YORK, England (AP) — A surprise result in one of Britain’s most prestigious horse races Wednesday saw the world’s top-ranked thoroughbred Ombudsman finish fourth behind 10-1 winner Item.
Item is a son of unbeaten great Frankel, who also won the Juddmonte International at York in the 2012 edition.
Item won a first prize of 850,000 pounds ($1.16 million) for his owner, and also the race sponsor, the Juddmonte racing operation of the late Saudi prince, Khalid bin Abdullah Al Saud.
The 3-year-old colt finally found space in a congested eight-horse race to lead only in the final yards (meters) of the 1 5/16-mile contest. Ridden by Colin Keane and trained by Andrew Balding, Item had a winning margin of a head over Almaqam priced at 14-1.
Constitution River, the French Derby winner trained by Aidan O’Brien in Ireland for the powerhouse Coolmore team, was third at 7-4. Ombudsman faded into fourth as the odds-on 5-6 favorite having struggled to get a clear run on the rail.
Ombudsman, owned by the Godolphin operation from Dubai, won the Juddmonte last year and had never finished out of the first two in 12 previous races.
The 5-year-old Ombudsman started the race joint top in the global rankings with Hong Kong-based sprinter Ka Ying Rising. Tied in 20th place were Item and Almaqam.
The improving Item has won five of his six races with his only career blemish a ninth place in the Epsom Derby in June run in filthy weather. He was won three straight at York without ever starting favorite in the betting.
In the previous York race Wednesday, Derby winner Christmas Day was beaten into third place in the Great Voltigeur Stakes by Maltese Cross, who had been runner-up in the strong wind and rain at Epsom.
Maltese Cross earned 141,775 pounds ($193,000) for his owner, the British movie executive George Waud who was a producer of “Snakes on a Plane.”
Item and Maltese Cross could both now be aimed at Europe’s richest race, the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, at Longchamp in Paris on Oct. 4.
AP horse racing: https://apnews.com/hub/horse-racing
Item, ridden by Colin Keane, competes in the Juddmonte International Stakes during day one of the Sky Bet Ebor Festival at York Racecourse, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026, in York, England. (Richard Sellers/PA via AP)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Brayden Schenn had a goal and two assists, Victor Eklund scored for the fourth straight game, and the New York Islanders snapped a four-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night.
Matthew Schaefer scored in his 100th NHL game, Simon Holmstrom had a goal and an assist, Bo Horvat scored a late empty-netter, and the Islanders picked up at least a point for the third straight game. Ilya Sorokin made 26 saves.
Trevor Moore and Quinton Byfield scored, and Kevin Fiala had an assist in his season debut as the Kings lost their third straight game. Playing in his 500th career game, Darcy Kuemper made 16 saves.
Schaefer and Eklund, two of the Islanders’ young cornerstones, came up with key contributions while each picking up a point for the fourth straight game.
Schaefer had a power-play goal to put New York back up 2-1 midway through the first period, his 29th career goal and 77th point at the century mark of games played. Schaefer moved up to fourth in career points by a teenage defenseman, behind Hall of Famers Phil Housley (132) and Ray Bourque (79) and Buffalo Sabres star Rasmus Dahlin (84).
Eklund made it 3-1 early in the second period, becoming the third New York rookie to score in four straight games in the past 20 years and 11th overall.
Fiala played for the first time since breaking his left leg at the Milan Cortina Olympics in February, but the offensive-minded winger’s presence could not enough to get the Kings back on track. Fiala did have the secondary assist on Byfield’s power-play goal, which marked the 300th helper of his career.
Islanders: At Anaheim on Saturday.
Kings: Host Calgary on Saturday.
See AP’s full NHL coverage here
New York Islanders center Brayden Schenn (10) scores past Los Angeles Kings goaltender Darcy Kuemper (35) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
Los Angeles Kings left wing Trevor Moore (12) checks New York Islanders defenseman Ben Hutton (71) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
Los Angeles Kings right wing Quinton Byfield (55) celebrates his goal with the bench during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the New York Islanders, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
New York Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin (30) blocks a shot by Los Angeles Kings right wing Alex Laferriere (14) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
New York Islanders center Brayden Schenn (10) celebrates his goal with right wing Mitchell Chaffee (26), left wing Matias MacCelli (63), and defenseman Adam Pelech (3) during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Los Angeles Kings, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong)
