Cat Messiah one of Guyana’s top horses for 2013

Jan 19, 2014 Sports

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Only animal to win the double
 
By Samuel Whyte
Despite having not so good year in terms of general horseracing during 2013, there were some bright spots with some horses having a good year with some outstanding performances.

The debate might reign on as to the top horse in the country for 2013. While there might be some serious contenders for the title, one animal that comes to mind and stands out like a beacon is the up and coming Cat Messiah of the Gansham Singh Racing Stable with six wins for last year. What makes Cat Messiah stand out among the pack is that it won two races in one day twice, a feat which according to some pundits has not been performed or performed for a long time. Although there were horses that would have won two races on the same day, none might have done it twice and even so in one year.
What is even more astonishing and outstanding and might be unmatched is that it was done in the first year of racing for the animal. Add to the fact that the animal is a locally bred racehorse and you have an unbeatable situation. It might have also been the only animal to have participated in every race since it started racing on Republic Day (February 23) 2013.
Owned and trained by one of Guyana’s young and enterprising horse owners, Gansham ‘Ganesh ’Singh.  Young Singh’s sojourn so far with his horse has been a success story.  The resourceful Singh has his own stable at the family farm at No 6 West Coast Berbice and has all plans to take his stable to the top.
A look at the animal’s achievement for the foregoing year tells a good story. The animal only came into racing during the first quarter in 2013 and tasted its first victory on the track in its third race when it won a convincing victory in a J class race on March 31st at the PMTC track Guyana Cup Fever event. Its next victory saw the horse scoring its first of two doubles on April 14 at the BLUTC meet winning both the ‘I’ class and the race for Three year old Guyana Bred horses.
Cat Messiah returned to winning ways again when it dominated proceedings in the 2013 Guyana Cup Event with another double win in the same two events.  It was subsequently named Guyana Cup 2013 champion horse for its achievements.
The horse was in winner’s row, again on 10th November at the BLUTC meet, beating opponents into submission in the ‘I’ class event, bringing its tally of wins to six. It has also accumulated one second and three thirds making it 10 placing from 13 starts.  Cat Messiah has so far moved up from J to I class in a climb to the top and has beaten all and sundry in its class including the West Indies Bred horses and according to the owner is looking for the new challenges ahead.

Singh is one of the few young horse owners with a wealth of knowledge in his head. A keen and very meticulous participant of the sport, Singh stated that he likes how the animal is progressing and as long as things go according to plan, the animal will soon be the talk of the town and the animal to beat. Singh today is a proud man and he sees no reasons why his schedule will not come through. As he says, he has all the ingredients to make the racehorse the number one in the racing circle.
The now four year old animal, which was born right at his farm and stable and No6, is a product of The Cat is Back and Santa Rosa Queen from Trinidad.  It is the younger brother of another top performer, Super Cat. Singh said that he always knew that the animal will be a beater and although he had some setbacks earlier he was not perturbed. Among some of its fiercest competitors are Silent Night, She So Special, Flying Baby, Monsoon, East to Win and Gold Princess.
For Singh, continuing his winning ways and increasing his stocks are his priorities at the moment. He has so far added Gold Rush to his stocks and with a two year old animal set to hit the turf this year, he now has three animals in the arena. He also plans to add a few more on the track during the year. The stable also now has an added animal to its stock to complete the circle with the acquiring of Perfect Circle which serves as a stud. The animal coming to Guyana from the Caribbean with a tremendous record of 11 wins and 15 second places.
Singh has been around horseracing for a while and he has knowledge of the sport, the family having been into the sport for some time.   The animal trains at the Norman Sigh Turf Club at Silver Park West Coast Berbice and the Bush Lot United Turf Club and according to the owner its training regimen depends on where it has to race and the type of races it will be involved in. The event also will dictate the type of training it has to undertake.
He gives plenty of credit to his trainer Sham ‘Folar’ Bharrat, who since his association with the stable and the guidance of Singh, has been creating waves in the local horseracing arena.
With such an achievement and a feat hard to beat, the whispering ‘Cat Messiah’ with a tremendous finish down the homestretch is definitely the top horse, or a contender for the title of horse of the year.

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