ERIC RAFFIN REACHES 5000 WINS

A quiet autumn Monday can suddenly become important for a seasoned professional of Eric Raffin's calibre. At 43 years of age, the popular French driver scored victory no. 5000 yesterday at Enghien in the sulky of Koala, a son of Carat Williams trained by Mickaël Cormy. Raffin, who also expresses himself very well in monte' races, made his debut in 1997 at only 16 years of age at Chartres with Enzo del Mar trained by his father Jean and also boasts some thirty successes abroad including, of course, the last Elitloppet last May in the seat of Horsy Dream. He has been the winner of the last five editions of the Sulky d'Or, i.e. the annual ranking of drivers in France starting in 2019 (285 victories) and then confirmed in 2020 (254), 2021 (296), 2022 (258) and 2023 (267) and this year he is again leading with 211 victories at +12 over his closest pursuer (Yoann Lebourgeois). Just to draw a parallel with the sacred monster of French trotting, Jean Michel Bazire, it must be said that the latter crossed the 5000-win milestone at the age of 47.

These are the most significant milestones of his career

◆ 26 December 2009 : 1,000th victory riding Phenix Boy (Diamant Gédé)
24th June 2014 : 2,000th victory at Vincennes riding Aigle Jenilou (Prodigious)
◆ 11 August 2018 : 3,000th win in Enghien with Face Time Bourbon (Ready Cash)
◆ 2 September 2021 : 4,000th win at Le Sables-d'Olonne in sulky to Feline Mourotaise (Gazouillis)
◆ 7 October 2024 : 5,000th victory at Enghien riding Koala (Carat Williams)