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Trish Dunell

WINNING RETURN: Democrat Party clinches the Sires' Stakes Fillies' Championship at Alexandra Park.

Democrat Party climaxed an extraordinary comeback from serious injury when she won the $150,000 Sires' Stakes Fillies' Championship at Alexandra Park in New Zealand record time.

In a survival-of-the-fittest final, when the searing pace never let up, it was left to the one filly who had shown incredible bravery off the track to run down Mark Purdon and Supersonic Miss in an unbelievable 2:37.1 for the 2200 metres.

That Democrat Party could even make the race, let alone break the record of 2:38.6 set by Delightful Lana at the last Auckland meeting, was testament to the skills of not only trainer Barry Purdon but also the team around him.

The future of the American Ideal filly looked decidedly shaky after she broke a cannon bone just two days before the Harness Jewels at Cambridge at the end of May.

Purdon's wife Katrina recalls it took five of them to get her back to her box after she damaged the leg in training.

And the prognosis was extremely guarded for Southland owners John and Katrina Price after an operation when four screws were used to piece the leg back together.

"The vet said if you had to break a bone the cannon bone was a good one to do," Katrina Price said.

"But she was sore for a very long time and had to be boxed for at least three months."

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Democrat Party completes comeback by winning Sires Stakes Fillies Championship