Gay Mecene
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Gay Mecene (16 May 1975 – 24 December 1998) was an American-bred, French-trained
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 ...
racehorse 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 ...
and
sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" an ...
. After winning his only race as a two-year-old in 1977, he developed into one of the best French-trained colts of his generation when he won the
Prix de Guiche The Prix de Guiche is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts. It is run over a distance of at Chantilly in May. History The event is named after Antoine& ...
,
Prix Eugène Adam The Prix Eugène Adam is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Maisons-Laffitte over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1 miles), and it is scheduled to ta ...
and
Prix Niel The Prix Niel is a Group 2 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), in September each ...
. Although he won only once in six races in the following year he showed arguably his best form when easily beating a top-class field 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 is ...
and running second to
Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...
in 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 ...
. He later stood as a breeding stallion in France and Japan and had some success as a sire of winners.


Background

Gay Mecene was a dark bay or brown horse with no white
markings Marking may refer to: Symbols Marking may refer to human-made symbols and annotations in several contexts: On vehicles * Aircraft marking * Emergency vehicle equipment markings ** Battenburg markings, emergency vehicle patterns * Vehicle marki ...
bred in Kentucky by Jacqueline Getty. His sire, Vaguely Noble, won 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 1968 before becoming a successful breeding stallion whose best progeny included
Dahlia ''Dahlia'' ( , ) is a genus of bushy, tuberous, herbaceous perennial plants native to Mexico and Central America. Dahlias are members of the Asteraceae (synonym name: Compositae) family of dicotyledonous plants, its relatives include the sun ...
,
Exceller Exceller (May 12, 1973 – April 7, 1997) is widely considered one of the best horses to race in the United States not to win a year-end championship. Despite his exemplary achievements as a racehorse, and his unique accomplishment in being the ...
and
Empery Empery (foaled 1973 in Kentucky) was an American-bred, French-trained racehorse best known for winning the 1976 Epsom Derby. In a racing career which lasted from September 1975 until July 1976 he ran eight times and won two races. Empery showed s ...
. Gay Mecene's dam Gay Missile was a high-class racemare whose wins included the
Ashland Stakes The Ashland Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early April at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. It and the Ashland Oaks, the Kentucky Association racetrack's predecessor race, were named fo ...
in 1970 before becoming an influential broodmare whose other descendants included
Duke of Marmalade Duke of Marmalade (12 March 2004 – 5 November 2021) was an Irish Thoroughbred horseracing, racehorse and sire (horse), sire. He is best known for winning five consecutive Conditions races, Group One races in 2008, for which he was named Carti ...
,
Lemon Drop Kid Lemon Drop Kid (May 26, 1996 – December 13, 2024) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. Best known for winning the 1999 Belmont Stakes, he was also the champion older horse of 2000 after winning the Brooklyn, Suburban, Whitney H ...
,
A.P. Indy A.P. Indy (March 31, 1989 – February 21, 2020) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Belmont Stakes and Breeders' Cup Classic on his way to American Horse of the Year honors in 1992. His time in the Belmont Stakes tied Easy Goer for ...
and
Summer Squall Summer Squall (March 12, 1987 – September 22, 2009) was an American thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and Horse breeding#Terminology, sire, best known for his win in the 1990 Preakness Stakes, and his rivalry with Unbridled, whom he defeated ...
. 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 ...
Gay Mecene was sent to Europe and offered for sale at the Newmarket Houghton sales where he was bought for 60,000
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 m ...
by representatives of the French businessman
Jacques Wertheimer Jacques Guy Wertheimer (18 August 1911 – 6 February 1996) was a prominent French businessman who inherited and ran the renowned House of Chanel perfume company. Wertheimer was born at Les Forgettes villa in Deauville, to a Jewish family,
. He was then sent to France where he was trained by
Alec Head 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. A descendant of the trainers who founded the English Racing Colony in Chantilly, Oise, Head's gran ...
at
Chantilly Chantilly may refer to: Places France *Chantilly, Oise, a city ** US Chantilly, a football club *Château de Chantilly United States * Chantilly, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Chantilly (Charlotte neighborhood), North Carolina ...
.


Racing career


1977: two-year-old season

Gay Mecene made one appearance as a two-year-old in 1977, recording a short-head victory 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 1600
metres The metre (or meter in US spelling; symbol: m) is the base unit of length in the International System of Units (SI). Since 2019, the metre has been defined as the length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval of of ...
at
Saint-Cloud Racecourse Hippodrome de Saint-Cloud is a grass race course for Thoroughbred flat horse racing opened in 1901 at 1 rue du Camp Canadien in Saint-Cloud near Paris, France. During World War 1, the race course site housed the No. 4 Canadian Stationary Hospita ...
.


