La Dame Blanche takes feature for Ross and Whelan La Dame Blanche resumed winning ways for Willie Ross with a tough display in the featured Tote Guarantee Available On-Course Handicap at Ballinrobe. She was keen in the early stages, but settled better once Ronan Whelan allowed her to stride on. The five-year-old was there to be shot at in the final quarter of a mile, but showed her resolution as she had the placed horses on the stretch in the final furlong. She won by a length and a-half from Mr Lincoln (5/1) with No Hassle (9/4f) a head back in third. La Dame Blanche was unplaced in a valuable fillies' handicap in Ascot earlier in the month but, prior to that, won the Cork Derby. Whelan said: "Dermot Kilmartin (owner) does a lot of the work with her and took no chances, he took her down to the start early and got her relaxed. She can just be a bit over-anxious. "I was happy enough to slot in but then we parked and she was kind of fighting me so I left her go on, I didn't want her to be wasting energy. "She wings around these tracks, she was with the Mulvanys before and they educate them really well. Once I got a fill into her down the back, I was always confident I'd stay going, she's gutsy out. "Dermot said to forget about her run in Ascot the last day, she didn't do a stroke. They decided to change things up and take the hood off her which was a risk for a keen-going filly, but they got it spot on." Additional reporting by Mark Nunan
