French Freshman Sires Under The Spotlight

[Wandering Eyes]

Despite the nascent stage of the Flat season, there have already been 11 freshman sires in Europe represented by runners. Rathasker Stud’s Bungle Inthejungle (GB) has been the quickest out of the gates, with two winners from his eight runners. His counterparts have had just one or two runners each, including two French-based first-season sires, Olympic Glory (Ire) and Sommerabend (GB).

There’s a quintet of stallions in France with first-crop runners this year and it seems fair to expect Al Shaqab’s Olympic Glory to play a major part in the freshman championship in Europe. Anecdotally, his yearlings were well liked by breeders and buyers, and he received strong support from the start, covering 167 mares in his first season at Haras de Bouquetot, followed by 119 and 160. His first-year tally made him the busiest new stallion in France in 2015, and behind only Rajsaman (Fr), Le Havre (Ire), Siyouni (Fr), Evasive and the now National Hunt-orientated Rail Link (GB) overall.

Olympic Glory’s popularity is hardly surprising. His sire Choisir (Aus) has been a hugely dependable source of precocity and speed since his retirement in 2004, and he has been sadly absent from Coolmore’s northern hemisphere division since the year of Olympic Glory’s retirement. Starspangledbanner (Aus), another son of Choisir, made an eye-catching start to his stud career despite widely publicised fertility issues, and supplied Al Shaqab with his first-crop Group 1-winning son The Wow Signal (Ire), who sadly died last month. Meanwhile, another of Choisir’s top-class juvenile colts, The Last Lion (Ire), retired to Darley after his busy sole season which started with his Brocklesby win and ended with victory in the G1 Middle Park S.

Olympic Glory’s own career lasted for a season longer but also started and ended with a win, the first on debut at Goodwood at two, with his swansong coming in the G1 Prix de la Foret. In the interim, the good-looking bay strung together a CV which included the G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere, G1 Queen Elizabeth II S., G1 Lockinge S., G2 Superlative S., G2 Vintage S., and G3 Greenham S. His immediate family is not heavily imbued with black type but his bottom line traces back to one of the finest broodmares of the post-war era, the Moller brothers’ Violetta III, ancestress in the modern era of top-level winners Sir Percy (GB), Rule Of Law and Montare (Ire). In short, there’s plenty to like about Olympic Glory.

Though standing in France, plenty of his first 2-year-olds have made their way into yards in Britain and Ireland, with his former trainer Richard Hannon unsurprisingly having recruited at least five for his stable, while other trainers of his young stock include Mark Johnston, Ger Lyons, Richard Hughes, William Haggas, James Fanshawe, David Barron, Brian Meehan and Karl Burke.

In France, Fabrice Chappet, who can usually be relied upon to have plenty of juvenile winners, is listed as having seven Olympic Glory youngsters in his Lamorlaye yard, while Henri-Francois Devin, Jean-Claude Rouget, Francois Rohaut, Pia Brandt, Francis Graffard and Antoine de Watrigant are also on the training roll.

Christophe Ferland will train Al Shaqab’s Olympic Glory filly out of the GI Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint winner Mizdirection (Mizzen Mast), while Andre Fabre will guide the career of a colt in the same colours, a son of the G2 Windsor Forest S. winner Strawberrydaiquiri (GB) (Dansili {GB}).

Last yearling season, a top price of 180,000gns was paid for Al Daiha (GB), a daughter of Alpen Glen (GB) (Halling) and thus a half-sister to the stakes-placed trio of Montalbano (GB), Glade (GB) and Indian Blessing (GB), bred by Jocelyn Targett. In total, Olympic Glory’s 77 yearlings to pass through a sales ring returned an average of 42,240gns or €51,892 (including vendor buy-backs) from an opening fee of €15,000, which was reduced to €12,000 for 2018.

