Canberra Racing hopes its new $400,000 speed series will ensure a massive 50th anniversary edition of the Black Opal Stakes.
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They've created a three-race series, which comes with a $100,000 bonus, culminating with Thoroughbred Park's biggest race of the year.
That includes the introduction of a new race, The Clan O'Sullivan, which will also double as a lead-up race for the $2 million Magic Millions Two-year-old Classic.
The Clan O'Suillivan (1000 metres) will be run on December 30 - 15 days before the Magic Millions (1200m).
Then the Black Opal preview (1000m) and the Black Opal (1200m) itself round out the Canberra Speed Series for two-year-olds.
If the same horse wins all three races it will win the $100,000 bonus.
The first and second-placed horses in the Clan O'Sullivan and the preview automatically qualify for the Black Opal.
Canberra Racing chief executive Darren Pearce planned for the series to become a permanent part of the racing calendar, following a successful start this summer.
He also hoped the timing of the Clan O'Sullivan would give Victorian two-year-olds a stopover race on their way to the Magic Millions in Queensland in January.
"It's about building momentum to the 50th running of the Black Opal," Pearce said.
"There's a bit of a gap in programming for two-year-olds and we were hoping it would be considered by trainers, particularly from down south, going up to Magic Millions and looking for an opportunity to race their horses ... and it potentially could be a way to break their journey up going north.
"We'll give it a crack and it should add a lot of excitement to the program on [December] 30th.
"It's a really important Black Opal for us and we're working on some really exciting initiatives around that.
"We want to keep building those three races so when it comes Black Opal Day we get a crackerjack field and it's a fitting tribute in its 50th anniversary year."
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The Clan O'Sullivan is named after one of Queanbeyan's most iconic horses.
Trained by the legendary Frank Cleary, he won the Magic Millions, the Black Opal and its preview before finishing second in the Golden Slipper.
Cleary also trained Catbird, still the only horse to win the Black Opal-Golden Slipper double.
He wished Clan O'Sullivan's owner Ken Jones was still alive to see the honour.
"It's great recognition of a great horse. Horses like him shouldn't be forgotten," Cleary said.
"He was the first local winner of the preview and Black Opal double and that came with plenty of pressure, I'll tell you.
"Half of Canberra were ringing me up telling me, 'I've got to win'.
"It's a shame his owner Ken Jones isn't alive to see this, he would have absolutely loved this race.
"Ken did a lot for Canberra. When Clan O'Sullivan was entered in the Slipper he shouted a heap of buses from Canberra to Sydney and he might have even stocked them full of grog for everyone."
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