MELBOURNE Cup-winning trainer Mick Robins to join the trophy’s tour of Ararat next month.
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The Victoria Racing Club announced on Tuesday that two-time cup winning trainer Mick Robins will visit Ararat in October for the 2017 Emirates Melbourne Cup Tour.
As ambassador for the 15th annual tour of Australasia, Mr Robins will partake in a series of community events.
A former coal miner from Broken Hill, Robins was a young trainer when he experienced his first Melbourne Cup win in 1968 with Rain Lover, having held his trainers licence for only three months.
The following year, Rain Lover won yet again, making him the first horse since the famous Archer to achieve back-to-back Melbourne Cup victories.
Today, Robins remains active within the racing industry and is currently a stable foreman and mentor to Melbourne-based trainer Tony Noonan.
Victoria Racing Club chair Amanda Elliott said she is thrilled to have Robins join this year’s milestone 15th Emirates Melbourne Cup Tour giving communities across Australia and New Zealand the opportunity to meet a racing legend.
“The Emirates Melbourne Cup is ‘the race that stops a nation’ and for 14 years the iconic trophy has toured our nation, bringing together communities to experience the magic and rich history of the Melbourne Cup,” she said.
“In this its milestone 15th year, what better way to celebrate this iconic piece of Australia’s cultural
heritage than to have heroes of the Melbourne Cup like Mick on the Tour in Ararat.”
The 2017 Emirates Melbourne Cup trophy will visit Ararat on Monday October 9.
Ararat, selected for its passion for racing and community spirit, was announced as an Emirates Melbourne Cup Tour destination at a special event in May at 2017 Emirates Melbourne Cup winning owner Lloyd Williams’ training facilities at Mount Macedon.
The $200,000 Emirates Melbourne Cup will visit 31 destinations across Australia and New Zealand before returning to Flemington for the race that stops a nation on the first Tuesday in November.
Since its inaugural year, the Tour has travelled more than 494,000 kilometers and visited more than 377 regional, rural and metropolitan destinations, providing communities with an opportunity to experience the magic of the Emirates Melbourne Cup firsthand.
Community members are encouraged to upload photos with the Cup to Facebook, using the hashtags #PeoplesCup and #EmiratesMelbourneCup, for the chance to win a trip for two to Flemington for the running of the 2017 Emirates Melbourne Cup.