Immortal Verse
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Immortal Verse (foaled 1 May 2008) is an Irish-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
broodmare A mare is an adult female horse or other 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 than four ...
. As a two-year-old she showed promise by winning on her debut and finishing second in the
Prix d'Aumale The Prix d'Aumale is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to two-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 pl ...
. Her early form in 2011 was disappointing as she was beaten in her first two races and refused to enter the starting stalls in the
1000 Guineas The 1000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile ...
. She then made rapid improvement, winning the
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 ...
and the
Coronation Stakes The Coronation Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 7 furlong and 213 yards (1,603 metres), and it is sche ...
at
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 ...
before defeating a strong international field in the
Prix Jacques Le Marois The Prix Jacques Le Marois is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred colts and fillies aged three years or older. It is run in August each year at Deauville over a distance of ...
. She went on to finish third to
Frankel Frankel is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Benjamin Frankel (1906–1973), British composer * Bethenny Frankel (born 1970), American chef and reality television personality * Charles Frankel (1917–1975), American philoso ...
in the
Queen Elizabeth II Stakes The Queen Elizabeth II 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 a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is ...
but failed to reproduce her best form in two races as a four-year-old. After her retirement from racing she was sold at auction for 4.7 million
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 ...
setting a European record price for a
broodmare A mare is an adult female horse or other 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 than four ...
.


Background

Immortal Verse is a bay filly 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 by her owner Richard C Strauss's
County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...
-based Kilfrush Stud. Her sire Pivotal was a top class sprinter who won the
King's Stand Stakes The King Charles III Stakes (formerly the King's Stand 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 a distance of 5 fu ...
and the
Nunthorpe Stakes The Nunthorpe Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged two years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is sc ...
in 1996. He went on to become an "excellent" sire, getting the winners of more than a thousand races across a range of distances including Sariska,
Somnus In Roman mythology, Somnus ("sleep") is the personification of sleep. His Greek counterpart is Hypnos. Somnus resided in the underworld. According to Virgil, Somnus was the brother of Death ( Mors), and according to Ovid, Somnus had a 'thousand' ...
, Farhh, Kyllachy (Nunthorpe Stakes) and Excellent Art (
St James's Palace Stakes The St James's Palace Stakes is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old Colt (horse), colts. It is run at Ascot Racecourse, Ascot ...
). Her dam Side of Paradise won the listed Prix La Camargo 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 ...
in 2001, and was a half-sister to
Last Tycoon Last Tycoon (9 May 1983 – 27 May 2006) was an Irish bred Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the Breeders' Cup Mile and as a leading sire in Australia. Background Last Tycoon was bred in Ireland by his owner Richard C. Strauss's Ki ...
and the Goldene Peitsche winner Astronef. She was a granddaughter of the influential broodmare Irish Lass, whose other descendants have included
Assert Assertion or assert may refer to: Computing * Assertion (software development), a computer programming technique * assert.h, a header file in the standard library of the C programming language * Assertion definition language, a specification lan ...
,
Bikala Bikala (12 March 1978 – 25 December 1994) was an Irish-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. Having been bought very cheaply as a yearling he developed into a top-class middle-distance performer and was rated among the best ...
, Irish Ball (
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 ...
), Tie Black (
Poule d'Essai des Pouliches The Poule d'Essai des Pouliches is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile) ...
), Eurobird ( Irish St. Leger) and Valentine Waltz (Poule d'Essai des Pouliches). The filly was sent into training with
Robert Collet Robert Collet (born 6 May 1948 in Chantilly, Oise) is a French thoroughbred racehorse trainer. Robert Collet was one of the first European trainers to win a Breeders' Cup race when he won the 1986 edition of the Breeders' Cup Mile at Hollywood Pa ...
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


2010: two-year-old season

On her racecourse debut, Immortal Verse ran in the Prix d'Ommeel over 1300 metres at
Deauville Racecourse Hippodrome Deauville-La Touques is a race track for thoroughbred horse racing located in Deauville in the Calvados département, in the Normandy ''région'' of France. Originally called Hippodrome de la Touques, it was named for the Touques River ...
on 20 August. Ridden by Sebastien Maillot, she took the lead inside the last 200 metres and won by one and a half lengths from Action Chope. In September she was moved up in class and distance for the Group Three
Prix d'Aumale The Prix d'Aumale is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to two-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 pl ...
over 1600 metres 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 ...
. Starting the 2.8/1 second favourite, she finished second of the four runners behind the
Criquette Head Christiane "Criquette" Head (born 6 November 1948 at Marly-le-Roi, near Maisons-Laffitte, France) is a retired French racehorse trainer. Known as Criquette, she was born into the Thoroughbred horse racing business. Her great grandfather was a jo ...
-trained Helleborine.


