Hong Kong-based owner Christopher Tsui flew into London to accept the Cartier Horse Of The Year Award last night for his champion Sea The Stars.

Tsui was one of 200 invited guests at yesterday evening’s (Tuesday, November 17) 2009 Cartier Racing Awards at Claridge’s Hotel in London and he also collected the Cartier Three-Year-Old Colt Award for his six-time Group One winner.

Tsui dedicated the award to his mother Ling, who bred Sea The Stars out of the family’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner Urban Sea. The mare died earlier this year after having her final foal.

“This award belongs to somebody else and I am collecting it on her behalf,” said Tsui. “This person is my mother Ling. It was her love and faith for Urban Sea, her relentless passion and dedication to breed from her and her understanding of the thoroughbred that made it all possible.

“Fifteen years ago she was alone in thinking that Urban Sea would become the best broodmare in the world. Today I think it would be fairly difficult to disagree with her. And I am so proud of what she has achieved. Against all odds with only one mare, she was able to make dreams come true.”

Meanwhile, Sea The Stars’ trainer John Oxx was taken by surprise when joining a distinguished list of past recipients of the Cartier/Daily Telegraph Award of Merit. “It’s hard to know what to say when you’ve been so badly caught out!,” said Oxx. The announcement of this award was greeted by a standing ovation.

Sir Anthony Bamford, accompanied by his daughter Alice, collected the Cartier Three-Year-Old Filly Award on behalf of his wife Carole’s Sariska, while Gerard Wertheimer picked up Goldikova’s Cartier Older Horse Award.

Yeats won the Cartier Stayer Award for an unprecedented fourth time and J P Magnier, representing his parents John and Sue, along with Lucy and Johnny Nagle, on behalf of their parents David and Diane, came forward for the trophy.

Fleeting Spirit won the Cartier Sprinter Award and three members of The Searchers, her ownership partnership, were on hand to collect the trophy. They were British Horseracing Authority chairman Paul Roy, Andy Stewart and Trevor Harris.

St Nicholas Abbey gained the Cartier Two-Year-Old Colt Award with Paul Smith, whose father Derrick part-owns the juvenile, picking up this prize. Prince Khalid Abdulla’s racing manager Lord Grimthorpe collected Special Duty’s Cartier Two-Year-Old Filly Award.

There was a tremendous atmosphere at the 19th Cartier Racing Awards which are the Oscars of European horseracing. The evening was hosted by Cartier’s racing consultant, Harry Herbert, and the awards were presented by Arnaud Bamberger, managing director of Cartier UK.

The highly-coveted horse awards were determined by points earned in Pattern races combined with the opinions of a panel of racing journalists headed by Brough Scott, plus votes from readers of the Racing Post and The Daily Telegraph, a system which over the years has accurately rewarded supreme excellence.