Colin Hamilton/Freelance Photographer
IT IS I, with Shane Ellis aboard, romps to victory in yesterday's Richard Ashenheim Cup over 1500 metres at Caymanas Park.

Orville Clarke, Freelance Writer

TRIBUTES CONTINUED to pour in for the late Richard Ashenheim who served the horse racing industry in many capacities for over 40 years.

Ashenheim, a 'Hall of Fame' inductee in the racing personality category in 1985, died on Friday in Bermuda where he had been residing for the past two years. He was 80.

Coincidentally, one of the four trophy races on the nine-race programme was run in his honour. Run annually over 1500 metres and confined to native-bred maiden two-year-olds, the Richard Ashenheim Cup was won in fine style by the 4-5 chance IT IS I, ridden by former champion Shane Ellis for Barbadian owner Elias Haloute and trainer Anthony 'Baba' Nunes.

IT IS I disputed the lead with the marginal 4-5 favourite MY THUNDER from soon after the start before gaining the ascendancy approaching the home turn. She lengthened her strides on entering the straight to win by all of 9 1/2 lengths.

Knowledgeable person

Among those paying tribute to Ashenheim were the newly-appointed chairman of Caymanas Track Limited (CTL), Pat Rousseau; Jockey Club president Hugh Levy; Jamaica Racehorse Trainers' Association president Vin Edwards, and Louis Phillips, vice-president of the Jamaica Racehorse Owners' Association.

Rousseau, a former president of the West Indies Cricket Board, said: "Richard was a prominent person in racing for many years. He was the legal advisor to the Jamaica Racing Commission for years and was probably the most knowledgeable person on the rules of racing, having consolidated them in the '70s in addition to subsequent amendments.

"He had a keen sense of handicapping the horses and hardly ever missed a raceday. He was also involved in the design of Caymanas Park during the late '50s and was mainly responsible for what was then the unique nine-furlong course we have all become accustomed to. On behalf of CTL, I extend condolences to his family," Rousseau said.

Lost a great contributor

Edwards also extended condolences to the Ashenheim family on behalf of the Trainers' Association. "We sat on the Hall of Fame committee for many years and met on opposite sides of the JRC tribunal into positive findings. He used to marshall the evidence on behalf of the commission and I defended racing personnel. I found him to be a man of integrity. He paid me the highest compliment by suggesting that if I had gone to law school, I would have been a brilliant advocate."

Levy said: "Racing has lost a great contributor in Richard. He had such a vast and in-depth knowledge of the game and was a true sportsman. I knew him from when we were boys while he was attending Jamaica College and I was at Wolmer's ... racing and sports in general has lost an icon."

Former racing commissioner Phillips said: "It is not largely known that all the laws of racing since the inception of the Jamaica Racing Commission in 1972 were drafted by him. Given his wealth of information not only about racing but track and field as well, he was always a pleasure to talk to".

Meanwhile, DR. SOCRATES (7-2) overcame a slow start to win the William Read Memorial Cup feature over 1300 in a driving finish, while THANKSWITH-ASMILE (2-1) won the Titania Trophy race over 1100 metres.

Both were ridden by former champion, Trevor Simpson.