Desert Hero is a British racehorse. He is owned by King

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

and

Queen Camilla Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is List of British royal consorts, Queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. Camilla was raised in East ...

. He was born in 2020 and was bred by Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

. In 2023, he won the

King George V Stakes The King George V Stakes is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old horses. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 211 yards (2,406 metres), a ...

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 ...

Career

Desert Hero was foaled on 29 January 2020. He was bred by Queen Elizabeth II as part of her breeding programmes. His sire was the former

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, more commonly known as the Derby and sometimes referred to as the Epsom Derby, is a Group races, Group 1 flat Horse racing, horse race in England open to three-year-old Colt (horse), colts and Filly, fillies. It is run at Ep ...

winner

Sea the Stars Sea The Stars (foaled 6 April 2006) is a retired champion Irish Thoroughbred racehorse regarded as one of the greatest racehorses of all time. He won the 2000 Guineas, the Derby, the Eclipse Stakes – the first colt to accomplish this treble ...

. He was formerly owned by the Queen until her death in 2022, when he was inherited by King Charles III. Desert Hero started racing in 2022, winning his debut race at the Novice Stakes at

Haydock Park Racecourse Haydock Park Racecourse is a racecourse in Merseyside, North West England. The racecourse is set in an area of parkland bounded by the towns of Haydock to the west, Ashton-in-Makerfield to the north, Golborne to the east and Newton-le-Willows ...

. He also won the Novice Stakes at

Redcar Racecourse Redcar Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue located in Redcar, North Yorkshire, England. The racecourse was opened in 1872. History Racing began at Redcar on the sands at Redcar beach in the early 18th century. The final meet ...

. in his first race of 2023, Desert Hero finished outside of the top 5. His next race came at

whereby his trainer

William Haggas William Haggas is a British Thoroughbred racehorse trainer, based at Somerville Lodge stables in Newmarket, Suffolk. He is the son-in-law of the multiple champion jockey Lester Piggott. He was educated at Harrow and played cricket at Lord' ...

had aimed for at least one of the King's horses to win as the King was attending all five days. Being ridden by Tom Marquand and starting in stall 21, Desert Hero won the

, giving King Charles his first Royal Ascot winner since becoming king. Marquand's ride in this race won him the 2023

Lester Award A Lester Award is one of a range of awards given to jockeys at an annual ceremony in Great Britain. The awards are named in honour of Lester Piggott, an eleven-time British flat racing Champion Jockey who won thirty British Classic Races from 1954 ...

for Flat Ride of the Year. Desert Hero followed this up with a win in the Gordon Stakes at

Glorious Goodwood 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 late ...

. Desert Hero later raced in the

St Leger Stakes 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 ...

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 List of British flat horse races#Group 1, 36 annual Group One, Group 1 flat races, the St Leger ...

, being watched by King Charles and

but only finished third. There were plans for Desert Hero to race in the

Melbourne Cup The Melbourne Cup is an annual Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia, at the Flemington Racecourse. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and older, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club that forms part of the ...

and he had received first acceptance and

Racing Victoria Racing Victoria Limited, as the governing principal racing authority, has responsibilities to develop, encourage, promote and manage the conduct of Thoroughbred horse racing in the State of Victoria, Australia. It assumed this responsibility, from ...

's pre-quarantine tests, but it was decided not to enter him in order to rest him after the St Leger Stakes race as well as to allow him to mature more. In his 2024 season, Desert Hero did not win a race but finished second in the

Gordon Richards Stakes The Gordon Richards Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 1 furlong and 209 yards ...

References

{{Reflist Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom British racehorses 2020 racehorse births Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Charles III Thoroughbred family 8-f