HH Sheikh Ahmed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum's ELMALKA lands the G1 QIPCO 1000 Guineas in an outstanding last to first performance under Silvestre de Sousa, giving Roger Varian a first victory in the fillies' Classic contest.

The daughter of Kingman won her sole juvenile start, and reemerged this season with a fast-finishing third in the 7f G3 Fred Darling Stakes at Newbury. She faced a tough task this afternoon, stepping up to 1m for the first time and lining up against a field of top-class fillies on just her third racecourse appearance, but she stepped up to the plate and delivered a day to remember. Breaking from stall 16, ELMALKA sat off the pace at the rear of the field for the opening stages of the race. The field entered the dip led by French raider Ramatuelle, but ELMALKA had begun to gather momentum down the wing, swooping down to clinch the lead in the final strides in a heart-racing finale.

It was a first success in the fillies' Classic for trainer Roger Varian, and one made even sweeter by it being a family affair, with ELMALKA's dam, NAHRAIN delivering Rogers first G1 victory at ParisLongchamp in 2009. Roger said:

“It's not a surprise because I wouldn't have run her if I didn't think she was going to run well, but you don't come into these races thinking you're going to win. She ran a big race at Newbury and she was as green as grass and credit to James Doyle who gave her a super ride that day. He got an education into her and she finished strongly. We weren't set on running in the Guineas that day, but the turnaround in the filly in the last fortnight has been quite incredible.

“It's very special actually to train the winner for His Highness Sheik Ahmed Al Maktoum, who's supported me all of my career and supported Michael Jarvis before me. She's a homebred filly and out of Nahrain who was my first group one winner the first year I trained, winning the Prix de l'Opera. You can't get more special than that. But it's a team effort and these things don't happen by accident. It's a huge thrill and it hasn't quite sunk in.”

Congratulations to His Highness Sheik Ahmed Al Maktoum.