On Saturday 28 March there is a stable open day at Klampenborg. And the day after there is a stable open day at Jydsk Væddeløbsbane. In between, Danish racing fanatics will be glued to the screen when the Bent Olsen-trained Great Wish (Night Of Thunder) lines up at Meydan in the Group 1 Al Quoz Sprint with a good 5.6 million kroner to the winner.
Klampenborg opens its doors for the first time this year on 11 April. And as early as 25 April the year’s first Listed Race is on the programme: the Danish Jockey Club Cup, which has attracted entries from a number of Scandinavian top horses.
Jydsk Væddeløbsbane opens its season on Sunday 18 April.
LEA OLSEN HAS THE MOST HORSES IN TRAINING.
At the start of the season Lea Olsen is Denmark’s biggest racehorse trainer, overtaking her father Bent Olsen, who has held that title for a number of years.
Lea Olsen has her stable at Jydsk Væddeløbsbane and 41 horses in training, but as is well known the board of Jydsk Væddeløbsbane has decided to terminate Lea Olsen’s lease in Aarhus.
Lea has a number of very interesting horses in her stable, among them the three classic candidates:
- Albarella (Toronado), who won the Svenskt Kriterium.
- Beethoven (Goken), who won the Vinterfavoriternes Ærespræmie at Klampenborg, and
- Red Mantel (Red Cactus), who won Jockeyklubbens Avelslöpning at Jägersro.
THE MOST FEMALE TRAINERS.
The statistics show the number of horses in training at the start of the year according to Dansk Hestevæddeløb’s figures.
The earnings are from Danish tracks alone. All the trainers mentioned have also had earnings at racecourses outside Denmark.
Bent Olsen was thus in 2025 the Danish trainer with the largest total earnings.
Of the horses that Flemming Velin has in training according to the table, seven are nine years old or older.
As can be seen, seven of the biggest racehorse trainers in Denmark are women.
Denmark’s biggest racehorse trainers.
| Trainer | Horses in training 2026 | Horses in training 2025 | Earnings at Danish tracks in 2025 1000 kr. |
| Lea Olsen | 41 | 35 | 2.173 |
| Bent Olsen | 33 | 40 | 1.951 |
| Rikke Rohbach Bonde | 29 | 35 | 1.527 |
| Kajsa Lindsjö | 19 | 16 | 466 |
| Sandie Kjær | 19 | 29 | 633 |
| Flemming Velin | 18 | 19 | 490 |
| Veronika Jandová | 17 | 14 | 526 |
| Søren Jensen | 17 | 19 | 1.128 |
| Bettina Andersen | 15 | 14 | 1.269 |
| Tina Mortensen | 13 | 14 | 255 |
WHERE DO WE FIND THE CLASSIC ASPIRANTS?
Looking at the provisional Derby ranking for this year, we find 13 of the top 20 with the trainers shown in the table.
Lea has the most. In addition to the already mentioned Albarella (77), Beethoven (81), and Red Mantel ( 77), Lady Medina (Appel au Maitre) with 73 in the general handicap is also on the list.
Bent Olsen has two. Cool Magic (Moohaajim) with 76 and Noble Grey (Kahyl) with 74.
Sandie Kjær has a single one. Magic Cat (Juniper Tree) with 73.
Flemming Velin has two. Darlington (Appel au Maitre) with 80 and Daylight (Gleneagles) likewise with 80.
Darlington is currently stabled with Flemming Velin, but at the end of his 2-year-old career he was trained by Bettina Andersen, and he may return to training there.
Søren Jensen has two. Cosmopolitan (Make Believe) with 81 in the handicap and Taifuu with 85.
And finally Bettina Andersen has two. King To Be (Moohaajim) with 78 and Missing (Red Cactus) with 76.
In the ”Top 20 Derby ranking” we incidentally find one more Danish-trained horse. ”The Jydsk Derby favourite” Dream On Sally (Girolamo), who is trained by Mikkel Johansen in Aarhus.
But as we know, much can and will change before Derby day. There are certainly 3-year-old stars in the making who have not yet shown their ability.
AN EXCITING BUILD-UP TO THE MOWERINALØB.
On 2 May the year’s first classic race is run at Klampenborg. The Danish 1000 Guineas, the Mowerinaløb, and it could be exciting.
As things stand, three horses look likely to settle the race between them, but much can of course happen before then.
The Dubai heroine Taifuu will be very interesting to see again at Klampenborg. She is Scandinavia’s highest handicapped 3-year-old.
She was most recently beaten in Dubai in the Jumeirah 1000 Guineas (L) at Meydan, where another Danish runner, Lulu Tøpholm’s Sweet Sunshine, was third and very close to winning.
Sweet Sunshine is very well bred, and I look forward impatiently to the rematch.
The only one I can immediately see threatening the two Dubai travellers is Cool Magic.
As a 2-year-old she was second in the Goffs Futurity Stakes behind Cosmopolitan, but ahead of Taifuu.
