The 2024 edition of the Prix d'Amerique will be held on Sunday (January 28) at Vincennes Racecourse in Paris. Eighteen of the world's best older trotters will compete for a purse of 1 million Euros from a standing start and over the distance of 2,700 meters (about a mile and two-thirds). One of the horses slated to compete in the Prix d'Amerique is a familiar face to those of us in the U.S., and that is Joviality (she raced as Joviality S in the U.S.). A 5-year-old daughter of Chapter Seven, Joviality was the Breeders Crown and Goldsmith Maid champion at age 2, and as part of a Dan Patch Award-winning season at 3, she captured the MGM Yonkers Trot, Delmonica Hanover and was the runner-up in the Hambletonian. She was also a two-time New York Sire Stakes champion, but the lure of breeders' awards in Sweden led her owner Courant Inc. to race her overseas at age 4. She would capture the Group 1 Queen Silvia's Cup and the Group 1 Swedish Trotting Derby for trainer Sabine Kagebrant before setting her sights on a French winter campaign. "Joviality is Swedish eligible and as such has big stakes races in Europe, which also awards breeders over 10 percent from betting revenue," owner Anders Ström of Courant Inc. explained. "The big one was the Swedish Derby which was worth more than $1 million. The prestige of winning that race is equal to winning the Hambletonian. She did it, and we're very happy for that. And as owner/breeder you get a yellow jacket." Joviality had two appearances at Vincennes, finishing 11th in the Group 1 Criterium Continental on Christmas Eve and then putting in a much better effort in the Group 2 Prix de Croix on January 13 to get second behind the highly-regarded Jushua Tree. Originally, Courant announced on X (Twitter) that Joviality would compete in the Prix de Bold Eagle on Saturday (January 27) at Vincennes, but continued strong training and the wide-open look to the race led to a change in plans and a new driver, with three-time Prix d'Amerique champion Björn Goop taking over. "Now that the horse performed so well last time out there is no doubt she could race in the Prix d'Amérique," remarked Ström, who was part-owner of Gigant Neo, the 2006 Prix d'Amerique champion via disqualification. "She is good for 1.11 something in kilometer time on the distance, and three out of the five last years the race was won in 1.11.5, so I felt she is well-put in the race. Unfortunately, [Goop's] original drive San Moteur broke down, and as he then was available, Kagebrant was quick to make the call. "[The race] has a right favorite in Idao de Tillard; he has the merits and comes from one of the best stables in France. Then there are about a dozen horses that can surprise, and Joviality is one of them. I rate her as one chance in eight to 12. If she is top-five in this tough race I will be celebrating it as a win." ► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter While all eyes are obviously on her start on Sunday for now, Ström did say that there is a chance we could see Joviality back in North America later in 2024 and as a broodmare when she is done competing on the track. "She will probably be entered in some late stakes races in 2024; to come and race the Breeders Crown is attractive, but we need to wait for the season to develop," he offered. "After her racing career I would expect her to come back to Kentucky to become a broodmare." As Ström mentioned, the wagering choice in the pre-race markets is last year's Prix d'Amerique favorite Idao de Tillard, trained by Thierry Duvaldestin. Idao de Tillard broke stride in 2023 edition of the trotting classic, but the 6-year-old son of Severino is riding a six-race win streak coming into Sunday, including a stakes-record clocking in his major prep, the Group 1 Prix Ténor de Baune at Vincennes on Christmas Eve. "He's approaching the race correctly. He had a little problem because his throat was dirty and he had a bit of mucus in his trachea, but everything's back to normal now," Duvaldestin said on Idao De Tillard dropping out of the mid-January Prix de Belgique. "Idao has been able to work. He doesn't need a lot of work; he's a horse that's fine when he's fresh. "We're always in doubt because it's the biggest race of the year in France. You can have the favorite, but it's a one-day race. There are 18 starters, so there could be some ups and downs. I'm not any more confident than that, even though I know my horse is very good. There could be unforeseen circumstances. The race journey will be decisive." Duvaldestin is a two-time Prix d'Amerique champion, having won it with Ready Cash in 2011 and 2012. Other entrants that are of note are defending champion Hooker Berry, last year's MGM Yonkers International Trot winner Vivid Wise As and Aetos Kronos, owned by Jeff and Michael Snyder and trained by Jerry Riordan. The Prix d'Amerique is race seven on the 11-race program on Sunday at Vincennes. Post time for the big race is 4:20 P.M. local time, which is 10:20 A.M. in the Eastern Time zone. 2024 PRIX D'AMERIQUE FIELD #-Horse-Driver-Trainer-Current Odds* 1-Inmarosa-Leo Abrivard-Laurent-Claude Abrivard-+4400 2-Hokkaido Jiel-David Thomain-Jean-Luc Dersoir-+4400 3-Emeraude de Bais-Jean-Philippe Monclin-Benjamin Goetz-+7900 4-Hussard du Landret-Yoann Lebourgeois-Benoit Robin-+2900 5-Izoard Vedaquais-Benjamin Rochard-Philippe Allaire-+1650 6-Gu d'Heripre-Francois Lagadeuc-Fabrice Souloy-+1050 7-Go On Boy-Romain Derieux-Same-+700 8-Italiano Vero-Mathieu Mottier-Philippe Allaire-+7900 9-Diable de Vauvert-Bertrand Le Beller-Same-+14900 10-Aetos Kronos-Örjan Kihlström-Jerry Riordan-+9900 11-Ampia Mede Sm-Franck Nivard-Fabrice Souloy-+575 12-Idao de Tillard-Clément Duvaldestin-Thierry Duvaldestin-+225 13-Hail Mary-Eric Raffin-Daniel Redén-+1400 14-Hooker Berry-Nicolas Bazire-Jean-Michel Bazire-+525 15-Delia du Pommereux-Pierre-Yves Verva-Sylvain Roger-+12400 16-Hohneck-Gabriele Gelormini-Philippe Allaire-+3900 17-Joviality-Björn Goop-Sabine Kagebrant-+1650 18-Vivid Wise As-Matthieu Abrivard-Alessandro Gocciadoro-+5900 *in sportsbook format ($1 win at +225 returns $3.25) from Nicer Odds --Thierry Duvaldestin quotes from LeTrot--