shot at a Classic. She’s in good shape, so we’re making the trip. I would be concerned if the ground were too firm. We don’t want the ground to be too fast for her. We’ll be keeping a close eye on conditions and may have a tough decision to make. American Gal will be ridden by Tom Marquand.”