Watch: Horse Racing Icon Kick off 2024 with Victory at Santa Anita Park

Starting the new year with a win is probably the one thing that gets every athlete in the world excited. For the horse racing community, Santa Anita Park was the tournament that promised to start 2024 with a bang and it did not disappoint. The thoroughbred racing track in California had a thrilling first day of the year and iconic jockey Umberto Rispoli got his first win of the year in Race 9.

The two-time Italian Champion Jockey Rispoli won the race on the 3-year-old filly Alluring. The Richard Mandella-trained horse showed a lot of promise from her debut in Delmar and Rispoli looked comfortable with his new partner as they finished the race with an incredible margin.

Horse racing veteran picks up first win of 2024

Alluring and Rispoli ran on lane 5 and as soon as the doors opened the fight for the first position seemed like a strenuous battle. She’s Scintillating, Ms McWhinney, and Air Force Thunder all gave their best and competed hard, while Alluring gained a lead over the others. With a sixteenth to go of the track, Alluring looked cozy as the leader of the pack. The race ended with Alluring winning by three-and-a-half.

The Race 9 of yesterday’s Santa Anita has been shared by the social media account of TVG on X, previously known as Twitter. The short video clip shows Alluring’s incredible run that helped Rispoli bag his first win of the year. Ms McWhinney finished the race second, and Not A Sinner finished third. The place for the fourth spot was a close call between Air Force Thunder and Spirit Rules.

Along with Allurig’s impressive run, Santa Anita also witnessed Ms McWhinney’s jaw-dropping debut as she finished second. The video clip also highlights an evidently flummoxed commentator who wasn’t prepared to see such results at the year’s first high-stake race.

Newcomers setting the stage

While a new star shines bright on the horse-racing sky, it looks like some tough (and exciting, not to mention) awaits fans in the coming days. Only a couple of days ago, 2-year-old filly Gallerygal sent out ripples across the community by winning the Turfway Park Race 9 on her debut run.

Read more: 19-Year-Old Equestrian in ‘Total Shock’ Shares Her First World Cup Experience

On the other hand, another 19-year-old jockey made her debut at the recently held Jumping World Cup and made the attendees swoon with her brilliant performance along the short course. Fort Worth couldn’t have enough of Skylar Wireman and Tornado’s graceful run and the young equestrian aims to etch her name among the elites in the coming years of her career.

Watch this story: Female Equestrian Revives ‘Lost Tradition’ With Distinctive Flair