Prince Andrew scandal results in track renaming the Duke of York Stakes

Prince Andrew has plenty on his mind but the latest ignominy following the Virginia Giuffre scandal will not be missed by his mother, whose most fervent passion is horse racing and whose first read in the morning is the Racing Post.

York racecourse have decided to rename the Duke Of York Stakes, a prestigious race for sprinters run each year at its May meeting, in a bid to distance themselves from the embattled royal and the story will certainly make headlines in Wednesday’s edition.

The track’s head of marketing and sponsorship James Brennan told the daily turf bible: “The race has been with us in different guises, over different distances and at different times of the year, since 1895.

“It was introduced in honour of the then Duke of York, who went on to become King George V, and I think most of the pubs that are wrestling with this question come from the same root.

“We don’t want the name of the race to be a distraction from what is a good contest and we’re seeking to clarify the history and connection. The current favourite, though we need to go through the protocol of the European Pattern Committee, is something like the 1895 Duke Of York Stakes.

“That clarifies that it is a long-established race and has a connection other than to Prince Andrew.”

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The current Duke of York is being sued by Giuffre, who is American, and