King and Queen leave Royal Ascot empty-handed after last runner near-miss

King and Queen leave Royal Ascot empty-handed after last runner near-miss None of the five horses racing in the royal silks at the meeting made it into the winners’ circle with Warrant Holder coming closest when second on Friday The King and Queen left Royal Ascot empty-handed after their last runner just missed out on victory on Friday. King Charles and Queen Camilla have attended the first four days of the historic fixture, arriving each day from Windsor Castle by horse drawn carriage up the racecourse. The late Queen Elizabeth II never missed a Royal Meeting during her reign and saw 22 horses triumph in races at the meeting in the royal colours. The high point came in 2013 when Estimate won the Gold Cup - the first time in the race's 207-year history that it has been won by a reigning monarch. The royal racehorse string has been streamlined since the death of Queen Elizabeth but the King and Queen have continued to enjoy success on the racecourse. They enjoyed an early taste of winning at Royal Ascot when Desert Hero, trained by William Haggas, captured the King George V Stakes in 2023. But further success at the meeting has eluded him, including this year despite high hopes for some of their five runners. On day one Reaching High, who is trained by Willie Mullins, went off 13-8 favourite for the Ascot Stakes but finished last of 20 runners. Point Of Law finished fourth in his race on Wednesday, Golden Orbit was well beaten on Thursday, as was King’s Prize in the opener on Friday. Fingers were crossed for the King and Queen’s final runner of the week, Warrant Holder, a 16-5 chance for the Duke Of Edinburgh Stakes. The John and Thady Gosden-trained gelding was a winner at York in May. He briefly took the lead, cheered on by the 50,000 plus crowd, but he could not repel the persistent challenge of Opportunity who beat Warrant Holder by a length and three quarters. The winner was trained by Haggas who on Wednesday provided some consolation for the royal couple by producing their horse Lorca's Waltz to win a maiden race at Beverley.