Kauto Star statue to be unveiled at Kempton
He already has a bar named after him, and now a statue of Kauto Star is to be unveiled before crowds at Kempton Park this afternoon (Boxing Day, 26 December).
The statue, paying tribute to the record-breaking five-time King George winner, has been commissioned by Kauto Star’s owner Clive Smith.
It has been created by equestrian sculptor Charlie Langton — who produced a similar one of Yeats that stands in the parade ring at Ascot.
“The statue will be positioned in the parade ring for all racegoers to admire. Kauto Star is synonymous with the race and we look forward to having our own Kauto Star in situ for many years to come,” said a spokesman for Kempton.
The statue will be unveiled at 11.45am, with Kauto Star himself parading with event rider Laura Collett before the King George.
“Owning Kauto Star has been the thrill of a lifetime and to be able to present a statue of him to Kempton Park, to celebrate his great wins is truly heart-warming for me,” said Clive.
“Being remembered in this way is nothing less than he deserves. My very talented, beautiful horse with a lovely quiet temperament and a tremendous will to win; the horse of a lifetime.”
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The statue is 5% more than life-size, which took around eight months to complete.
“For the process of making the piece, I went to see the horse at Laura Collett’s yard, where I spent a bit of time getting to know him, measuring him up and making a quarter life-size maquette,” said Charlie.
“Kauto Star proved to be a very relaxed and gentle-natured subject. He is highly intelligent and inquisitive, and was seemingly intrigued by my work on the maquette in front of him.
“My aim was to portray his willingness of spirit, his unique character and physical presence, which strikes you most when you meet such a supreme athlete in the flesh. The sculpture has to truly reflect Kauto’s incredible achievements and his wonderful character, anything less and I will have let him down.”
Kauto Star was trained in Somerset by Paul Nicholls during his racing career. In 2011 he broke the record set by legendary grey Desert Orchid by taking his fifth King George.
Now retired, 14-year-old Kauto is based at Laura’s yard in Lambourn, Berkshire, where he’s hacked and schooled frequently. He also took part in a dressage demo at Olympia earlier this month.
“He’s very good, he’s feeling really well,” Laura told H&H.
“It’s exciting and I’m really looking forward to him parading. It will be nice for his fans to see him too.”
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A graduate of Exeter University, Amy joined our news team from Redpin Publishing in 2008 as news writer. She was promoted to deputy news editor in May 2013 and became news editor in April 2015. She left Horse & Hound in March 2016 to take up an editorial position in Dubai.