Almond Eye Withdrawn from Hong Kong Cup

Japanese superstar Almond Eye has been withdrawn from the Dec. 8 Longines Hong Kong Cup (G1), the Hong Kong Jockey Club announced late Nov. 29 in a brief statement.

"Almond Eye has been withdrawn from the Hong Kong Cup. Plans to travel to Hong Kong later today were canceled due to an elevated temperature," the statement read in its entirety.

Almond Eye, Japan's reigning Horse of the Year, was the headliner for the US$3.6 million Hong Kong Cup during the Hong Kong International Races at Sha Tin. The 4-year-old daughter of Lord Kanaloa passed up the Nov. 24 Japan Cup in Association with Longines (G1) Nov. 24 in favor of the trip to Hong Kong.

Almond Eye has made just three starts for owner Silk Racing this year. In her 2019 debut, she won the Dubai Turf Sponsored by DP World (G1) at Meydan. Her seven-race winning streak next came to an end when she encountered traffic trouble and finished third in the June 2 Yasuda Kinen (G1) at Tokyo Racecourse, after which she went to the sideline for nearly five months. Almond Eye returned victorious in the Oct. 27 Tenno Sho (Autumn, G1) at Tokyo, where she dominated the field with a three-length score.

The decision not to ship Almond Eye raises questions about her ability to mount an international campaign if she remains in training in 2020. Trainer Sakae Kunieda said the Dubai trip had a significant impact on her and derailed any thoughts of a trip to the 2019 Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1).

Without Almond Eye, the foreign contingent for the Cup features Japanese contender Win Bright, who took down FWD Queen Elizabeth II Cup (G1) at Sha Tin in April, and Magic Wand, a 4-year-old Galileo filly who won the Nov. 9 Seppelt MacKinnon Stakes (G1) at Flemington for Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, and Susan Magnier and trainer Aidan O'Brien.

The local contingent includes last year's winner, Glorious Forever, and BMW Hong Kong Derby winner Furore.

In 2018 Almond Eye took all three legs of the Japanese Filly Triple Crown, then won the Japan Cup (G1) in course-record time over older males. Along with her Horse of the Year title, she was named Japan's champion 3-year-old filly of 2018.

The Longines Hong Kong International Races retain plenty of glitter, including the first appearance by a winner of the Investec Derby (G1), Anthony Van Dyck, in the Hong Kong Vase (G1). But Almond Eye was to be the featured attraction on Hong Kong's biggest racing day—and an antidote to the impact on racing of six months of social protest and street demonstrations.