1978: three-year-old season

On his three-year-old debut, Gay Mecene was matched against Super Concorde, the top-rated French two-year-old of 1977, in the Group Three Prix de Guiche over 1950m at
Longchamp Racecourse The Longchamp Racecourse (, ) is a 57 hectare horse-racing facility located on the Route des Tribunes at the Bois de Boulogne in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. It is used for flat racing and is noted for ...
on 19 April. Starting the 3.9/1 second favourite, he was always going well and won comfortably by one and a half lengths from Peloppones, with Super Concorde running poorly in fifth. The win established Gay Mecene as a contender for the
French Classic Races The French Classic Races are a series of Group One Thoroughbred horse races run annually on the flat. The races were instituted in the nineteenth century, taking the British Classic Races as a model. In the original scheme, one race, the Poule d' ...
but when moved up to Group One class for the Prix Lupin on 14 May he finished fourth behind
Acamas Acamas or Akamas (; Ancient Greek: Ἀκάμας) was a name attributed to several characters in Greek mythology. The following three all fought in the Trojan War, and only the first was not mentioned by Homer. * Acamas, son of Theseus, mentioned ...
, Pyjama Hunt and Turville after having briefly held the lead in the straight. Gay Mecene bypassed the
Prix du Jockey Club The Prix du Jockey Club, sometimes referred to as the French Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Chantilly ov ...
and reappeared in the
Prix Eugène Adam The Prix Eugène Adam is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Maisons-Laffitte over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1 miles), and it is scheduled to ta ...
at Saint-Cloud on 16 July in which he started second favourite behind Pyjama Hunt, who had finished fourth in The Derby and was carrying five pounds less weight. Gay Mecene led from the start and set a steady pace before accelerating in the straight and winning by three quarters of a length and a neck from Rusticaro and Pyjama Hunt with the
2000 Guineas The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1.6 km) and scheduled to take place each yea ...
winner
Roland Gardens Roland Gardens (foaled 9 May 1975 – after 1993) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire best known for winning the classic 2000 Guineas in 1978. During a racing career which lasted from 1977 until 1979 he ran sixteen times and won fo ...
in fourth. After another long break, Gay Mecene returned on 10 September for the
Prix Niel The Prix Niel is a Group 2 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), in September each ...
over 2200m at Longchamp. On this occasion, Freddy Head employed different tactics, restraining the colt towards the rear of the ten runner field before making his challenge in the straight. He moved up to contest the lead in the last 200m and won by a short head from Noir et Or, with the pair finishing five lengths clear of the Prix du Jockey-Club runner-up Frere Basile in third. Gay Mecene was regarded as a major contender for France's most valuable and prestigious race, 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 ...
over 2400m at Longchamp on 1 October and starting the 4/1 third favourite, coupled in the betting with his stable companion
Dancing Maid Dancing Maid (29 April 1975 – 1982) was a French Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. After winning one of her two races as a two-year-old she emerged as one of the best fillies in Europe in 1978, winning the Prix Vanteaux, Poule d'Essai ...
. Ridden by Jean-Claude Desaint (Freddy Head opted to ride Dancing Maid), Gay Mecene was held up at the back of the field and was still only sixteenth of the eighteen runners on the final turn. He made steady progress in the straight but never threatened the leaders and finished eighth behind
Alleged In law, an allegation is a claim of an unproven fact by a party in a pleading, charge, or defense. Until they can be proved, allegations remain merely assertions. Types of allegations Marital allegations There are also marital allegations: ma ...
.


