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OLASCOAGA: IT’S AN AMAZING FEELING AND A DREAM COME TRUE!

OLASCOAGA: IT’S AN AMAZING FEELING AND A DREAM COME TRUE! Jan 26, 2023

By Duane Fonseca

Julio Olascoaga has made the most of the absence of boss Antonio Cintra Pereira. With Brazilian Pereira sidelined on account of a training ban that runs until next month, the Uruguayan former endurance rider and trainer, as well as a qualified vet, took out his licence from the Emirates Racing Authority (ERA) to keep Pereira’s Dubai operation running.

And he’s fared admirably so far, his 22 runners yielding a pair of winners, four seconds, three thirds and a further five minor money placings all bringing in Dh734,969 in earnings. Long Kiss has been Olascoaga’s best so far and has brought him both successes, winning two of his three UAE starts, first in a 1400m maiden on dirt and then delivering in a 1400m conditions run on the adjecent turf strip at Meydan on the opening night of the Dubai World Cup Carnival.

With a bit of luck, Olascoaga could have at least doubled his tally during the recent second carnival meeting, but Atletico El Culano, Es-Unico and Fast-Uno all finished second in their respective assignments in conditions events.

HAPPY AND THANKFUL

Olascoaga, who is based out of Green Stables, said: “It’s an amazing feeling and I am very happy for the team and am very happy that the team put me in this position to look after the stable this year. “I am very thankful to them for the opportunity. And I am super happy for the team here and the team that is based in Uruguay as well.”

Olascoaga was forced to obtain a training licence in the UAE to keep the wheels of Pereira’s 13 horse roster ticking and admits he will be happy to play second fiddle once his mentor returns from his suspension. “Because Antonio isn’t here I’ve taken out the training licence and when he comes back he will again be in charge,” Olascoaga told Adiyat Racing Plus.

“At the moment I am very happy working for Antonio and as long as he works and trains I will be with him most probably. Our main stable is in Uruguay and we are trying to source horses to bring here for the carnival. We have 13 horses based here at Green Stables right now.” And he has no doubt as to who his star is right now.

That was a second win by Long Kiss and on a very different surface. He’s a very good horse and we will see where he goes next. We need to plan and think and look at the schedule. We had planned to run him on dirt, but now that he’s shown he can win on turf too, we have to get back to the condition book to see where we can run him.”

Endurance riding with its cautious calculativeness to avoid elimination is bound to help Olascoaga with the maths needed in racing and so will his ability to assess in his capacity as a qualified vet. “I used to come here a long time ago to ride in endurance events and then I trained endurance horses and went to university and became a vet. I have a master’s degree as well,” Olascoaga revealed.

FROM ENDURANCE TO FLAT

“I’ve been coming every season for perhaps 15 years. I used to be in endurance and then switched to Flat racing with Antonio and I’ve been doing veterinary work as well, but now the focus is fully on training and managing Antonio’s stable. “It’s a dream come true to train and I’m very happy because I’ve always dreamed of being a trainer. I used to come here for fun and now to be able to come here and race against those based here, whom I saw on TV, all my idols, it’s quite amazing.” What will be truly amazing is if Olascoaga can sign off with a Group level success before the return of his boss!


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