Monsun (4 March 1990 – 9 September 2012) was a

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a nar ...

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic ...

and stallion bred in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

by Gestüt Isarland and owned by Baron Georg von Ullmann.

Background

Monsun was a son of Germany's first triple crown winner and champion racehorse and sire, Königsstuhl, a descendant of the influential sire,

Bahram Bahrām ( fa, بهرام) is a male given name. Other variants Behram, Bahran, Vahran, and Vahram ( uz, Баҳром, Bahrom and Tajik: Баҳром, Bahrom) The older form is Vahrām ( pal, 𐭥𐭫𐭧𐭫𐭠𐭭, in la, Varrames), also spel ...

. Monsun's dam was Mosella who was sired by

Surumu Surumu (26 February 1974 – 3 November 1999) was a German Thoroughbred racehorse. Background Surumu, a chestnut, was foaled in 1974 at the Jacobs family's Gestüt Fährhof near Bremen. He was from the Dark Ronald male line. His sire was Litera ...

, a multi champion racehorse. Monsun was a strong, 16.1hh and attractive horse. He was a high-class middle-distance racehorse who was particularly effective on rain-affected surface. His trainer was

Heinz Jentzsch Heinz Jentzsch (13 March 192021 April 2012) was the most successful horse trainer in the history of German horse racing. Career During his active years from 1942 to 1999, Jentzsch recorded 4,029 victories. After World War II he came to Cologn ...

. He was blind later in life. He died after an acute neurological disease at the age of 22 on 9 September 2012.

Races

Monsun was a very tough competitor who ran on both soft and firm ground. He started his career at age three. He won 12 of his 23 races, including three Group 1 races ( Aral Pokal) at three years old and

Europa Preis The Preis von Europa is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Cologne-Weidenpesch Racecourse, Cologne over a distance ...

at both three and four years old. He also finished second to then less-fancied stable companion Lando in the 1993 Deutsches Derby.

Stud record

Monsun retired in 1996 and began his stud duty at Gestüt Schlenderhan near

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

. At stud, he proved a revelation and sired several champion colts and fillies. In 2007, the fee for his stud service was €120,000. In 2010, he became one of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

's four most expensive sires. Monsun sired a total of 713 foals, 108 of whom are stakes winners, with strike rate of 15%. He was named as leading sire in Germany for four times. His notable sons are Shirocco, 2005

German Horse of the Year German Horse of the Year is an award for racehorses instituted in 1957. It is the oldest public vote in the German sports. It was instituted by the WDR journalist Addi Furler. The award is decided by public vote. Records Most wins: * 3 - Orofino ( ...

and winner of the 2004 Deutsches Derby and 2005

Breeders' Cup Turf The Breeders' Cup Turf is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race on turf for three-year-olds and up. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The race's curre ...

, and Manduro who was ranked #1 in the

World Thoroughbred Racehorse Rankings The Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings (LWBRR), known as World Thoroughbred Racehorse Rankings (WTRR) before 2012, are horseracing's equivalent to World Rankings by other major sporting organizations such as ATP Tennis Rankings, World Golf R ...

for 2007. Other offspring,

Stacelita Stacelita (foaled 17 April 2006) is a Thoroughbred racehorse who was a Classic winner while based in France and became an Eclipse Award winner when relocated to the United States. Background Stacelita is a dark bay or black mare who was bred in ...

, is the 2011 Eclipse Award winner. One of his early offspring, Samum, was the winner of the 2000 Deutsches Derby. On 20 June 2013, his daughter

Estimate Estimation (or estimating) is the process of finding an estimate or approximation, which is a value that is usable for some purpose even if input data may be incomplete, uncertain, or unstable. The value is nonetheless usable because it is de ...

(out of Ebaziya) won the

Ascot Gold Cup The Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 2 miles 3 furlongs and 210 yards (4,01 ...

for

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

. In 2013 his son Fiorente beat an international quality field to win the 3200 metre

Melbourne Cup The Melbourne Cup is a Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and over, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria as part of the Me ...

. In 2014, his son

Protectionist Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations ...

also won the

. In 2016 his son Almandin trained by Robert Hickmott also won the Melbourne Cup. Monsun is also the broodmare sire of Pastorius, a German racehorse who won several G1 races in Germany and France. and

Sea The Moon Sea The Moon (foaled 27 January 2011) is a retired German Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2014 Deutsches Derby. He was trained by Markus Klug, and bred and owned by Gestut Görlsdorf. Background Sea The Moon is a bay colt bred by Gestüt G ...

, the 2014 Deutsches Derby winner.

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist, 33em 1990 racehorse births 2012 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Germany Racehorses trained in Germany Thoroughbred family 8-a Chefs-de-Race