There is him, Idao de Tillard, brilliant winner of the 103rd edition of the Prix d’Amérique this Sunday, and the others. Among them: Hokkaido Jiel, second at… 92/1. And suffice to say that this place has a scent of victory for those around it. “A performance like the one that Hokkaido Jiel has just achieved is quite remarkable, cowardly, delighted, his trainer Jean-Luc Dersoir. “It’s a horse that won the Prix René Ballière (Group I) this summer, we must not forget that.”
This feat is all the more admirable since his driver David Thomain knew how to preserve his horse by giving him a perfect run: “I didn’t even need to use the earplug. We were able to sneak in, and he finished by advancing to adjust Joviality (3rd) near the post. »
“We’ve all seen the real Hokkaido”
After obtaining his ticket for the World Harness Trotting Championship in the Prix de Bretagne, first qualifying event, by placing third on November 19, 2023, everything did not necessarily go as planned for the team’s champion Luck, adorned with the legendary yellow and blue jacket. “With this horse, everything was a question of adjustment during the rest of the winter,” explains Jean-Luc Dersoir. We were a little bothered during the second and third preparatory sessions, but then David Thomain really liked it in the Prix de Belgique (7th on January 14). This race reassured us and allowed us to sort things out more peacefully. »
The decision to take him to the Cabourg racecourse for one of his last exercises in order to take his mind off things also proved to be very beneficial, even decisive, for the future runner-up to Idao de Tillard. “It was to refine his preparation, and his little escapade was very profitable for him,” smiles his developer. And continued: “This Sunday, we knew that our horse was good, and he proved that he had the strength to fight with such horses. It is not simple, but without the irons and well adjusted, we have all seen the real Hokkaido Jiel. »
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