Monashee named best in province

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Monashee was named the 2007 horse of the year and champion older filly or mare in British Columbia at the annual awards banquet held at the Boulevard Casino in Coquitlam, B.C., on Friday evening.

A Kentucky-bred mare by Wolf Power, Monashee won five stakes races at Hastings in 2007, including an easy win in the Grade 3 Ballerina Breeders' Cup. Her win in the Ballerina was her 11th stakes victory in a row. Monashee's streak came to an end when she went unplaced in the Maple Leaf Stakes at Woodbine last November.

Owned by Ole Nielsen and trained by Tracy McCarthy, Monashee was retired after winning the Paseana Handicap at Santa Anita on Jan. 14. According to Nielsen, Monashee will be bred to Hard Spun. She won 18 races from 24 starts and had career earnings of $760,490.

"It's been a great ride," said Nielsen. "You get a horse like her once in your lifetime."

True Metropolitan was honored as the top older horse in the province. He is owned by Bob Cheema and trained by Terry Jordan. Earlier this year True Metropolitan won a Sovereign Award for the second straight year.

Cheema and Jordan also won awards with Dancing Allstar, 2-year-old filly, open and B.C.-bred; Star Prospector, 2-year-old male, open and B.C.-bred, and Alpine Garden, open 3-year-old filly. Star Prospector tied with Royal Hudson in the open 2-year-old division.

Sovereign Award winner Dancing Allstar was named the B.C.-bred horse of the year.

The Diamond Award of Excellence went to trainer Troy Taylor. Taylor, 76, was last the leading trainer at Hastings in 1963.

Trainer Alan May and jockey Mickey Walls were inducted into the B.C. Horse Racing Hall of Fame.