Carroll House (5 March 1985 – 8 February 2008) was an Irish-bred, British-trained
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. In a racing career which lasted from September 1987 until July 1990 he raced twenty times in six countries and won seven races. His most important win came in October 1989 when he won 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 ...
in Paris. His other wins included the
Phoenix Champion Stakes
The Irish Champion Stakes ( Irish: Curadh-Dhuais na hÉireann) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Leopardstown over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlongs (2, ...
,
Grosser Preis von Baden
The Grosser Preis von Baden is a Group 1 flat horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Baden-Baden over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is sched ...
,
Princess of Wales's Stakes
The Princess of Wales's Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile and 4 furlon ...
,
Furstenberg Rennen and Welsh Derby. At the end of his racing career he was retired to become a breeding stallion in Japan and Ireland but had little success as a sire of winners.
Background
Carroll House was a chestnut colt with a white
star
A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by its gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night, but their immense distances from Earth make ...
bred in Ireland by Mrs P Clarke. He was sired by Lord Gayle, an American-bred stallion who won the
Prix Perth
The Prix Perth is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Saint-Cloud over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is scheduled to take ...
in 1970. Lord Gayle's other winning progeny included
Blue Wind
Blue Wind (3 May 1978 – 21 June 1996) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare best known for winning the classic Oaks Stakes in 1981. She showed promising form as a two-year-old in 1980 when she won two of her five races inclu ...
(
Epsom Oaks
The Oaks Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards ...
),
Desirable, Gay Lemur (
Jockey Club Stakes) and the leading
hurdler Pollardstown. Carroll House's dam Tuna, was of little use as a racehorse, but produced several winners including the successful
handicappers Brother Kempinski and Jean-Claude.
Carroll House was sent to the sales as a foal and was sold for 15,000
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 ...
. A year later he was sold again for 32,000 guineas and entered the ownership of Anglo-Irish businessman
Gerald Carroll
Gerald John Howard Carroll (born 1951) is a British businessman. He was the head of his family business the Carroll Group, once one of the largest private companies in the United Kingdom, until it collapsed in the early 1990s, leading to his ban ...
.
He was sent to be trained at
Newmarket, Suffolk
Newmarket is a market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk, England. Located (14 miles) west of Bury St Edmunds and (14 miles) northeast of Cambridge. It is considered the birthplace and global centre of thoroughbred ...
by
Michael Jarvis
Michael Jarvis (14 August 1938 – 20 September 2011) was a Thoroughbred horse trainer in England. Based in Newmarket, Jarvis trained numerous Group One winners including three winners of the British Haydock Sprint Cup. Jarvis's horses also w ...
.
Racing career
1987: two-year-old season
Carroll House made his first racecourse appearance at Newmarket in September 1987. He looked very immature but showed promise to finish fourth. Three weeks later he recorded his first win when he defeated seventeen opponents 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
Newbury Racecourse
Newbury Racecourse is a racecourse and events venue in the civil parish of Greenham, adjoining the town of Newbury in Berkshire, England. It has courses for flat races and over jumps. It hosts one of Great Britain's 36 annual Group 1 flat ...
. Timeform commented "will stay 1¼m: sure to win more races, and is probably useful 3-y-o in the making".
1988: three-year-old season
As a three-year-old, Carroll House was ridden in all but one of his races by the jockey
Bruce Raymond. In the spring he finished third in both the Feilden Stakes at Newmarket and the
Prix Hocquart
The Prix Hocquart is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1 mile and 4 furlongs) at ...
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 ...
before being sent to Italy to contest the
Derby Italiano
The Derby Italiano is a Group 2 flat horse race in Italy open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Capannelle over a distance of 2,200 metres (about 1 mile and 3 furlongs), and it is scheduled to take place each year in ...
over 2400
metres
The metre ( British spelling) or meter ( American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pr ...
at
Capannelle Racecourse in Rome. Racing on soft ground he was beaten a short head by the locally trained Tisserand six length clear of the rest of the field. Following this race, Carroll House was bought by the Italian Antonio Balzarini.
Carroll House returned to the United Kingdom in July for the Welsh Derby at
Chepstow Racecourse
Chepstow Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing course located just north of the town of Chepstow in Monmouthshire, Wales, near the southern end of the Wye Valley and close to the border with England. It is one of 16 racecourses operated by t ...
and won by one and a half
lengths
Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the In ...
from Golden Wave. Ten days later he appeared in Germany, where he finished first 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 race system introduce ...
Grosser Preis von Berlin
The Großer Preis von Berlin, formerly known as the Deutschland-Preis, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Hoppegarten over a distance of 2,400 metres ...
at
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in ...
but was relegated to third place by the local stewards. On 28 August Carroll House returned to Germany and won the Group Three
Fürstenberg-Rennen at
Baden-Baden
Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the Rhine, the border with France, ...
by one and a half lengths. A week later at the same course, the colt contested Germany's most important
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 Grosser Preis von Baden over 2400 metres. Racing on very soft ground he won by three and a half lengths from the five-year-old Helikon, with the French-trained Boyatino in third. Carroll House competed in Italy in the autumn of 1988, but failed to win, finishing third to Roakarad in the
Gran Premio del Jockey Club in Milan and fourth behind Welsh Guide in the
Premio Roma.
1989: four-year-old season
On his first appearance as a four-year-old, Carroll House ran in England for the first time in over a year when he started a
33/1 outsider for the
Gordon Richards Stakes over ten furlongs 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 races and one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse ...
. Ridden for the first time by
Walter Swinburn
Walter Robert John Swinburn (7 August 1961 – 12 December 2016) was a flat racing jockey and trainer who competed in Great Britain and internationally.
