The Snow Fairy Fillies' Stakes is a
Group 3 Group 3 may refer to:
* Group 3 element, chemical element classification
* Group 3 (motorsport), FIA classification of cars used in auto racing and rallying
* Group 3, the third tier of races in worldwide Thoroughbred horse racing
* Group 3 image ...
flat horse race
Horse racing is an 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 sports, as its bas ...
in Ireland open to
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 ...
fillies
A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use:
*In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old.
*In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, th ...
and
mare
A mare is an adult female horse or other equidae, equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more th ...
s aged three years or older. It is run at the
Curragh
The Curragh ( ; ) is a flat open plain in County Kildare, Ireland. This area is well known for horse breeding and training. The Irish National Stud is on the edge of Kildare town, beside the Japanese Gardens. Pollardstown Fen, the larges ...
over a distance of 1 mile and 1 furlong (1,811 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each year in late August or early September.
The event was originally sponsored by
Moyglare Stud and named after
Dance Design
Dance Design (foaled 18 February 1993) is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. She competed in five different countries and won seven times from nineteen starts in a track career which lasted from August 1995 to November 1998.
She sh ...
, a successful Moyglare filly in the 1990s. It was established in 2005, and it was initially classed at Listed level. It was promoted to Group 3 status in 2009.
In 2012 the race was sponsored by
Lanwades Stud and run as the Lanwades Stud Fillies' Stakes. The 2014 running was sponsored by Xtravision and HMV in support of the Irish Autism Action charity. In 2016 the race was renamed after
Snow Fairy
Snow Fairy (foaled 12 February 2007) is a retired Thoroughbred racehorse who was bred in Ireland and trained in England by Ed Dunlop. She made little impression on the racecourse as a two-year-old, winning only one race out of six. She started h ...
, the winner of the
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 ya ...
and
Irish Oaks
The Irish Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 4 furlongs (2,414 metres), and it ...
in 2010.
Records
Most successful horse:
* ''no horse has won this race more than once''
Leading
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 ...
(2 wins):
*
Joseph O'Brien - ''Up (2012), Say (2013)''
*
Pat Smullen
Patrick Joseph Smullen (22 May 1977 – 15 September 2020), was an Irish jockey who won the Irish flat racing Champion Jockey title nine times. In a career running from 1992 to 2018 he rode 1,845 winners in Ireland and 47 in Britain. Amongst hi ...
- ''Chinese White (2009), Carla Bianca (2014)''
*
Fran Berry
Francis Martin Berry (born 2 January 1981) in County Kildare is a retired Irish jockey who competed principally in Flat racing. Berry's father, Frank Berry, was Irish jump racing champion jockey ten times, and saddled Fran's first winner on M ...
- ''Bible Belt (2011), Bocca Baciata (2015)''
*
Ryan Moore - ''Rain Goddess (2017), Goddess (2019)''
*
Seamie Heffernan
James Anthony "Seamie" Heffernan (born 17 July 1972) is an Irish flat racing jockey associated for most of his career with the stable of horse racing trainer Aidan O'Brien. From a family with no racing connections, Heffernan was introduced to t ...
- '' Somehow (2016), Red Riding Hood (2023) ''
*
Chris Hayes
Christopher Loffredo Hayes (; born February 28, 1979) is an American political commentator, television news anchor, and author. Hayes hosts '' All In with Chris Hayes'', a weekday news and opinion television show on MSNBC. Hayes also hosts a w ...
- '' Beach Bunny (2008), Tarawa (2024) ''
Leading
trainer (6 wins):
*
Aidan O'Brien
Aidan Patrick O'Brien (born 16 October 1969 in County Wexford, Ireland)[ Aidan O'Brien bio NTRA. ...](_blank)
- ''Up (2012), Say (2013), Somehow (2016), Rain Goddess (2017), Goddess (2019), Red Riding Hood (2023)''
Winners
See also
*
Horse racing in Ireland
Horse racing in Ireland is intricately linked with Culture of Ireland, Irish culture and society. The racing of horses has a long history on the island, being mentioned in some of the Irish mythology, earliest texts. Domestically, racing is on ...
*
List of Irish flat horse races
A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of the list-maker, but ...
References
----
*
Racing Post
''Racing Post'' is a British daily horse racing, greyhound racing, and sports betting publisher published in print and digital formats. It is printed in tabloid format from Monday to Sunday. , it has an average daily circulation of 60,629 ...
:
** , , , , , , , , ,
** , , , , , , , {{Racing Post, 818989, 2022, 08, 26, 178
----
galopp-sieger.de– ''Dance Design Stakes.''
horseracingintfed.com– ''International Federation of Horseracing Authorities – Snow Fairy Stakes (2018).''
pedigreequery.com– ''Dance Design Stakes – Curragh.''
Flat races in Ireland
Curragh Racecourse
Mile category horse races for fillies and mares
Horse races established in 2005