African Song (19 March 1977 – after 1993) was an Irish-bred, British-trained

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

racehorse and

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" an ...

. He was inexpensively bought as a

yearling Yearling may refer to: *Yearling (horse), a horse between one and two years old *''The Yearling ''The Yearling'' is a novel by American writer Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, published in March 1938. It was the main selection of the Book of the ...

and had a brief racing career which comprised only five races in a four-month period in the spring and summer of 1980. After finishing third on his debut he won a minor race at

Sandown Sandown is a seaside resort and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the south-east coast of the Isle of Wight, England. The neighbouring resort of Shanklin and the settlement of Lake, Isle of Wight, Lake are sited just to the south of t ...

before finishing third in the

Duke of York Stakes Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ...

. At

Royal Ascot Ascot Racecourse is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, about 25 miles west of London. Ascot is used for thoroughbred horse racing, and it hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 races and three Gra ...

in June he recorded an emphatic victory in the

Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern races, Pattern race sys ...

King's Stand Stakes The King Charles III Stakes (formerly the King's Stand Stakes) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 5 fu ...

but his career was then interrupted by injury and he finished last in his only subsequent race. He made little impact as a breeding stallion.

Background

African Song was a dark-coated bay horse with a white

star A star is a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by Self-gravitation, self-gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night sk ...

bred in Ireland by W Moloney. As a

he was sent to the October sales at Newmarket and was bought for 7,400

guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, from where m ...

. He entered the ownership of Geoffrey Kaye and was sent into training with Paul Kelleway at his Shalfleet stables on the Bury Road in Newmarket. Kelleway was a former

National Hunt National Hunt Racing, also known as Jump Racing, is a form of horse racing particular to many European countries, including, but not limited to: France, Great Britain and Ireland. Jump Racing requires horses to jump over fences and ditches. In ...

jockey who had great success as a trainer with cheaply-bought horses including

Swiss Maid Swiss Maid (13 February 1975 – after 1992) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare, who was rated the best three-year-old filly in Europe in 1978. Unraced as a two-year-old, she won only one of her first eight races in 1978 and ap ...

and Madam Gay African Song was sired by African Sky who won the Prix du Palais Royal,

Prix Quincey The Prix Quincey is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is scheduled to ta ...

and

Prix de la Forêt The Prix de la Forêt is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and ...

as a three-year-old in 1973. As a breeding stallion as the sire of the outstanding racemare

Kilijaro Kilijaro (8 February 1976 – after 1990) was an Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and Horse breeding#Terminology, broodmare. She was the best filly of her generation in Ireland at both two and three years of age, winning the Phoenix Stakes ...

. African Song's dam Goldwyn Princess was of little use as a racehorse, racing only as a two-year-old in 1972 and finishing well beaten in both of her races. She was a half-sister to Broadway Melody, the dam of the

Prix Morny The Prix Morny is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,200 metres (about 6 furlongs), and it is schedule ...

winner Broadway Dancer and a distant relative of the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe () is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris over a distance ...

winner

Marienbard Marienbard (foaled 1997) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse best known for his win in the 2002 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Background Marienbard is a bay horse bred in Ireland by Saif Ali. He was sired by the Caerleon, ...

Racing career

1980: three-year-old season

African Song did not run as a two-year-old, making his racecourse debut in a six-

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to any of 660 foot (unit), feet, 220 yards, 40 rod (unit), rods, 10 chain (unit), chains, or a ...

maiden race In horse racing, a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the s ...

Newmarket Racecourse Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of ...

in April. He was strongly backed in the betting market but finished third after weakening in the closing stages. He was then dropped to five furlongs for a maiden at

Sandown Park Racecourse Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt racing, National Hunt races and one Group One, Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Sta ...

and won easily from twenty opponents after leading from the start. The colt was then stepped up in class and matched against older horses in the Group Three

over six furlongs at

York Racecourse York Racecourse is a horse racing venue in York, North Yorkshire, England. It is the third biggest racecourse in Britain in terms of total prize money offered, and second behind Ascot Racecourse, Ascot in prize money offered per meeting. It att ...

in May. He finished third behind his fellow three-year-old Flash N Thunder and the seven-year-old

gelding A gelding (Help:IPA/English, /ˈɡɛldɪŋ/) is a castration, castrated male horse or other equine, such as a pony, donkey or a mule. The term is also used with certain other animals and livestock, such as domesticated Camelidae, camels. By compa ...

Gypsy Dancer, beaten three lengths by the winner. At

in June African Song was moved up to Group One level for the King's Stand Stakes run over five furlongs on good to firm ground. Ridden by

Pat Eddery Patrick James John Eddery (18 March 1952 – 10 November 2015) was an Irish flat racing jockey and trainer. He rode three winners of the Derby and was Champion Jockey on eleven occasions. He rode the winners of 4,632 British flat races, a f ...

he started at odds of 10/1 in a fourteen-runner field. The best of his rivals appeared to be Abdu (runner-up in the

William Hill Sprint Championship The Nunthorpe Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged two years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is sc ...

), Greenland Park (winner of the

Queen Mary Stakes The Queen Mary Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old fillies. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled to take place ...

Molecomb Stakes The Molecomb Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled to take plac ...

and Cornwallis Stakes), Runnett (later to win the

Haydock Sprint Cup The Sprint Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Haydock Park over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), a ...

) and Abeer (Queen Mary Stakes,

Flying Childers Stakes The Flying Childers Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 5 furlongs and 3 yards (1,008 metres), and it is sch ...

). Racing down the centre of the course African Song went to the front soon after the start and dominated the race, going clear of his rivals by half way and winning by one and a half lengths from Runnett with Abdu in third place. African Song was scheduled to reappear in the

King George Stakes The King George Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is ...

Goodwood Racecourse Goodwood Racecourse is a horse-racing track five miles north of Chichester, West Sussex, in England controlled by the family of the Duke of Richmond, whose seat is nearby Goodwood House. It hosts the annual Glorious Goodwood meeting in l ...

in July but went lame just before the start and was withdrawn from the race. In the William Hill Sprint Championship at York in August he started well but dropped away to finish tailed-off last behind Sharpo having sustained a

pastern The pastern is a part of the leg of a horse between the fetlock and the top of the hoof. It incorporates the Equine_forelimb_anatomy#Metacarpal_bones, long pastern bone (proximal phalanx) and the Equine_forelimb_anatomy#Middle_phalanx, short past ...

injury. In September it was announced that the colt had been retired from racing.

Assessment

In 1980 the independent Timeform organisation gave African Song a rating of 121, sixteen pounds behind their best sprinter

Moorestyle Moorestyle (1977–1984) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was unfashionably bred, sold cheaply as a yearling and began his career in minor races. As a three-year-old, however, he improved to become one of the outstanding B ...

. In the official International Classification however, he was rated only eight pounds inferior to Moorestyle, who was the top-rated three-year-old in Europe,

Stud record

African Song began his stud career at the Haras du Theil-en-Auge in Normandy, and later stood in Denmark. His last recorded foals were born in 1994.

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist 1977 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 12-g