On Track - Autumn 2021

6 She’s the Queen of WA racing and she could be crowned the Queen of the Australian turf, should she win the $5 million All-Star Mile at The Valley. Arcadia Queen, the superstar mare from Perth, will be one of the leading contenders in the world’s richest mile race on Saturday March 13. The three-time Group 1 winner’s popularity has matched her deeds on the track after she was the top vote-getter in All-Star Mile voting. She was guaranteed a start in the rich race when she polled 15,105 of a record 147,380 votes. “It’s nice that a horse from WA can be thought of that well,” Arcadia Queen’s owner Bob Peters said. “I was told at one stage she had three times the total votes from the whole of WA. “That shows she didn’t just get votes from here.” Arcadia Queen’s top 10 finish in voting also helped Living Legends, the international home of retired champion racehorses, secure a $10,000 donation from Peters. “We are excited to get behind Arcadia Queen in the big race and grateful to Bob Peters for his generous donation,” Living Legends CEO Dr Andrew Clarke said. “As a charitable organisation, every dollar we receive makes such a difference.” Peters and his wife Sandra have been in racing for more than 40 years and are regarded as some of the best breeders in Australia. Another product of their successful breeding operation, Arcadia Queen is a daughter of champion sire Pierro and top-producing broodmare Arcadia. The family is littered with stakes winners and includes Group 1 winner and reigning All-Star Mile winner Regal Power, who is a brother in blood to Arcadia Queen. “Her grand-dam Antique ran third in the VRC Oaks but did a tendon,” Bob Peters said. “She was the first mare I put to Redoute’s Choice and Arcadia was her first foal.” Peters knew he had something special on his hands when Arcadia Queen won a Belmont Park maiden on debut in 2018. A NEW QUEEN OF THE VALLEY LOOKS TO MAKE HER MARK By Jay Rooney