KEY POINTS:
It hardly seems a quarter of a century ago.
The capture of the 1983 Melbourne Cup by Waverley sheep farmer Snow Lupton and his 6-year-old chestnut gelding Kiwi is etched in the memories of those who were lucky to witness it on course at Flemington and the millions who watched it on television.
It was the stuff of legends. Lupton, 62 at the time, and his wife Anne bought Kiwi for only $1000 at a yearling sale at Te Rapa - Anne liked the Blarney Kiss breed and wanted a chestnut.
Lupton rounded up the sheep on Kiwi on his farm in between races and after the horse won the Wellington Cup in January 1983 the Melbourne Cup dream started to become realistic.
The Australians were bemused when Lupton and Kiwi didn't arrive until the Wednesday before the Cup and then he did only light work on a Mornington farm before a solid gallop at the Mornington course on Derby Day.
They respected his form though and sent him out a 9 to 1 third favourite. In New Zealand he was a hot 1-1 favourite - his very name guaranteeing the support of once-a-year punters.
A win was unlikely for much of the race. He was last past the winning post the first time and was a clear last with 800m of the 3200m gruelling test to go, some 25 to 30 lengths behind the leaders.
By the turn New Zealand jockey Jim Cassidy - later to become one of Australia's finest and still riding in Sydney - he had passed only one runner, the tiring Amarant, whom Cassidy had ridden into 10th in the Cup a year before.
Into the straight, Cassidy didn't come wide but began weaving his way through unlikely gaps that opened up in the field. Up at the front, Noble Comment and Mr Jazz were fighting out a titanic battle. With 50m to go Noble Comment had headed Mr Jazz and jockey Robert Heffernan thought the race was his.
It was until Kiwi loomed up behind the pair and Cassidy hooked them to their outside, that the danger became apparent.
Kiwi went whoosh!
One commentator did not even mention him in the straight until he hit the lead.
Poor Heffernan. His comments were noted in the book November Gold, by NZPA journalist Max Lambert.
"I noticed Kiwi out of the corner of my eye, a second later he was two lengths in front. He was flying," the luckless jockey said.
Noble Comment's trainer George Hanlon said he didn't think it was possible for any horse to come from as far back and win the Melbourne Cup.
"I was mentally preparing my acceptance speech until Kiwi came along."
And Heffernan again, after watching two video replays of the finish.
"It all happened so quickly. I looked across and couldn't believe Kiwi had beaten me in one stride. It was an unbelievable feeling. One second I had the Cup won then, like a nightmare, it was gone."
New Zealanders celebrated. Kiwi and Snow Lupton became national icons. There were huge celebrations in Waverley.
The mood wasn't so good a year later when Kiwi was ruled out by Victoria racing vets from contesting the Cup on the race's eve.
The horse had hurt a leg in late October and Lupton bypassed a race at Trentham on Labour Day. But three gallops at home convinced him the horse was ready to contest the Cup.
He disagreed with the opinion of the vets that the horse was lame.
"In my opinion, he's a sound horse. The problem is the vets don't agree with me."
A month later Kiwi ran a gallant sixth in the Japan Cup, which at 2400m was too short a distance for him.
He returned to Flemington in 1985, but could run only 11th in the Cup on a rain-affected track.
In 1986, he was back and mounted a strong run from the back but faltered in the last 50m, finishing fourth behind At Talaq.
There was concern when jockey Noel Harris dismounted and led Kiwi back to the birdcage. He had struck himself, but nothing was found amiss.
He was retired a few months later and spent his retirement on the Lupton farm where he died some years later. Lupton died in 2004.
- NZPA