One of Olympic Glory’s fellow challengers for leading French freshman honours is Haras du Quesnay’s Anodin (Ire). It would have been nigh on impossible for him to have emulated the extraordinary feats of his illustrious elder sister Goldikova (Ire), but he came within a length of claiming the race she made her own when finishing second to Karakontie in the GI Breeders’ Cup Mile at Santa Anita, and also took runner-up slots to Kingman (GB) in the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois and Cirrus Des Aigles (Fr) in the G1 Prix d’Ispahan, having won the G3 Prix Paul Moussac at three.

Anodin followed his sire Anabaa to the Head family’s stud and was another to receive decent support in 2015, when he covered 138 mares. Since then his books have dropped to 107 and 86. Of that first crop, 62 yearlings sold last year for an average of 18,538gns or €22,277 and top price of €150,000 from an initial fee of €7,500.

Fewer of his yearlings were sold outside France, but Archie Watson, Karl Burke, John Berry and David Menuisier are among the British trainers with an Anodin 2-year-old, while at home his juveniles are widely spread, including with Jean-Claude Rouget, Eric Libaud, Carlos Laffon-Parias, Christophe Ferland and Didier Guillemin. Father afield, young Spanish trainer Patrick Olave Valdivelso, who spent several seasons assisting Francois Rohaut, is training the colt Dom Alvaro (Spa) in Madrid.

Anodin’s former trainer Freddy Head has been assigned a Wertheimer-bred half-brother to listed winner Enlighted (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), named Anecdotic, among the four by the stallion in his stable.

Sommerabend (GB) was a typically durable graduate of the elite German breeding establishment Gestut Schlenderhan, remaining in training until the age of seven and winning nine of 29 starts. His seven stakes victories included the G2 Europa Meile and G2 Prix du Muguet, also over a mile.

The son of Shamardal out of the listed-winning Monsun (Ger) mare Sommernacht (Ger) retired to Larissa Kneip’s Haras de Saint Arnoult for €3,500—a fee which has dropped to €2,500 for this year—and covered 68 mares in his first year, followed by 64 and 50 in the ensuing seasons. He had his first runner, Storm Katy (Fr), who is owned and trained by Kneip, at Chantilly on Tuesday, but we can expect to see more from his offspring as they mature.

Only 22 Sommerabend yearlings came onto the market last year, selling for an average of 8,782gns or €10,556, with Tina Rau paying the top price of €45,000 for a half-brother to the multiple graded stakes winner Itsinthepost (Fr) (American Post {GB}) at Arqana’s October Sale.

Another admirable campaigner to have raced until he was seven is Joshua Tree (Ire), a son of Montjeu (Ire) who was sharp enough to win the G2 Royal Lodge S. at two for Aidan O’Brien and then pulled off the perhaps unique feat of winning the same Grade 1 contest, Woodbine’s Canadian International, three times for three different trainers—O’Brien, Marco Botti and Ed Dunlop. He also finished second in the 2011 Canadian International to the John Hammond-trained Sarah Lynx (Ire), sparking a Montjeu quinella.

Sons of Montjeu are feted in the National Hunt world and Joshua Tree will doubtless pick up plenty of AQPS mares. Indeed, his book sizes at Haras du Grand Courgeon, where he started at a fee of €2,500, have taken an upward curve, starting with 47 in 2015, then rising to 111 and 131. Three members of his first crop are in training with Henri-Alex Pantall, including Moudir (Fr), a son of the listed winner Mayyadah (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) who is owned by Sheikh Abdullah Bin Khalifa Al Thani.

Dubawi’s globetrotting G1 Deutsches Derby winner Waldpark (Ger), whose half-sister Waldmark (Ger) (Mark Of Esteem {Ire}) is the dam of G1 St Leger winner Masked Marvel (GB) (Montjeu {Ire}), returned to Europe after a stint in Australia with Anthony Freedman. Taking up stud duties at Haras du Thenney, he started out for a fee of €3,000 and covered a book of 51 mares in his debut season. His level of patronage rose to 76 and 75 in 2016 and 2017.

Marc Pimbonnet sent out Waldpark’s first runner, Lady Arkadina (Fr), to finish third at Lyon Parilly on Thursday, but, like Sommerabend, we can expect to see more from his runners later in the season.

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