More than ever, the Cup runneth over

Lord Mayor of Melbourne Robert Doyle rides with racing's holy grail, the Cup. Picture: Tony Gough Source: Tony Gough / News Limited

ACCORDING to the Lord Mayor, Robert Doyle, 700 million people in 120 countries will watch the Melbourne Cup today.

That's what he told a few hundred from just this country who gathered in Federation Square yesterday to listen to prominent trainers, jockeys and owners tip their horses and, almost without exception, wax lyrical about what a fantastic event the Flemington racing carnival is.

"I would rather be here than anywhere else. It is the greatest carnival of our racing year. We are very privileged," said the Qatari Sheik Fahad Al Thani, who delayed a planned trip to the Hunter Valley to check out some horses so he could participate in the parade through the city.

Of course, it helps that the sheik has already experienced the thrill of winning the Cup with Dunaden two years ago, and will send the same horse out again today, while he is said to have celebrated even more flamboyantly when Side Glance won the million-dollar Mackinnon Stakes on Saturday.

Kids dressed up as jockeys take part in the Melbourne Cup parade down Swanston St, Melbourne. Picture: Mark Evans Source: News Limited

He is a convert, and so is almost every other member of the ever-growing invading army who have changed the dynamics of the event for ever.

Retired soccer superstar Michael Owen is here for the first time and loving it - he didn't anticipate riding through crowded city streets in a convoy of open cars because he never dreamt that would happen just for a horse race - and English-based Italian trainer Luca Cumani is an incurable addict.

He's been trying for eight years to win the race and when Mount Athos blew his best chance last year, he was so frustrated he vowed never to return.

But here they are again, same man and same horse, with Cumani telling the crowd yesterday the race is getting stronger and stronger and therefore more difficult to win. "It's a massive, massive race now," he said.

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Cumani appears to be on the money there.

There is a strong school of opinion that this is the 153-year-old race's classiest edition.

Cr Doyle said that too so, like his audience figures, it must be correct. Owen said it's what he had been told.

The stats back it up.

It will be contested by a record nine northern hemisphere horses, five of the first eight finishers from last year, including the first two, 13 Group 1 winners, two former Cup winners, nine victorious jockeys and five winning trainers.

The competition is so fierce that 12-time winner Bart Cummings hasn't been able to get a horse in the field - and Glen Boss doesn't have one to ride.

Trainer Gai Waterhouse and jockey Craig Williams, two of the very best at racing's two key jobs, are trying to win it for the first time after umpteen attempts, just two of a host of potentially great storylines waiting to play out.

Damien Oliver, who will be riding Fiorente, takes part in the parade. Source: News Limited

Luck will play a part - famously superstitious trainer Mark Kavanagh groaned when he was reminded Super Cool will carry No.13 saddlecloth and start from barrier 13 - and so will experience, with jockey Jimmy Cassidy, 50, having first won the race 30 years ago and Damien Oliver 18 years ago.

Apprentice Chad Schofield, who will have his first Cup ride on English stayer Ruscello, is 19 and was in nappies when Oliver prevailed on Doriemus in 1995.

It is so hard to pick the winner that one corporate bookie has reported an unprecedented surge in each-way betting.

One of the few certainties is that more than 100,000 people will flock to Flemington, as has been the case for all but two of the past 15 years.

Less than six weeks ago the footy Grand Final also pulled six figures, and, according to a bulletin from Cricket Australia last week, the world record cricket crowd of 90,800 is likely to fall at the MCG in another seven weeks.

Three monstrous crowds for three different sports in three months - no other city in the world could challenge that.

Melbourne is lucky to have these permanent blockbusters along with the Open tennis, the Grand Prix and any number of other major events that come along in any given year.

But when the roses bloom at Flemington on the first Tuesday in November, the others are racing for second place. Today will be no exception.

RON.REED@NEWS.COM.AU

TWITTER: @REEDRW

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