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King’s Plate winner Caitlinhergrtness won’t run in Prince of Wales race

Published

2 months ago

August 29, 2024

TORONTO – King’s Plate winner Caitlinhergrtness has earned a well-deserved break.

The heralded filly, named after WNBA rookie Caitlin Clark, wasn’t among the horses nominated for the $400,000 Prince of Wales. The second leg of the OLG Triple Crown will be held Sept. 10 at Fort Erie Racetrack.

Trainer Kevin Attard said Caitlinhergrtness has come out of the $1-million Plate well. However, that race was her third in seven weeks and the plan now is for her next start to be sometime in October.

“She’s in good order, she came out of the race great and is back in training,” Attard said Thursday. “She’s had a bit of a cramped-up schedule and obviously they’re not machines.

“You’re looking after the longevity of their careers and we’re trying to do what we think is best to have her continue to be successful and have a long career. She’s done everything we’ve asked . . . you always have to do right by the horse.”

Caitlinhergrtness’s final Plate tune-up was a second-place finish to Kin’s Concerto in the $500,000 Woodbine Oaks on July 20. That came just two weeks after a victory also at Woodbine and part of the decision to supplement the filly for the Plate instead of running in the $250,000 Bison City Stakes — the second event of the Canadian Triple Tiara on Aug. 10 — was to give her additional rest.

That was further extended by six days when the Plate was rescheduled to last Friday for safety reasons following heavy rain Aug. 17, the original race date.

That means Wando will remain the last Triple Crown winner, achieving the historic sweep in 2003.

Attard should still be well represented at the Prince of Wales as he chases a fourth win in the 1 3/16-mile dirt event. Four of his horses — Pierre, Jokestar, Bedard and Airosa — were among those nominated for the race.

Pierre was fourth in the Plate, just ahead of Jokestar. Bedard was slated to run but was a late scratch.

“When the Plate was postponed, we decided to focus on the Prince of Wales,” Attard said of Bedard. “We figured with the quick turnaround, maybe it would work better for a horse like him.”

The Attard-trained Velocitor won last year’s Prince of Wales for owners Al and Bill Ulwelling.

Also nominated were Essex Serpent and Midnight Mascot, both trained by Mark Casse. A Prince of Wales win would be Casse’s fifth and leave him second only to Gordan McCann (seven).

Midnight Mascot finished third in the Plate while Essex Serpent was 11th in the 12-horse field. Casse’s other Plate horse, second-place finisher My Boy Prince, also wasn’t nominated for the Prince of Wales.

Also nominated were No More Options (trained by Zeljko Krcmar), Passioned (trainer Justin Nixon), Vitality (trainer Harold Ladouceur) and Wyoming Bill (trainer Catherine Day Phillips).

The Prince of Wales position positions will be drawn Sept. 5. The final Triple Crown event will be the $400,000 Breeders’ Stakes, slated for Sept. 29 at Woodbine Racetrack.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 29, 2024.

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University of Waterloo stabber should face lengthy sentence: Crown

Published

43 mins ago

October 23, 2024

Anne Joseph

KITCHENER, Ont. – Prosecutors are arguing a man who stabbed a professor and two students in a University of Waterloo gender studies class last year should face a lengthy sentence because of the attack’s lasting impact on campus safety and security.

Federal prosecutor Althea Francis says a sentence in the upper range is appropriate not only because Geovanny Villalba-Aleman wanted to send a message about his views but also because he sought to make those with different beliefs feel unsafe.

The Crown has said it is seeking a sentence of 16 years for Villalba-Aleman, who pleaded guilty to four charges in the June 2023 campus attack.

The sentencing hearing for Villalba-Aleman began Monday and is expected to continue all week.

Federal prosecutors argued Tuesday that Villalba-Aleman’s statement to police, and a manifesto that was found on his phone, show his actions were motivated by ideology and meant to intimidate a segment of the population.

Villalba-Aleman pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated assault, one count of assault with a weapon and one count of assault causing bodily harm.

A video of his statement to police was shown in court earlier in the sentencing hearing.

In the video, Villalba-Aleman told police he felt colleges and universities were imposing ideology and restricting academic freedom, and he wanted the attack to serve as a “wake-up call.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2024.

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Nova Scotia premier announces one point cut to HST, to 14 per cent, starting April 1

Published

54 mins ago

October 23, 2024

Anne Joseph

HALIFAX – Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston has announced a one percentage point cut to the harmonized sales tax starting April 1.

Houston made the announcement today as speculation mounts about a snap election call in the coming days.

The premier says the cut to the provincial portion of the tax would reduce it from 15 per cent to 14 per cent.

Houston says his government is making the move because people need more help with the cost of living.

A one percentage point reduction to the HST is expected to cost about $260.8 million next fiscal year.

The department says the HST brings in $2.7 billion or 17.1 per cent of provincial revenues, second only to personal income taxes.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2024.

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A look at what people are saying about the Bank of Canada’s rate decision

Published

2 hours ago

October 23, 2024

Anne Joseph

OTTAWA – The Bank of Canada cut its key policy interest rate by 50 basis points on Wednesday to bring it to 3.75 per cent. Here’s what people are saying about the decision:

“High inflation and interest rates have been a heavy burden for Canadians. With inflation now back to target and interest rates continuing to come down, families, businesses and communities should feel some relief.” — Tiff Macklem, Bank of Canada governor.

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“Activity in Canada’s housing market has been sluggish in many regions due to higher borrowing costs, but today’s more aggressive cut to lending rates could cause the tide to turn quickly. For those with variable rate mortgages – who will benefit from the rate drop immediately – or those with fast-approaching loan renewals, today’s announcement is welcome news indeed.” — Phil Soper, president and CEO of Royal LePage.

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“This won’t be the end of rate cuts. Even with the succession of policy cuts since June, rates are still way too high given the state of the economy. To bring rates into better balance, we have another 150 bps in cuts pencilled in through 2025. So while the pace of cuts going forward is now highly uncertain, the direction for rates is firmly downwards.” — James Orlando, director and senior economist at TD Bank.

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“The size of the December rate cut will depend on upcoming job and inflation data, but a 25 basis point cut remains our baseline.” — Tu Nguyen, economist with assurance, tax and consultancy firm RSM Canada.

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“Today’s outsized rate cut is mostly a response to the heavy-duty decline in headline inflation in the past few months. However, the underlying forecast and the Bank’s mild tone suggest that the future default moves will be 25 bp steps, unless growth and/or inflation surprise again to the downside.” — Douglas Porter, chief economist at Bank of Montreal.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 23, 2024.

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