1979: four-year-old season

Gay Mecene began his third season in the Grand Prix d'Evry over 2400 m at
Evry Racecourse EVRY A/S was a Norwegian information technology company that supplied services relating to computing, including operation, outsourcing and online banking. The company was headquartered in Oslo. It was established through a merger between EDB B ...
on 12 May in which he dead-heated for second place with Vagaries, two lengths behind the winner Noir et Or. Three weeks later, the colt was sent to race outside France for the first time when he contested the
Coronation Cup The Coronation Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards ...
over one and a half miles on soft ground at
Epsom Downs Racecourse Epsom Downs is a Grade 1 racecourse in a hilly area near Epsom in Surrey, England which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. The "Downs" referred to in the name are part of the North Downs. The course has a crowd capacity of 130,000 including ...
. He finished a well beaten third of the four runners behind
Ile de Bourbon Ile de Bourbon (1975–1997) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a career which lasted from 1977 until October 1979 he ran twelve times and won five races. His most important success came in July 1978 wh ...
and Frere Basile, but appeared to have a legitimate excuse, as his jockey reported that the colt had never recovered after being struck in the eye by a clod of earth. Gay Mecene returned to France for the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud over 2500 m on 1 July. After three consecutive defeats he started at odds of 12/1 in a strong field which included Noir et Or,
Ela-Mana-Mou Ela-Mana-Mou (1976–2008) was a British Thoroughbred race horse and sire. In a career which lasted from 1978 until October 1980, he ran sixteen times and won ten races. He was one of the best British two-year-olds of 1978, when he defeated T ...
, Frere Basile, Soleil Noir (
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), an ...
),
Trillion ''Trillion'' is a number with two distinct definitions: *1,000,000,000,000, i.e. one million 1,000,000, million, or (ten to the twelfth Exponentiation, power), as defined on the long and short scales, short scale. This is now the meaning in bot ...
, Obraztsovy (
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), an ...
) and El Badr (
Prix du Cadran The Prix du Cadran is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 4,000 metres (about 2 miles), and it is scheduled to t ...
). Head held the colt up at the back of the field before making progress on the turn into the straight. He took the lead 300 m from the finish and accelerated clear of his rivals to record his first Group One success by four lengths from Ela-Mana-Mou: according to Timeform he "crushed" the opposition. Three weeks later, Gay Mecene made a second visit to Britain when he contested the United Kingdom'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 over one and a half miles at
Ascot Racecourse 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 Grade ...
. He was opposed again by Ela-Mana-Mou, but the 2/5 favourite was
Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...
, who had won the Epsom Derby and 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 dista ...
by seven lengths and four lengths respectively. Gay Macene was the only horse to mount a serious challenge, chasing the British colt throughout the last quarter mile and finishing second, one and a half lengths behind the winner despite swerving to the right in the final furlong. On 9 September at Longchamp, Gay Mecene started odds-on favourite for the
Prix Foy The Prix Foy is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred colts and fillies aged four years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and ...
, a trial race for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. He finished third behind Pevero and Trillion, conceding seven pounds to the winner and five to the runner-up. The colt bypassed the Arc, which the Head stable won with
Three Troikas Three Troikas (foaled 1976) was a French Thoroughbred champion racehorse owned, trained and raced by three members of the famous Head family. The highlight of her career came in the 1979 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, where she defeated the Derby ...
, and was instead sent to Germany for the
Preis von Europa The Preis von Europa is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Cologne-Weidenpesch Racecourse, Cologne over a distance ...
at
Cologne-Weidenpesch Racecourse The Cologne-Weidenpesch Racecourse (''Galopprennbahn Köln-Weidenpesch'') is a horse racing track at Weidenpescher Park in Nippes, Cologne, Nippes, Cologne. As the only race course in Germany hosting more than one European pattern Group 1 races, ...
. He started favourite, but ran poorly, finishing seventh behind
Nebos Nebos (30 March 1976 – 26 June 1999) was a German Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was one of the best horses of his generation in Germany at the age of two winning three races including the Zukunfts Rennen. In the following year he wo ...
.


Assessment

In 1978, the independent Timeform organisation gave Gay Mecene a rating of 125, eight pounds below the top-rated three-year-old
Ile de Bourbon Ile de Bourbon (1975–1997) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a career which lasted from 1977 until October 1979 he ran twelve times and won five races. His most important success came in July 1978 wh ...
. In the inaugural International Classification, a collaboration between the official handicappers of France, Ireland and the United Kingdom, Gay Mecene was rated the twelfth-best three-year-old colt in Europe. In the following year, Gay Mecene was rated 128 by Timeform, nine pounds below their Horse of the Year Troy. In the International Classification, he was rated the best older horse in France and the seventh best horse of any age in Europe.


Stud record

Gay Mecene was retired from racing to stand as a breeding stallion at the Head family's
Haras du Quesnay Haras du Quesnay, known as "Le Quesnay", was a thoroughbred horse breeding farm in France about four miles (6 km) outside the city of Deauville on 3 km². Early years The stud was established in 1907 by wealthy American sportsman William Kissam V ...
stud 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 ...
. He was exported to Japan in 1986 and died there on 24 December 1998. His best winners included: *Gay Minstrel, foaled 1981,
Prix Messidor The Prix Messidor is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Maisons-Laffitte over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is scheduled ...
, Prix Perth *Almeira, 1981,
Prix Marcel Boussac The Prix Marcel Boussac is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is s ...
,
Prix du Calvados The Prix du Calvados is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs) and it is scheduled to ...
*Long Mick, 1981,
Prix de Condé The Prix de Condé is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 1,800 metres (1 mile 1 furlong), and it is scheduled to take place ...
, Grand Prix d'Evry *Noblequest, 1982,
Prix de la Salamandre The Prix de la Salamandre was a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It was run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and it was scheduled to take place each year in Se ...
, Prix du Bois *Balbonella, 1984,
Prix Robert Papin The Prix Robert Papin is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 1,200 metres (about 6 furlongs), and it ...
, Prix de la Porte Maillot,
Dahlia Handicap The Dahlia Handicap was a race for thoroughbred horses run annually at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California. The Dahlia is open to fillies and mares, age three and up, willing to race one and one-sixteenth miles on the turf. A Grade I ...
, dam of
Anabaa Anabaa (1992 – 2009) was an American-bred champion Thoroughbred racehorse who was trained in France during a racing career which lasted from September 1995 to October 1996. Anabaa failed to win until the age of four, but in 1996 he won his ...
*Gaelic Bird, 1987,
Prix Chloé The Prix Chloé is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of , and it is scheduled to take place each year in late June or ...
,
Prix de Sandringham The Prix de Sandringham is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is scheduled to take ...


Pedigree


References

{{reflist 1975 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in France Thoroughbred family 3-l 1998 racehorse deaths