Favourite Peruan, ridden by Zdenek Matysik, won the Velka Pardubicka (Grand Pardubice) steeplechase in the Czech Republic today, taking a third consecutive win on the tough track.
Matysik held the 12-year-old bay gelding, a 1.8-1 favourite, at the back of the field early on in the 6.9-km race over 30 fences before making his move nine obstacles from the finish.
The 20-1 outsider Belovodsk, ridden by Jan Havlicek, briefly took up the running but Peruan, known for spectacular finishes, reclaimed the top position on the final straight to finish one-and-a-half lengths clear.
'It was a very tough race. This may have been the toughest race of my life. I had several problems, the reins were wet and slippery and the horse was sweating a lot,' said Matysik.
Czenka, a 9-1 shot ridden by Dusan Andres, finished third out of the 10 finishers in the 15-horse field.
The only foreign horse, 8-1 chance Celtic Giant, threw off jockey Bruce Gibson early in the race.
No horses fell at the Taxis ditch which had claimed the lives of 23 horses before being altered in 1993 after protests by animal rights activists.
