Sea The Stars wins Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe
Sea The Stars has made racing history by becoming the first horse to win the 2000 Guineas, The Derby and Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.
The John Oxx-trained three-year-old won at Longchamp racecourse in Paris yesterday (Sunday 4 October) leaving Youmzain, ridden by Kieren Fallon and trained by Mick Channon, taking the runner up spot for the third consecutive year.
Although fighting hard for his head in the early stages of the race and being trapped behind other horses, Sea The Stars found a gap and ran on to win by two lengths.
Sea The Stars’s dam Urban Sea won the race in 1993.
Winning trainer John Oxx, who also saddled the 2000 Arc winner Sinndar, said: “It’s a great relief. We thought we had the best horse in the race and that he deserved to win but it’s the Arc. It’s the end of the year and it’s easy to get beaten in the Arc.”
“He did enough when he hit the front and he’s a great, great horse to keep on winning. This horse has the gears and if a horse has speed and gears, he’ll get himself out of trouble.”
Jockey Mick Kinane added: “He’s exceptional — he’s just a phenomenal, rare horse. They were going a nice pace and I knew I would need a bit of luck in the straight, no matter what happened, but I knew I had the pace to go anywhere I wanted.”
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The son of Cape Cross has now won six group one races in a row this summer and connections are considering whether Sea The Stars will head to the Breeders’ Cup in California on 7 November — but so far no decisions have been made.
“He’s done a lot this year and we take it race by race with him. We will let the dust settle and now is not the time to make a decision about the Breeders’ Cup,” said Oxx.
“We will see how the horse is and then decide. To have got as far as the Arc is a lot to be thankful for. I can’t see him staying in training next year, but we haven’t discussed it.”
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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.