Alec Head (31 July 1924 – 22 June 2022) was a French horse trainer and breeder. Head was the owner of Haras du Quesnay, located near

Deauville Deauville () is a communes of France, commune in the Calvados (department), Calvados department, Normandy (administrative region), Normandy, northwestern France. Major attractions include its port, harbour, Race track, race course, marinas, con ...

. A descendant of the trainers who founded the English Racing Colony in

Chantilly, Oise Chantilly ( , ; Picard language, Picard: ''Cantily'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Oise Departments of France, department in the Nonette (river), Valley of the Nonette in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region of Northern Franc ...

, Head's grandfather was a

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...

-turned-trainer, as was his father William Head who was a very successful jockey, trainer, and owner in both

flat racing Horse racing is an equestrianism, equestrian performance activity, 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 spor ...

and steeplechase events.French racing great and multiple Arc winner Alec Head dies at the age of 97
/ref> Alec Head's horses won The Derby and 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 ...

. In 2018, interviewed about his career, he spoke about starting out as a jockey in 1942: "We raced through the war and it was tough, and I used to bicycle everywhere. The Germans would go to the races as well, so racing continued but a lot of the courses were shut, so they organised Flat and Jumps meetings at the few that were open, such as Auteuil and Maisons-Laffitte". Head died on 22 June 2022, at the age of 97.

Haras du Quesnay

Head undertook extensive restoration of the facilities and in 1959 brought in the farm's first stallion. Over the years he and his wife Ghislaine developed Haras du Quesnay into one of the leading stud farms in France, with horses acquired from across

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The farm would be home to prominent sires and broodmares. In the 1960s, Head reportedly was training 140 horses, the majority being owned by

Pierre Wertheimer Pierre Wertheimer (8 January 1888 – 24 April 1965) was a French businessman, who co-founded Chanel with Coco Chanel. Early life Wertheimer was born 8 January 1888, the second of two sons, to Ernest Wertheimer and Mathilde Wertheimer (née Bol ...

or the

Aga Khan IV Prince Karim al-Husseini (13 December 1936 – 4 February 2025), known as the Aga Khan IV, was the 49th Imamah, imam of Imamate in Nizari doctrine, Nizari Isma'ilism from 1957 until his death in 2025. He inherited the Imamate in Nizari doctrine ...

.''French Bid For Moore''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuous ...

, 19 November 1962.

References

1924 births 2022 deaths People from Deauville French horse trainers French racehorse owners and breeders Owners of Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winners {{France-sport-bio-stub