The Prix de Diane Longines: A Sporting and Glamorous Rendez-vous

The Prix de Diane Longines: A Sporting and Glamorous Rendezvous

It is the most glamorous event of the year, but also a pinnacle of sport: on Sunday, June 15, Chantilly Racecourse will host the Prix de Diane Longines (Group 1), which will crown the best three-year-old filly over the 2,100-metre course. Twelve fillies will line up at the start, hailing from France, Ireland and England.

On the French side, the most represented trainer is Chantilly-based Francis-Henri Graffard, who will saddle three runners. With Cankoura (Persian King), already a Listed winner, he will aim to secure an eighth title for the Aga Khan Studs silks, which have already triumphed in this race seven times—a record. Princess Zahra Aga Khan will also rely on Mandanaba (Ghaiyyath), an excellent third in the Emirates Poule d’Essai des Pouliches, and who will be tackling this distance for the first time. Finally, Gezora (Almanzor), representing White Birch Farm—the racing entity of American art collector Peter Brant—will aim to confirm her credentials after a strong performance in the Coolmore Auguste Rodin Prix Saint-Alary.

The British filly Shes Perfect (Sioux Nation) has unfinished business: she was demoted to second place in the Emirates Poule d’Essai des Pouliches following a stewards' inquiry, having impeded Zarigana (Siyouni) in the closing stages; Zarigana was subsequently declared the winner. Other contenders who also ran in the Emirates Poule are testing themselves over this longer distance: among them, Better Together (Oasis Dream), fifth at ParisLongchamp, just ahead of the Irish-trained Bedtime Story (Frankel). Maisons-Laffitte training centre will be represented by Zia Agnese (Romanised), trained by Italian-born Gianluca Bietolini.

The day will also feature three Group 3 races: the Prix du Bois Longines (for two-year-olds), the Prix du Lys Longines (for three-year-olds targeting the Grand Prix de Paris), and the Prix Bertrand du Breuil Longines (for milers). A Listed race reserved for fillies, the Prix Pawnesse Longines, will also take place. The best four-year-old Arabian thoroughbreds will clash in the Qatar Derby for Four-Year-Old Purebred Arabians, while amateur female riders from around the world will compete in the Prix Reine Marie-Amélie, a leg of the Fegentri World Championship.