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In an electrifying race held at the picturesque Nuwara Eliya racecourse, Another Ace emerged victorious in the RTC Governor's Cup at the RTC Governor's Cup Race Day 2023 powered by Nippon Paint.

The horse, ridden by jockey K. Sai Kiran, trained by S.V. Mathialagan and owned by Hasanga Jayaratne, showcased its mettle in the race for horses rated above 60, run over a distance of 1600 metres.

As the race began, it was anyone's guess which horse would emerge as the winner, with all the runners vying for the coveted trophy. However, as the race progressed, it became apparent that a four-way battle was unfolding between Mauritania, Legendary Princess, Western Wind and Another Ace.

In a nail-biting finish, it was Another Ace who crossed the finish line first, closely followed by stablemate Western Wind, ridden by K. Vivek and owned by Hasanga Jayaratne and Paba Jayaratne.

Legendary Princess, ridden by Nikhil Parmar and owned by Dagmar Woehrl, finished a close third, while Mauritania, ridden by P. Ajeeth Kumar and owned by Edwards Stables, had to settle for fourth place.

In a thrilling start to the day's proceedings, Admiral Nelson claimed the first victory of the day by winning the Sporting Times Challenge Trophy, in the handicap race for horses rated 20 to 45 with a distance of 1400 metres.

Indian jockey K. Vivek gave an impressive ride, as Admiral Nelson challenged Glittering, ridden by local jockey L. Ravi Kumar and trained by S.D. Mahesh, who had taken an early lead.

The two runners from Jayaratne Stables, Street Cat and Admiral Nelson, then stepped up the pace halfway through the race to give Glittering a run for its money.

By the final 400 metres, the competition became fierce, with Krabi making a late charge, but Admiral Nelson managed to cross the winning post to give Hasanga Jayaratne and Paba Jayaratne their first win of the day.

Street Cat, ridden by K. Sai Kiran, trained by Prasanna Niroshan and owned by Gamini Jayaratne and J.R.S. Irugalbandara, finished a close second, while Krabi, ridden by N.S. Parmar, trained by S.D. Mahesh and owned by Edwards Stables, finished third.

In the next race, Crack of Dawn, ridden by local jockey L. Ravi Kumar and trained by S.D. Mahesh, emerged victorious in the Sporting Star Challenge Trophy, a handicap race for horses rated 41 to 61.

After trailing behind early leader Vigorous, ridden by jockey G. Pugan and trained by Jayantha Wijesinghe, Crack of Dawn made a brilliant late surge during the final stretch to edge past the other runners.

The intense competition became a three-way battle between Queen's Hall, Godsword, and Crack of Dawn, with L. Ravi Kumar's experience and skill helping him guide Crack of Dawn to an impressive victory, to the delight of owner Dagmar Woehrl and trainer S.D. Mahesh.

Queen's Hall, ridden by K. Sai Kiran, trained by S.V. Mathialagan, and owned by Hasanga Jayaratne and Paba Jayaratne, finished a close second, with Godsword, ridden by P. Ajeeth Kumar, trained by S.D. Mahesh and owned by Edwards Stables, taking third place.

Royal Crystal dominated the RTC Queen’s Cup, a Terms Race for horses rated above 60 and covering a distance of 2000 metres, by leading the race from start to finish. Indian jockey Nikhil Parmar made a spectacular start to take an early lead and held it throughout the entire run, giving owner Edwards Stables and trainer S.D. Mahesh their big win. 

S.D. Mahesh had a remarkable top-three finish, with Here and Now ridden by local jockey L. Ravi Kumar coming in at second, and Cosmic Feeling ridden by P. Ajeeth Kumar and owned by S.L.N. Infrastructures, finishing in third place.

The last race of the day saw Fancy Face and jockey M. Isahan triumph in the Nippon Super Challenge Cup, a terms race with penalties for 3/4 breed horses over a 1000-metre distance.

The Prasanna Niroshan-trained and Naveen Madawa- and Sanjaya Kumarasinghe-owned Fancy Face ran a great race, winning by almost three lengths ahead of Malee and Crown Fried.

Malee, owned by R.M.A. Jayatissa and trained by Jayantha Wijesinghe, finished second with jockey G. Pugan. The third-placed Crown Fried, owned by Niranji Sivakumar and trained by Prasanna Niroshan, was ridden by H. Siva Kumar.

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