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Surveying American Scene Value of Belmont International Chase Will Become Evident in Years Ahead BELMONT PARK Elmont L I N Y May 7 The International Steeplechase Steeplechaseat at Belmont Park tomorrow is the demonstration of a new trend which is inevitably inevitablyspreading spreading throughout the turf world Isolation is a negative attitude and in these thesedays days of flying and particularly of flying horses international com ¬ petition is the last word in racing The testing of a nations breed of horses with foreign horses is not only an urge but a necessity That was made evident in the re ¬ cent post war years in England Had it not been for the French in ¬ vaders who took classic after classic and swept the board in every type of race the English breeder would have remained convinced of the superiority of the native thoroughbreds and would have continued to mate and raise them When defeat after defeat was suffered the English breeders devised the means to rectify the mistakes that were being made Now English racing is back to its high standards standardsA A A A ASince Since flying horses across the ocean with the idea of racing them shortly after landing is a reasonable proposition it is only logical that U S horsemen should wish to be guided as to the quality of the horses produced here Is the U S foaled race horse superior equal or inferior to the European or the South American thoroughbred Because of the disparity in the standards of racing between one conti ¬ nent and another this question will not easily be solved However the Washington D C International at Laurel at the con ¬ venience of the foreign horses represents a most forceful way of trying to answer that question The value of such an event and its influence on breeding and racing in the U S will increase year by year yearA A A A AThe The International Steeplechase can hardly be expected to influence American breeding but it will permit comparison of the American jumper with the chasers in the other leading breeding nations Is the Americanbred and trained jumper first class and tops It not then the Interna ¬ tional will illustrate the weaknesses in the sport sportA A A A AFlying Flying over foreign invaders for a flat test on the turf is not to be compared with the flying over of junipers to compete in a chase even if the contest is also decided on the turf On the flat and with a walkup start the European horses have to face no major change in the way of racing only the change in surroundings feed and climate In the case of the International Chase which is our present interest everything is strange and different to the foreign horses How will they adapt themselves to the jumps at Belmont and mainly how will they take them compared to the manner and speed at which the American chaser is k accustomed to perform performA A A A AEven Even when the course and the jumps hardly differ from another course anybody studying form is obliged to allow up to 10 or 12 pounds to compensate for the inex ¬ perience of a good jumper switching from a familiar course to a new one Particularly when the horses are coming from Irish English or French jumping courses which have entirely different types of fences And the horses have an entirely different man ¬ ner of sailing over them Invaders have had I the chance to school over the course prior to the contest but can they be able to adapt themselves in so short a time A A A AA A horse accustomed to jumping big and over cannot be expected to switch to brush ¬ ing through fast in less than a week after landing This we feel will put the Irish and the English competitors at a great disad ¬ vantage when they are tried at Belmont in public for the first time The French jumper we feel would have found it easier to take to the style of jumping here as the French style including the jockey is much nearer to the American method of brush ¬ ing through 4 A A AUnfortunately Unfortunately the French owners did not respond to the call for this event and there are no French horses in the first running of the International Chase This should not be accepted as a definite attitude on the part of the French owners It was not too long ago when the Washington D C Inter i national was inaugurated at Laurel Park a couple of years ago After a few dramatic incidents there was no French competitor at the start Last fall for the second run ¬ ning there were two horses in the lineup and not only that they were the two best that France had in training at the time They were the winner Worden EC and the fourth horse Silnet SilnetA A A A AThe The announcement of the Belmont Inter ¬ national Chase came rather a surprise to French horsemen owners and trainers They had very littletime to decide on par ¬ ticipation in the event Also the jumping season was just starting when the entries were closed in France and no owner knew then how his horses would perform in the weeks before the International If French owners are given more time to decide cqn cerning participation next season we are sure that French colors will be seen
