Lady Of Camelot emerges as 2024 Golden Slipper threat

Lady Of Camelot has emerged as the top-seeded filly for Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott after adding to their bulging Golden Slipper arsenal with a scintillating Widden Stakes victory.

Her win gave the stable a clean sweep of the two-year-old features at Rosehill on Saturday after Prost snared the Canonbury Stakes (1100m) for the colts and geldings in class record time.

But not to be outdone, Lady Of Camelot covered the journey even more quickly, stopping the clock at 1:02.53 seconds, more than 0.75 seconds faster than her stablemate and just 0.02 seconds outside the track record set by Westicaro in 2007.

Winning jockey Tim Clark said the youngster, who finished fourth as favourite in the Gimcrack Stakes at her only prior start, was a “precocious filly” whose biggest asset was her speed.

“She got a little bit lost up the straight still, so I think there’s still a little more to give, but she couldn’t have been any more impressive,” Clark said.

“She wouldn’t break ice she’s so light on her feet. She’s got such a good cruising speed, that’s what we wanted to use. The good thing about her though is she rests within herself when she’s there.”

Lady Of Camelot is out of Miss Debutante, whose three foals to race are all two-year-old black-type winners.

The former’s half-sister Queen Of The Ball claimed the 2022 Widden Stakes (1100m) while Platinum Jubilee won the Gimcrack Stakes last season.

Bott said Lady Of Camelot had put herself at the top of the tree in terms of their two-year-old fillies and could have just one more run leading into the Golden Slipper with the Blue Diamond Stakes among the race options.

“Interesting that they ran time. The colts ran a fast race and she has made the running and still done it, so it’s a good effort,” Bott said.

“She will do a little bit better over further going forward.

“She might race one more time, I’m not sure. There’s not a huge amount of her.”

Godolphin’s Celerity was a late scratching after dislodging jockey James Mcdonald behind the start then playing up in the barriers.

It proved a double whammy for the champion hoop, who hurt his left foot when he was tossed off before bravely remounting, only to have Celerity jam the same ankle in the starting stalls.

McDonald hobbled back to the jockeys’ room where he was assessed by the Racing NSW doctor before being stood down from the remainder of his Rosehill rides.