Moments in harness racing don’t always work out, but on Friday afternoon at Maryborough the stars aligned for a truly magical moment.
It would be only fitting that the Alastair MacLean-bred Whos The Man would win the VSTA Vale Alastair MacLean Trotters Handicap for son-in-law trainer-driver Chris Svanosio.
The renowned veterinarian passed away aged 78 and was one of the most well-known and respected veterinary surgeons in Australia.
Svanosio and wife Elizabeth (Alastair’s daughter) were on hand to share in the special occasion.
“It was fantastic for our family, Alastair bred the horse with Elizabeth and had the horse all the time and he hadn’t won for two-years,” Chris Svanosio said.
“Elizabeth and our little girl and Susan – Alastair’s wife, were there and it meant a lot to all of us .
“He picked a very good race to get back in the winners list.”
The Romsey horseman has fond memories of the late harness racing identity.
“He (Alastair MacLean) was just a terrific person and he was just fantastic to me and I always knew of him my whole life and he was always the bloke when I was a kid – who saved Popular Alm,” he said.
“When I was growing up in Bendigo if you had a good horse and something went wrong with it you just took it straight to Werribee to Alastair – he was the best vet there was.
“He looked after horses for Colin Hayes and Bart Cummings and some of the greatest trainers we have had in Australia.
“He became such a big part of my life.”
During the race the 42-year-old was hoping for a bit of magic to get over the line.
“In the back of my mind I was hoping I could have a bit of luck in the last lap and get into it at the right time.”
The six-year-old gelding spent a lot of time in the care of Mr.MacLean.
“He won a lot of races as a two-three and four-year-old and then he got badly injured, he nearly would have been put down if he didn’t have Alastair,” he said.
“Alastair looked after him for several months and that’s why he didn’t race for a year or more.
“It meant a lot to Elizabeth and her family to win a race with him and to win a race named after her dad – it was extra special.”
