Assert (17 April 1979 – 14 September 1995) was an Irish

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 sire. As a two-year-old he was beaten by

Golden Fleece In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece ( el, Χρυσόμαλλον δέρας, ''Chrysómallon déras'') is the fleece of the golden-woolled,, ''Khrusómallos''. winged ram, Chrysomallos, that rescued Phrixus and brought him to Colchis, wh ...

on his debut but went on to win the Beresford Stakes. In the following year he won four Group One races: the French Derby,

Irish Derby The Irish Derby ( Irish: Dearbaí na hÉireann) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distanc ...

, Benson & Hedges Gold Cup and

Joe McGrath Memorial Stakes Joe or JOE may refer to: Arts Film and television * ''Joe'' (1970 film), starring Peter Boyle * ''Joe'' (2013 film), starring Nicolas Cage * ''Joe'' (TV series), a British TV series airing from 1966 to 1971 * ''Joe'', a 2002 Canadian animated ...

. He was rated the best middle-distance horse in Europe in 1982 by Timeform. He was retired to stud at the end of his three-year-old season and became a successful sire of winners.

Background

Assert was a bay horse with a white blaze and three

socks A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. In the lat ...

bred in Ireland by the Moyglare Stud. He was from the first crop of foals sired by Be My Guest, an American-bred stallion who won the

Waterford Crystal Mile The Celebration Mile 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 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is scheduled to ...

when trained in Ireland by

Vincent O'Brien Vincent O'Brien (9 April 1917 – 1 June 2009) was an Irish race horse trainer from Churchtown, County Cork, Ireland. In 2003 he was voted the greatest influence in horse racing history in a worldwide poll hosted by the ''Racing Post''. In e ...

. Be My Guest's other offspring included On The House, Pentire Go and Go and Luth Enchantee. Assert's dam Irish Bird, was a half-sister of Irish Ball, a colt who finished third in the Epsom Derby before winning the

Irish Derby The Irish Derby ( Irish: Dearbaí na hÉireann) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distanc ...

in 1971. A year before foaling Assert, Irish Bird had produced Bikala, who won the Prix du Jockey-Club 1981. Another of her foals was

Eurobird Eurobird was a series of satellites owned and operated by Eutelsat. The Eurobird satellites provided broadcasting and telecommunication services primarily to the Western and Central European region from orbital positions of 9, 25.5 and 33 degrees ...

, a filly who won the Irish St. Leger. 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 Mo ...

Assert was sent to the ales in France and was bought for 160,000 francs (approximately £16,000) and entered the ownership of

Robert Sangster Robert Edmund Sangster (23 May 1936 – 7 April 2004)

. He was trained throughout his racing career by David O'Brien.

Racing career

1981: two-year-old season

Assert made his racecourse debut in 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 ...

over one mile at

Leopardstown Racecourse Leopardstown Racecourse is an Irish horse-racing venue, located in Leopardstown, Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, 8 km south of the Dublin city centre. Like the majority of Irish courses, it hosts both National Hunt and Flat racing. The cours ...

in September. He showed his inexperience (ran "very green") but finished second behind the impressive winner

. Three weeks later he was (theoretically at least) moved up in class for the Group Three Beresford Stakes over a mile at the

Curragh The Curragh ( ; ga, An Currach ) is a flat open plain of almost of common land in County Kildare. This area is well known for Irish horse breeding and training. The Irish National Stud is located on the edge of Kildare town, beside the ...

. Ridden by

Christy Roche Christy Roche (born 3 December 1949 in Bansha, County Tipperary) is a retired Irish flat racing Champion Jockey and racehorse trainer. Over his thirty-year career between 1968 and 1998 he won the Irish Derby three times, in 1982, 1992 and 19 ...

, he took the lead early in the straight and won easily by four lengths from the odds-on favourite Longleat. On his final appearance of the year, Assert was sent to England for the Group One William Hill Futurity at

Doncaster Racecourse Doncaster Racecourse (also known as the Town Moor course) is a racecourse in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. It hosts two of Great Britain's 36 annual Group 1 flat races, the St Leger Stakes and the Racing Post Trophy. History D ...

. He started third favourite but finished eighth of the thirteen runners behind Count Pahlen.

1982: three-year-old season

Assert began his three-year-old season in the Nijinsky Stakes over ten furlongs in May in which he again finished second to Golden Fleece. Two weeks later, Assert was moved up in distance for the Gallinule Stakes over one and a half miles at the Curragh and recorded a wide-margin victory over Rivellino. Golden Fleece was Sangster's representative in the Epsom Derby and so Assert was sent to contest the French equivalent, the Prix du Jockey Club over 2400m at

Chantilly Racecourse Chantilly Racecourse (In French: "Hippodrome de Chantilly") is a Thoroughbred turf racecourse for flat racing in Chantilly, Oise, France, about north of the centre of the city of Paris. Chantilly Racecourse is located in the country's main ...

