Gers Gigi triumphed at Sligo

Gers Gigi delivered a strong finish to secure victory in the opening mares' maiden hurdle at Sligo this afternoon, after a near miss on her hurdling debut last month.

Trained by Gordon Elliott, the mare had been narrowly beaten at Wexford, where she initially won in the stewards' room after a slight bump, only to lose the race on appeal.

Today, as the 1/3 favourite, Gers Gigi was ridden by Jack Kennedy in a two-mile-one contest. She moved up seamlessly to take the lead approaching the second-last hurdle, and was pushed for effort after that.

The Flemensfirth mare pulled away from Love Like This in the final stages to win by four and a quarter lengths.

Kennedy commented: "She was much more professional today. I took the lead early, but we hadn’t gone too fast, and she stayed well, so I wanted to push on. She did idle a bit at Wexford, but today she galloped to the line. Her jumping was better, although she was still a bit slow over the last two hurdles. There's room for improvement, and she can handle a step-up in trip."