Regular sessions in the swimming pool provided an improbable springboard for Art Connoisseur to outrun the strongest field of sprinters ever at Royal Ascot, reports the UK Mail on Sunday.It says: When the colt developed a bony growth on his leg a month ago, his trainer Michael Bell feared he would miss his date with destiny in the Group One Golden Jubilee Stakes. But you would not have known it yesterday as he overtook the field on his way to a famous victory at a price of 20-1, finishing with a

Regular sessions in the swimming pool provided an improbable springboard for Art Connoisseur to outrun the strongest field of sprinters ever at Royal Ascot, reports the UK Mail on Sunday.

It says: When the colt developed a bony growth on his leg a month ago, his trainer Michael Bell feared he would miss his date with destiny in the Group One Golden Jubilee Stakes. But you would not have known it yesterday as he overtook the field on his way to a famous victory at a price of 20-1, finishing with a neck to spare over American contender Cannonball.

'It wasn't looking good when he popped a splint,' said Bell. 'Obviously, I couldn't gallop him, so I sent him swimming twice a day for a fortnight to keep him on the move.
'Since then, he has been going through the motions in his work. Just to be sure, I swam him again on Thursday and Friday. Coming into the race, I thought mine was a middleweight against some of the best heavyweights in the world, so this was a bit of a surprise. But he did win the Coventry Stakes a year ago and these sprinters seem to improve with age.'

Bell expected Art Connoisseur to be a little sore last night but, if he recovers from his exertions in time, he may be aimed at the July Cup at Newmarket. That could also be the target of the fast-finishing Californian charger Cannonball. His trainer, Wesley Ward, said: 'He has run great, but it's a bit like kissing your sister when you are second like that.' The serious money came in buckets full of rands for the South African speedball JJ The Jet Plane, who started as a 5-2 favourite.
He led for four furlongs, but was already starting to look more like a lumbering cargo carrier as Art Connoisseur rocketed past after finding a dream run along the stands rail.

The jockey, Tom Queally, said: 'There was some scrimmaging in front of me then they all seemed to roll off the fence and, luckily, I had the horse to get there.'

Queally gained the ride after regular jockey Jamie Spencer was banned. In his moment of triumph, Bell offered a word of sympathy for Spencer before launching an emotional appeal on behalf of his stable jockey Hayley Turner, who remains suspended on medical grounds after a fall in March.