four days later. Starting the 2.2/1 favourite he took the lead from Real Shadai in the straight and pulled clear to win by three lengths. He was the first foreign trained-horse to win the race since its inception in 1836. Three weeks later, Assert started 4/7 favourite for the Irish Derby at the Curragh, with the American-bred, British-trained Silver Hawk appearing to provide his only serious opposition. Assert took the lead and quickly went clear of the field to win very easily from Silver Hawk by a margin officially recorded as eight lengths (Timeform made it ten lengths). Assert became the first horse to win both the Prix du Jockey Club and Irish Derby. Assert was then matched against older horses for the first time in Britain's most prestigious

weight-for-age {{use dmy dates, date=October 2022 Weight for Age (WFA) is a term in thoroughbred horse racing which is one of the conditions for a race. History The principle of WFA was developed by Admiral Rous, a handicapper with the English Jockey Club. Rou ...

race, the

King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes The King George VI and Queen Elizabeth 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 one and a half miles at

Ascot Racecourse Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races a ...

on 24 July. He started the 10/11 favourite ahead of his half-brother Bikala who had beaten a strong field in the

Prix Ganay The Prix Ganay is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 2,100 metres (about 1 mile and 2½ furlongs) at Long ...

on his previous start. The other main contenders were Kalaglow, Height of Fashion and

Glint of Gold Glint of Gold (5 April 1978 – 1990) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. A middle-distance specialist, he was noted for his toughness and consistency, winning ten races, finishing second six times and third once in a seventeen ra ...

. Assert went past Bikala on the turn into the straight and held off a strong challenge from Glint of Gold, but was caught inside the final furlong and beaten a neck by Kalaglow. On 17 August Assert was 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 ...

in the eleventh running of the Benson and Hedges Gold Cup over ten and a half 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 in prize money offered per meeting. It attracts around 350, ...

. Starting the 4/5 favourite against six British-trained opponents, he took the lead from the start and pulled clear in the straight vo win easily by six lengths from Norwick. A month later, Assert started the 1/4 favourite for the Joe McGrath Memorial Stakes over ten furlongs. With Roche back in the saddle, he went eight lengths clear in the straight before being eased down to win by three lengths from Kind of Hush. Timeform described the race as being "little more than an exercise gallop" for the winner. On 3 October, Assert started 5/2 favourite for the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racec ...

on very soft ground at

Longchamp Racecourse The Longchamp Racecourse (french: Hippodrome de Longchamp) is a 57 hectare horse-racing facility located on the Route des Tribunes at the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, France. It is used for flat racing and is noted for its variety of interlaced ...

. He was well-positioned turning into the straight but dropped away in the closing stage and finished eleventh of the seventeen runners behind

Akiyda Akiyda (foaled 21 April 1979) was a British-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare best known for winning France's mot prestigious race, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in 1982. After winning her only race as a two-year-old she w ...

Assessment

In 1981, Assert was given a rating of 113 by the independent Timeform organisation, nineteen pounds below their top-rated two-year-old colt Wind and Wuthering. In the official International Classification he was rated thirteen pounds behind the top-rated

Green Forest Green Forest (18 February 1979 – 2000) was an American-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. The best colt of his generation in France at two and three years of age, and the best miler in Europe in 1982, he won five of his ...

. In the following season he was rated the second-best three-year-old in Europe (and the joint-second-best horse of any age) behind Golden Fleece. Timeform rated him on 134, a pound ahead of Golden Fleece and level with Ardross and

as the best horse of the year. He was also named the year's best middle-distance horse by Timeform.

Stud record

At the end of his three-year-old season, Assert was syndicated with an estimated value of $25,000,000 and sent to North America to become a breeding stallion at the Windfield Farm in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; ...

. He sired many good winners, including Dancehall (

Grand Prix de Paris The Grand Prix de Paris is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and ...

), Lecroix (

Union-Rennen The Union-Rennen is a Group 2 flat horse race in Germany open to three-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Cologne over a distance of 2,200 metres (about 1 mile and 3 furlongs), and it is scheduled to take place each year in June. History The ...

), Tzar Rodney ( Prix La Force), Timely Assertion (

Santa Anita Oaks Santa Anita Oaks is an American Grade II Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early April at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. Open to three-year-old fillies willing to race 8.5 furlongs ( miles) on the dirt. The race is a Grade II even ...

), Square Cut ( San Luis Obispo Handicap), All My Dreams ( Deutsches Derby), Betty Lobelia ( Miss Grillo Stakes),

Nomadic Way Nomadic Way (3 March 1985 – May 2012) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was a successful stayer on the flat and was a top class hurdler under National Hunt rules, switching between the two codes in ...

(

Stayers' Hurdle The Stayers' Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain. It is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run on the New Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 3 mile ...

Cesarewitch Handicap The Cesarewitch Handicap is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Newmarket over a distance of 2 miles and 2 furlongs (3,621 metres ...

Irish Champion Hurdle The Irish Champion Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Ireland which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Leopardstown over a distance of about 2 miles (3,219 metres), and d ...

) and Running Flame ( Hollywood Turf Cup). Assert died in Sicily on 14 September 1995, aged 16.'Assert Horse Pedigree'
Pedigree Query, undated. Retrieved 22 July 2022

Pedigree

* Assert was inbred 4 × 4 to Nearco, meaning that this stallion appears twice in the fourth generation of his pedigree.

References

{{reflist 1979 racehorse births 1995 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in Ireland French Thoroughbred Classic Race winners Irish Classic Race winners Thoroughbred family 8-c