CAN you believe it? In three weeks’ time we will be waking up to the first day of the Longines Irish Champions Weekend. If Pat Keogh doesn’t get a rest before then, he will need one afterwards as he oversees the racing at Leopardstown on Saturday and the Curragh the following day. It promises to be a weekend of the best racing of the year.

Japan made headlines at York this week and the news that he is to take on the Japanese star Deirdre in the €1,250,000 Group 1 QIPCO Irish Champion Stakes is already whetting appetites.

This is one of a pair of Group 1 races on the day, the fillies and mares lining up for the €350,000 Coolmore Fastnet Rock Matron Stakes.

The winners of these races will be guaranteed berths at the Breeders’ Cup later in the year, the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Turf and Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf respectively. Additionally, the winner of the €150,000 Group 2 KPMG Champions Juvenile Stakes will earn a start in either the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf or Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.

The card for the first day of Irish Champions Weekend is completed by the €200,000 Group 2 Clipper Logistics Boomerang Stakes, €100,000 Group 3 Kilternan Stakes, €100,000 Ballylinch Stud Irish EBF Ingabelle Stakes, and a pair of €150,000 premier handicaps sponsored by the Irish EBF and run in honour of Petingo and Sovereign Path.

While racing at Leopardstown is set to be of the highest calibre, huge efforts are being made to ensure that the racegoer experience will be of the highest quality. Providing a sense of joie de vivre is a priority for Pat Keogh and his team.

Racing aficionados and the general public are always spellbound by the sale of horses prior to racing conducted by Goffs. Seeing people bid into six-figures provides a sense of theatre, while for vendors and international buyers there is serious business to be conducted.

This week Leopardstown announced that model and DJ January Winters will join the line-up. She will be playing on the Champions terrace throughout the afternoon, keeping the atmosphere upbeat and exciting. In the evening she will help racegoers party until late when she plays after True Tides.

Made up of brothers Cian, Conor and Eoghan McSweeney, True Tides is tipped as one of the hottest acts to emerge from Ireland. Included on 2FM’s list of rising stars in 2019, their latest single The Answer was co-produced by Kodaline’s Cormac Butler. Their sound is described as sharp-edged, pop dynamic, driven by guitars and electronics and layered with vocal harmonies. They are sure to please.

Followers of fashion are well catered for, the Longines prize for elegance offers gentlemen and ladies an opportunity to win timepieces in their respective categories, along with a stay in the five-star Merrion Hotel. Ingrid Hoey will lead the team of judges in deciding which man and woman best exemplifies elegance on the day.

Leopardstown is keen to emphasise the family nature of the day and is catering for racegoers of every age. All children go free and a family ticket admits two adults and any number of children aged 17 or younger. This is incredible value, as is the offer that all students can avail of free entry courtesy of SPIN1038, subject to a valid student card being presented.

Finally, the Champions Lawn, an elegantly decorated garden area is the perfect place to enjoy all that the weekend has to offer.

For full details of all that is on offer, and some great value tickets and packages, go to www.leopardstown.com