‘Something Really Special’: Champion Charyn Debuts at Sumbe

[Wandering Eyes]

When champion miler Charyn (Ire)  (Dark Angel {Ire}) joined the lineup of stallions at Nurlan Bizakov's Sumbe for 2025, he was welcomed as the fifth Group 1 victor to call the young stallion operation home, following on the heels of Golden Horde (Ire) in 2021 and the trio of Mishriff (Ire), Belbek (GB) and Angel Bleu (Fr) in 2024.

Yet Sumbe's Mathieu Le Forestier is confident in saying that this talented individual is more than simply the latest addition to a growing roster.

“To put things into perspective, it's not only another Group 1 winner entering stud, but something really, really special,” he said.

Indeed, Charyn is second only to Coolmore's City Of Troy (Justify) as the most expensive new sire in Europe in 2025, standing for €35,000 in his debut season. Meanwhile his sire Dark Angel was just elected as the 2024 champion sire of Britain and Ireland, thanks in part to the success of his leading earner Charyn, who collected three Group 1 wins last year on the way to his own champion honours.

Bred by Grangemore Stud and a full-brother to 2021 G2 Mill Reef Stakes victor Wings Of War (Ire), Charyn was a 250,000gns purchase for Sumbe at Tattersalls October Book 2. The eye-catching grey went to Roger Varian and showed his potential early on with a winning debut in August of his juvenile season followed later by a Group 2 score in the Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte at Chantilly.

He placed twice against Group 1 company as a three-year-old, but stepped up to a new level at four. Among his five stakes victories in 2024, the speedy miler claimed the G1 Queen Anne Stakes, G1 Prix Jacques le Marois and the G1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes.

“It's a hat trick that had never been achieved before,” Le Forestier shared. “It already takes a very good horse to win two, but winning three in the same season was impressive. He was the fastest miler in Europe in 2024.”

Charyn trains ahead of his score in the G1 Prix Jacques Le Marois | Emma Berry

In his three-length win over fellow Group 1 victor Metropolitan (FR) (Zarak {FR}) in the Prix Jacques le Marois, Charyn completed the mile in a final time of 1:33.98. Le Forestier explained how that sharp number, along with some of the other fractions Charyn reeled off with ease during his four-year-old campaign, has been a major selling point for their new stallion.

“I know that in Europe we're not really used to talking times and clocks, but more and more people are getting interested in data and it just allows people to make things a little bit more objective and see what they're really looking at,” he explained. “He was the only horse to shade sub-01:34 [in Europe in 2024].”

He continued, “It's the elite within the elite. It's quite amazing. We've been looking into his running times and he had the kind of acceleration that hasn't been seen since Kingman (GB) 10 years ago in the Jacques le Marois.”

While his 4-year-old season did not end as his connections had hoped when he settled for fifth in the GI Mile Championship in his 19^th and final career start, Charyn returned to Roger Varian's yard in Newmarket after his journey to Japan and was on display there for breeders during the winter breeding stock sales. From there, he arrived at Sumbe's Haras de Montfort et Preaux in Normandy ahead of the Arqana December Sale with plenty of time to settle in before the start of the breeding season.

Charyn is the third member of the Dark Angel line to stand at Sumbe, joining Dark Angel's son Angel Bleu (Fr) as well as Golden Horde (Ire), who is by Dark Angel's Lethal Force (Ire). It's a sireline that Sumbe has thrown plenty of support toward and the recent success of Dark Angel and his young sons has only served to further their faith. Golden Horde produced seven winners from just 23 starters in his first crop in 2024 while Harry Angel (Ire), a son of Dark Angel standing at Dalham Hall, was a top five third-crop sire last year. Angel Bleu will see his first foals in 2025.

“Charyn is Dark Angel's best-ever offspring and we hope that he will be able to continue this Try My Best line, which is a specific line of Northern Dancer that has been very consistent through five or six generations,” said Le Forestier. “We hope that he is the next to continue this line of miler-sprinter stallions.”

Charyn's dam Futoon (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}), herself a two-time stakes winner going five furlongs, is out of a full-sister to G2 Mill Reef Stakes victor and G1 Golden Jubilee Stakes runner-up Galeota (Ire) and the family also includes G1 Champion Stakes runner-up Insatiable (Ire) (Don't Forget Me {Ire}).

“He was bred to be a sprinter but he really could carry his speed over a mile, which is amazing and explains a lot about him,” Le Forestier noted.

And finally the last piece of the puzzle. According to Le Forestier, Charyn's physical credentials fit the bill as well.

“He's a strong horse. He stands at 1.63 [16.1 hh] metres, with a good kind of length matching his size and strength. He's a well-balanced individual with a very cool demeanor and a good walk about him. We're delighted by [his reception] and suppose that it's a much-deserved prize, being the best miler to retire in France for at least 10 years.”

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