Olympus moved to Gávea: Lanfranco Dettori and a legendary farewell.

The Italian jockey had a dream farewell in Rio de Janeiro, winning 2 races, including a G1, and receiving an ovation from the large crowd in attendance

The last leap in the fantastic career of Frankie Dettori / SYLVIO RONDINELLI - KAROL LOUREIRO

By Diego H. Mitagstein (Special Correspondent for Turf Diario in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (From a special correspondent).- Destiny, as fickle and romantic as few others, decided that the final page of the golden book of world horse racing would not be written in Ascot, nor in Longchamp, nor in the mud of Churchill Downs. The perfect closure, one that not even the best Hollywood screenwriter would have dared to sketch, took place last Sunday under the sky of this city. At the Hipódromo de Gávea, Lanfranco Dettoritransformed an announced retirement into an ode to perfection, reminding us that talent does not care about identity documents, but about heartbeats and magic.

It was an afternoon where time seemed to stand still. From the moment the Italian stepped onto the pelouse, the atmosphere was charged with a different kind of electricity. He wasn't just another jockey fulfilling an engagement; he was the King claiming his throne one last time before handing over the crown. And he did so surrounded by what he loves most: the warmth of the Brazilian public and the complicit gaze of his wife, Catherine, who was a privileged witness to an exhibition that will be engraved in the marble of South American horse racing.

The day began to warm up early. Dettori didn't come for a stroll; he came to win. His first brushstroke of the afternoon came aboard Speak Alpha (Alpha), the horse he hadn't planned to ride but agreed to board as a personal favor to his owner. Frankie positioned the representative of Stud Cozumel in the right place at the right time and dominated in the stretch, celebrating as if it were the first victory of his life. It was a technical, clean conquest that served as an appetizer for what was to come. The crowd was already beginning to chant his name, sensing that history was just around the corner.

The main event, the moment that justified every kilometer traveled and every ticket paid, was the Gran Premio Estado do Río de Janeiro (G1), the initial part of the local Triple Crown, sponsored by Santa María de Araras, which closed his personal tally. In the saddle of Bet You Can, Dettori gave a masterclass in riding that made us doubt his 50-plus years. As if he were 20, with inexhaustible energy and peripheral race vision, Frankie broke from a prohibitive gate 16 with the son of Can the Man, crossed the track inward, and tucked him in close to the leader Ta Legal (Can the Man).

The homestretch was a monologue of talent. While his rivals gasped for air, Dettori accompanied with that unique, rhythmic, almost musical style, taking command by the 400-meter mark and holding off with class the late charge of Torres García (Il Doge), who finished second.

Upon crossing the finish line, the explosion was total. The G1 was his. The final triumph of an incomparable career was not a gift of luck; it was the result of a marvelous feat, executed by the greatest of modern times, at the feet of the Christ the Redeemer.

After the success came the ritual. That jump from the saddle that became his trademark circled the world once more. Catherine, visibly moved, welcomed a Frankie who was overflowing with joy. There was no sadness for the farewell, only the satisfaction of a job well done.

Gávea was the epicenter of an emotional earthquake. Seeing Dettori win two races, including one at the highest level, is proof that he retires at the top, without debts to the stopwatch or to aesthetics. The story was written perfectly: family and friends present, and the whip held high celebrating a G1 victory that sounds like eternal glory.

Lanfranco Dettori leaves us, but he leaves the memory of a Sunday in which horse racing was, more than ever, an art; with a stage packed with people, as hadn't been seen here in a long time. In the showcases of his memory, Rio de Janeiro now occupies a privileged place, alongside the great capitals of the world that once surrendered at his feet.