Keane has maximum faith in Kalpana’s bid for Champions Day hat-trick
By Racing TV
Last Updated: Tue 13 Oct 2026
Colin Keane is keeping his fingers crossed history can repeat itself when Kalpana goes in search of a third successive victory in the Qatar Racing British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes at Ascot on Saturday.
The five-year-old has struck Group One gold on British Champions Day in each of the past two seasons and will return to the Berkshire circuit on the back of her best ever campaign, having added to her top-level tally with victories in the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes and the Yorkshire Oaks.
Andrew Balding’s mare had to settle for fifth in the Arc, but that was two places better than she managed before winning at Ascot last season and Keane is hopeful she can show her true colours just 13 days later, as she bids to become the first horse to win at the showpiece meeting – inaugurated in 2011 – three times.
“I’m looking forward to getting back on her, hopefully she can get the hat-trick up,” he told the Press Association on Tuesday.
“I don’t think you saw the best of her (in the Arc), looking at what she has done through the season. Whether it’s just France or what it is, I don’t think she turned up like she can do unfortunately, but hopefully she can do what she did last year and bounce back on Saturday.
“It’s the same turnaround and you know she’s done it before, so you’re hoping she can do it again. Andrew and the team seem very happy with her by all accounts, so it’s all systems go.”
Adding further importance to Kalpana’s hat-trick bid is the fact Balding currently leads Aidan O’Brien in his bid to be crowned Britain’s champion trainer for the first time.
Kalpana and Colin Keane on their way to winning the Qipco British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes at Ascot (Steven Paston/PA)
Having also won four Group Ones on Kalpana’s stablemate Blue Bolt and the Juddmonte International aboard another Balding star in Item, Keane would love to see the Kingsclere handler claim the title.
He added: “It would be a massive achievement for him and we’ll be doing our best to hopefully get him across the line.”
Whatever happens this weekend it has been a memorable campaign for Juddmonte’s number one rider, with Blue Bolt’s Falmouth Stakes win in early July the first of eight Group One triumphs in the space of three months, five of those achieved on British soil.
Blue Bolt has been one of the many stars for Colin Keane this season (Evan Treacy/PA)
“It’s been a brilliant year. We’re lucky that we have a lovely bunch of three-year-old plus horses this year, the two-year-olds have been a bit slow to come to hand, but you saw Francis-Henri Graffard’s filly in France last week (Amusingly), she was very good,” said Keane.
“I didn’t have a Group One winner until July, but when that came they all came at once, thankfully. They are the type of races you want to be winning and we’re lucky enough to have nice horses to be running in them and winning them.”
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