Source: Weekend King Racing via Twitter
The lucrative race will be staged for the first time on November 2nd, 2019 and will carry a bigger prize purse than the Melbourne Cup. It will form part of a $5 million bonus series alongside the Golden Slipper and the Golden Rose. Executives are hoping that this addition to the card will also help attract a number of top-class European competitors to the track.
A number of trainers from the UK and Ireland regularly send their charges down under with the Melbourne Cup particularly popular with Northern Hemisphere handlers. Charlie Appleby became the first British trainer to saddle a winner in the contest with Cross Counter taking top honours in November 2018 and he's already weighing up the possibility of a repeat performance next year. The Godolphin charge is already in the betting for the Flemington showpiece and according to Oddschecker's ante-post market, he's expected to finish ahead of fellow European raiders Marmelo and Rostropovich once again. The pair finished second and fifth respectively.
It was also announced that ten percent of the total prize money will be donated to charity with winning connections getting the opportunity to nominate the beneficiary.
Shane McGrath, CEO at Aquis praised the new addition to Sydney's racing portfolio and told Sky Sports Radio that he had no doubt that the contest will attract European competitors. He explained that the exponential rise in Australian prize money is one of the main reasons for the recent upsurge in UK entrants.
Source: BlueBet Australia via Twitter
The 2018 staging of the Everest saw Aidan O'Brien send US Navy Flag to Sydney but the Irish trained thoroughbred could only come ninth. The race is expected to attract more overseas visitors next year and the addition of the Golden Eagle will certainly help boost the numbers.
The $1 million Golden Gift will also be run at Rosehill and will be staged over 1100m. This race will be open to two-year olds and may also attract a handful of European entrants.
Sydney's racing scene has been given a significant boost with the addition of the Golden Eagle and Australian racing continues to go from strength-to-strength. European raiders tend to be few and far between but with the ever-increasing prize money and several quality contests added to the card, it will surely only be a matter of time before heading down under becomes a regular occurrence for UK and Irish trainers.
