They've got it all figured out

Every year we have some good debate's and even some heated discussions on who should be given the Eclipse awards. But really those debates are rudderless because there are no guidelines directing the voter. They could vote on the horses with the prettiest names and not violate their voting privilege in any official way.

Given that context it quite refreshing to see how smoothly the Cartier Awards are run in Europe. This will be the 16th year these awards have been given out and at this point they have become the most prestigious European awards.

They are decided by a combination of points earned in pattern races (40%), fans voting (20%) and industry personnel votes (40%)

The Top 5 finishers in the points system for each division are the finalists that voters can cast their ballot for.

Here are this years European finalists

Horse of the Year: Ouija Board, Alexandrova, George Washington, Pride, Teofilio
Top older horse: Hurricane Run, Ouija Board, Pride, Reverence, Shirocco.
Top stayer: Kastoria, Montare, Sergeant Cecil, Shamdala, Yeats.
Top sprinter: Amadeus Wolf, Desert Lord, Iffraaj, Les Arcs, Reverence.
Three-year-old colt: Dylan Thomas, George Washington, Rail Link, Red Rocks, Sir Percy.
Three-year-old filly: Alexandrova, Confidential Lady, Mandesha, Nannina, Speciosa.
Two-year-old colt: Authorized, Dutch Art, Holy Roman Emperor, Strategic Prince, Teofilo.
Two-year-old filly: Finsceal Beo, Indian Ink, Miss Beatrix, Sander Camillo, Simply Perfect.

Surprise, Surprise there is also a Cartier/Daily Telegraph award of merit for those who, in the opinion of the 18-strong Cartier jury, have done most for European racing and/or breeding either over their lifetime or within the past 12 months.

Doesn't this sound like an intelligent way to give out awards? Bravo to the European masterminds who not only came up with the system but found a way to implement it for all of Europe and make it prestigious in they eyes of fans and insiders.

My ultimate goal with the TCR rankings would be to see it used in a system like this. My plan at the end of the year is to give out my own awards based on this same theory. However getting insiders to vote will be impossible at this stage so I think I'll stick to fans voting. I'm hoping to get a minimum of 100 voters. Then I can combine those results with the point system to determine year end champions.