Ascot, England // It had never been done before. The Australian horse, Choisir, had won both the King's Stand Stakes and the Diamond Jubilee Stakes in 2003, but Edward Lynam became the first trainer to win both sprints at the Royal meeting with different horses when Slade Power slew his 13 rivals over 1,200 metres yesterday.
Following up Sole Power's victory on Tuesday, and Alexander Anthem's win in the Queen Mary Stakes on Wednesday for good measure, Slade Power had little trouble registering his first win at the Group 1 level as he came home a length-and-a-half clear of Aidan O'Brien's Due Diligence.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid's Aljamaaheer was third under Paul Hanagan.
Slade Power strode in to the lead inside the final 400 metres, but jockey Wayne Lordan had a task trying to keep his mount interested as he drifted left with 50m to go.
As he hung across the track slightly, he caused minor interference to the runner-up and Lordan was found to have ridden carelessly by the stewards and received a one-day ban.
The reprimand was never going to mute celebrations.
"It is without doubt the best win of my training career," Lynam said.
Getting logged in a history book has little interest to this most modest of Irish trainers. What was more important was the fact that Lynam was surrounded by his family, including his wife, Aileen Lynam, who broke her back and her neck last April in a fall and missed Sole Power's first King's Stand Stakes victory 12 months ago.
Looking resplendent in the winners' enclosure and sporting a pink fascinator, it embroidered the picture of perfection for her husband.
"She deserves to be here because she puts up with me, which takes a lot, and she is a big part of the outfit at home," he said. "I am hard to live with."
Slade Power will now head to the July Cup, the final British leg of the Global Sprint Challenge, at Newmarket next month, where he will clash with his more illustrious stablemate.
"Slade Power will wear the second colours," Lynam said. "Sole Power is the elder statesman and will always have the first colours."
Looking ahead, Slade Power is an unlikely participant in Dubai, where Sole Power has made such a name for himself during the Dubai World Cup Carnival.
Slade Power is likely to be retired to stud at the end of the season, after trying to defend his title in the British Champions Sprint in October and a possible run in Hong Kong in December.
Aljamaaheer will also be aimed at the July Cup after running a solid race in just his second start at a sprinting distance, having been dropped back from 1,800m.
"He ran a good race, and I have no complaints," trainer Roger Varian said.
"I wish the race was over an extra half a furlong. I believe he will have his day and the July course will suit him. I don't know if the sprinting mentality has quite registered with him yet."
Earlier in the afternoon, Telescope ran out a deeply impressive winner of the Hardwicke Stakes.
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Slade Power doubles trainer Edward Lynam’s joy at Royal Ascot
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