Jenni In Rome ready for Golden Gift
Will Freedman expects race experience to bring improvement from Jenni In Rome (NZ) (Sword Of State) when she tackles Saturday’s A$1 million Listed Golden Gift (1100m) at Rosehill from an outside draw.
The two-year-old filly closed strongly from the second half of the field to finish third under Jason Collett in the Kirkham Plate (1000m) at Randwick on October 24, having looked the winner halfway up the straight before peaking on her run over the final 100m.
Freedman, who trains in partnership with Richard Freedman at Rosehill, has been pleased with her progress since that debut performance.
“She had a really healthy, big blow after her first start and I think she needed that run a little bit,” Freedman said.
“She's come through the run well.
“She looks like a pre-Christmas two-year-old.
“I remember looking at her in the yard in the Kirkham, and she was smaller in stature than a lot of her counterparts, but quite often those are the two-year-olds that really do thrive at this time of year.”
Her straightforward preparation contrasts with the difficulties surrounding her arrival from New Zealand, when she repeatedly refused to enter a freight container for the flight across the Tasman.
“It took them three goes to get her from New Zealand here on the plane,” Freedman said.
“They ended up putting her on (the plane) without the container, and then they built it around her.”
Collett retains the ride after partnering Jenni In Rome in a course proper gallop at Rosehill on Monday, giving her a look at the track ahead of her first race there.
“She got a look around the course proper on Monday, which is a big thing for these two-year-olds. She's not going to have to go to an unfamiliar environment,” Freedman said.
“It's all about the little details that make a big difference in the end.”
Jenni In Rome is one of seven youngsters with race experience among the 14 runners and four reserves accepted for the Listed contest.
By Sword Of State out of the I Am Invincible mare La Tardigrada, Jenni In Rome was offered by Cambridge Stud as Lot 816 in Book 2 of the 2026 New Zealand Bloodstock Karaka Yearling Sale.
Richard and Will Freedman purchased the filly for $130,000.
