Waller happy ahead of Omei Sword’s return

Tom Baddock - Thursday August 17

Chris Waller's Group I-placed performer Omei Sword will return to racing in the Suttons Show County Quality (1200m), five months since a bleeding attack sidelined the star mare.

Omei Sword will make her race return in Saturday's Group III Show County Quality (1200m). Photo: Steve Hart

The daughter of High Chaparral has displayed enormous talent in her seven starts to date, highlighted by her second placing in the Group I Golden Rose, splitting Godolphin's pair of Astern and subsequent Group I Stradbroke Handicap winner Impending.

Chris Waller believes he has left no stone unturned in preparation for the four-year-old's return to racing on Saturday after a mandatory spell when finishing seventh in last year's Group I Coolmore Classic (1500m).

" You just have to give them a spell after a bleed," Waller said. "Get them back to nature and give them time.

"It affects their lungs so you just have to give them time to recover and then just a gradual build up back and that's what we've done.

"She's trialled really well. Again, you don't ask them to do too much but I've been really happy with the way she's trialled and come through them."

Waller indicated there is no medication that can be used in Australia to help aid the healing process but a change in training is necessary to give the horse its best chance of a full recovery and less chance of a recurrence, the consequences of which would see the horse banned from racing in Australia.

"There's not much you can do and you've simply got to train them a little softer and make sure they are fit when the race to make sure you are not putting too much pressure on them," Waller said.

"With pressure, whether it be racing a horse that's not one hundred percent fit, or being caught three or four wide covering extra ground, unsuitable tracks – little things like that might be able to help.

"Most important is that we put them in the right race and prepare them well and I think we have done that in this case."

Omei Sword has been well-supported to make a winning return to the track firming from as much as $3.60 into a high of $2.30.

Meanwhile, stablemate Calculated is set to contest the Group III Up And Coming Stakes (1300m) after tasting defeat last start behind Coolmore's Siege Of Quebec.

"It's a bit tricky with these handicap three-year-old races because it makes it harder for the better performed horses to win," Waller said.

"It often suits an up and coming horse, so hopefully he's that horse because he's well-weighted and he's drawn well.

"It's probably a little bit short but it's a nice race for him. I've no idea what his ideal distance will be yet, I think he needs to switch off a bit better. Once he does that, he'll get out a bit further.

"Again the beauty of the spring is they can jump out of the ground but they don't all jump out of the ground.

"He looks a really good chance, the form around him looks really good which is encouraging."

Siege Of Quebec has subsequently finished runner-up in the Listed Rosebud (1100m) behind Gerald Ryan's promising colt Menari but Waller believes we will see an improved horse on Saturday.

"I thought Calculated was a bit soft behind Siege Of Quebec but still learning," Waller said. "Soft condition wise, I think he looked a bit big and he's tightened up since then.

"We took him back to the trials just to bridge the gap between runs."

Calculated will be ridden by Kerrin McEvoy with 53.5kg and is currently the $4 favourite with Bet365.

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