Biography
Swinburn was born in Oxford. He was the son of Wally Swinburn, who won t ...
he took the lead two furlongs from the finish and maintained his advantage until the final strides when he was caught and beaten in a three-way
photo-finish by
Indian Skimmer and Per Quod. Three weeks later he appeared at the
Curragh Racecourse
The Curragh Racecourse -- usually referred to as simply the Curragh -- is one of Ireland's most important Thoroughbred racecourses. It is situated on the Curragh plain in County Kildare, between the towns of Newbridge and Kildare.
History ...
in Ireland where he carried top weight of 130
pounds in the
Tattersalls Gold Cup and finished third to
Ile de Chypre.
In July, Carroll House was matched against the
Hardwicke Stakes
The Hardwicke Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 211 yards (2,406 metres), and ...
winner Assatis in the Princess of Wales's Stakes over one and a half miles at Newmarket. Swinburn sent the colt into the lead three furlongs from the finish and Carroll House held off the challenge of Assatis to win by a neck, with the future
St Leger
The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a ...
winner
Michelozzo
Michelozzo di Bartolomeo Michelozzi (1396 – 7 October 1472) was an Italian architect and sculptor. Considered one of the great pioneers of architecture during the Renaissance, Michelozzo was a favored Medici architect who was extensively empl ...
in third. Eleven days later, Carroll House contested Britain's most prestigious weight-for-age race, the
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 ...
. Racing on unsuitably firm ground, he started a 33/1 outsider and finished fifth of the seven runners behind
Nashwan
Nashwan (1 March 1986 – 2002) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. After winning both his starts as a two-year-old, he developed into an outstanding performer in the spring and summer of 1989, completing ...
,
Cacoethes, Top Class and
Sheriff's Star
Sheriff's Star (27 April 1985 – after 1995) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. As a two-year-old he won his first two races before establishing himself as one of the best British colts of his generation with a close second in ...
.
On 2 September, Carroll House was moved down in distance for the Group One Phoenix Champion Stakes over ten furlongs at
Phoenix Park Racecourse
Phoenix Park Racecourse is a former horse racing venue in Ireland. It was located in the townlands of Ashtown and Castleknock in the civil parish of Castleknock on the northern edge of the Phoenix Park in Dublin. The course was founded by JHH ...
in Dublin. Ridden by
Mick Kinane
Michael J. Kinane (born 22 June 1959, Killenaule, County Tipperary) is an Irish former flat racing jockey. He had a 34-year career, retiring on 8 December 2009.
A prolific winner of the Irish, English and French Classic ra ...
, the colt raced just behind the leaders before making a sustained challenge in the straight. He took the lead inside the final furlong and won by three-quarters of a lengths from the
Henry Cecil
Sir Henry Richard Amherst Cecil (11 January 1943 – 11 June 2013) was a British flat racing horse trainer. Cecil was very successful, becoming Champion Trainer ten times and training 25 domestic Classic winners. These comprised four winners ...
-trained three-year-old Citidancer. Five weeks later Carroll House was one of nineteen horses to contest the 68th running of France's premier flat race, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe over 2400 metres at Longchamp. The undefeated three-year-old
In The Wings started favourite ahead of Cacoethes, Saint Andrews, Young Mother and Behera, with Carroll House, ridden again by Kinane starting at odds of 18.9/1. Carroll House raced just behind the leaders on the wide outside of the field, turning into the straight in fourth place. He overtook Saint Andrews 200 metres from the finish and won by one and a half lengths from Behera. Following his win in the Arc, Carroll House was sold to the Japanese breeder Zenya Yoshida, owner of the
Shadai Stallion Station. On his final appearance of the year he ran on unsuitably firm ground in the
Japan Cup at
Tokyo Racecourse
is located in Fuchu, Tokyo, Japan. Built in 1933 for horse racing, it is considered the "racecourse of racecourses" in Japanese horseracing. It has a capacity of 223,000, with seating for 13,750.
Tokyo Racecourse hosts numerous G1 (Grade 1) ...
on 26 November. He finished unplaced behind the New Zealand-bred mare
Horlicks
Horlicks is a sweet malted milk hot drink powder developed by founders James and William Horlick. It was first sold as "Horlick's Infant and Invalids Food", soon adding "aged and travellers" to their label. In the early 20th century, it was ...
.
1990: five-year-old season
Carroll House remained in training as a five-year-old but failed to reproduce his previous form in two races. Jarvis struggled to bring the horse to full fitness as the ground at Newmarket was unusually firm. He finished last of the seven runners behind Assatis in the Hardwicke Stakes, and fourth to In The Wings in the
Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud
The Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Saint-Cloud over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it i ...
. In the latter race he sustained an injury which ended his racing career.
Assessment
In their book, ''A Century of Champions'', based on the Timeform rating system, John Randall and Tony Morris rated Carroll House an "inferior" winner of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
Stud record
Carroll House began his stud career in Japan in 1991. He was later returned to Europe in October 1996 where he stood as a breeding stallion in Ireland at the Sunnyhill Stud in
County Kildare
County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the ...
and the Garryrichard Stud in
County Wexford. He had little success as a sire of flat race horses, but did have more success with his
National Hunt
In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: ...
horses including Roll Along the winner of the 2008
United House Gold Cup
The Sodexo Live! Gold Cup is a Premier Handicap National Hunt race in Great Britain. It is a handicap steeplechase and is run at Ascot in late October or early November, over a distance of about 3 miles (2 miles, 7 fu ...
.
Pedigree
References
{{Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe Winners
Arc winners
1985 racehorse births
2008 racehorse deaths
Racehorses bred in Ireland
Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom
Thoroughbred family 14-c