2011: three-year-old season

On her first appearance as a three-year-old, Immortal Verse started joint-favourite for the Prix du Louvre over 1600 metres at Longchamp but finished fourth of the seven runners after being hampered in the closing stages. She was then sent to England to contest the
1000 Guineas The 1000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile ...
at
Newmarket Racecourse Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of ...
but was withdrawn from the race after refusing to enter the starting stalls. Two weeks later at Longchamp, Immortal Verse started a 25/1 outsider for the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches: she never looked likely to win and finished eleventh of the sixteen runners behind
Golden Lilac Golden Lilac is an Irish-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. She won her first six races including the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches and the Prix de Diane as a three-year-old in 2011. In May 2012, she defeated Cirrus des Aigles to win the ...
. At
Chantilly Racecourse Chantilly Racecourse (In French: "Hippodrome de Chantilly") is a Thoroughbred grass, turf race track, racecourse for flat racing in Chantilly, Oise, France, about north of the centre of the city of Paris. Chantilly Racecourse is located in the ...
on 5 June the filly started at odds of 8/1 in a seven-runner field for the Group Two Prix de Sandringham. The field included Esperita and Mixed Intention, who had finished ahead of Immortal Verse in the Pouliches and the Chartwell Fillies' Stakes winner Perfect Tribute from England. In a rough race, Immortal Verse bumped Esperita as she made progress from the back of the field 300 metres from the finish before taking the lead 60 metres and winning from half a length from Mixed Intention. On 17 June, Immortal Verse was one of twelve fillies to contest the Group One Coronation Stakes over one mile at
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 ...
. The 7/2 favourite was the Irish-trained Together, who had finished runner-up in both the 1000 Guineas and the
Irish 1,000 Guineas The Irish 1,000 Guineas 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 (1,609 metres), and it is sched ...
, whilst Immortal Verse, ridden for the first time by Gerald Mosse started at 8/1. The other contenders included Nova Hawk (trained by Robert Collet's son Rod Collet), Theyskens' Theory, (
Prestige Stakes The Prestige Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old fillies. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), and it is scheduled to take plac ...
), Claiomh Solais (4th in the Irish 1000 Guineas), Memory (
Cherry Hinton Stakes The Duchess of Cambridge Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old fillies. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), ...
), Joviality (
Musidora Stakes The Musidora Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 56 yards ( ...
) and Barefoot Lady (
Nell Gwyn Stakes The Nell Gwyn Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres) on the Rowley Mile ...
). Mosse restrained his mount in last place before switching to the outside to make a challenge in the straight. Immortal Verse accelerated past all her opponents, took the lead a furlong out, and drew away to win by two and a quarter lengths from Nova Hawk with Barefoot Lady taking third place. Collet described her as the best filly he had ever trained before explaining that on her previous visit to England she had become irritated and uncooperative when the stalls handlers placed a hood over head. After an eight-week break, Immortal Verse returned for the Group One Prix Jacques Le Marois at Deauville, in which she was matched for the first time against colts and older horses for the first time. She was the 10/1 fourth choice in the betting behind
Goldikova Goldikova (15 March 2005 – 5 January 2021) was an Irish-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse who was the 2010 Cartier Horse of the Year, European Horse of the Year. A filly, Goldikova won a total of 14 Group One races in her home count ...
, Mutual Trust (
Prix Jean Prat The Prix Jean Prat is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and it is s ...
) and Planteur (
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 L ...
). The other runners included Sahpresa,
Dick Turpin Richard Turpin (bapt. 21 September 1705 – 7 April 1739) was an English highwayman whose exploits were romanticised following his execution in York for horse theft. Turpin may have followed his father's trade as a butcher ear ...
(Prix Jean Prat),
Cityscape In the visual arts, a cityscape (urban landscape) is an artistic representation, such as a painting, drawing, print or photograph, of the physical aspects of a city or urban area. It is the urban equivalent of a landscape. ''Townscape'' is ...
(
Joel Stakes The Joel Stakes is a Group races, Group 2 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket Racecourse, ...
), Worthadd (
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 ...
) and Tin Horse (
Poule d'Essai des Poulains Molof (Ampas, Poule, Powle-Ma) is a poorly documented Papuan languages, Papuan language spoken by about 200 people in :id:Molof, Senggi, Keerom, Molof village, Senggi District, Keerom Regency. Classification Stephen Wurm, Wurm (1975) placed it a ...
). Mosse again restrained the filly at the back of the field before accelerating in the last 600 metres. Immortal Verse took the lead 300 metres out and held off late challenges from Goldikova and Sahpresa to win by a length and a nose. After the race, Collet said, "She proved again what I’ve always known, that she is a super filly. She had a little problem after the Coronation at Ascot as she fell in the yard and had to miss the
Rothschild Rothschild () is a name derived from the German ''zum rothen Schild'' (with the old spelling "th"), meaning "to the red shield", in reference to the houses where these family members lived or had lived. At the time, houses were designated by signs ...
. This filly is out of the ordinary and she's entered in all the top events, including the QEII". The filly was scheduled to return in the
Prix du Moulin The Prix du Moulin de Longchamp is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is s ...
at Longchamp but missed the race after a training accident. According to Collet she was working in Chantilly forest when a
jogger Jogging is a form of trotting or running at a slow or leisurely pace. The main intention is to increase physical fitness with less stress on the body than from faster running but more than walking, or to maintain a steady speed for longer periods ...
disturbed two
deer A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...
which ran across the path, causing Immortal Verse to panic, break loose and sustain a minor leg injury. In October, Immortal Verse was sent to Britain for a third time for the
Queen Elizabeth II Stakes The Queen Elizabeth II 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 a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is ...
at Ascot in which she was matched against the outstanding colt
Frankel Frankel is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Benjamin Frankel (1906–1973), British composer * Bethenny Frankel (born 1970), American chef and reality television personality * Charles Frankel (1917–1975), American philoso ...
. She started at odds of 7/1 and finished well without ever looking likely to win, finishing third to Frankel and
Excelebration Excelebration (foaled 13 April 2008) is an Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse. As a three-year-old he recorded wins in the Mehl-Mülhens-Rennen and Hungerford Stakes, before winning his first Group 1 in the Prix du Moulin de Longchamp. After fini ...
. On her final appearance of the year the filly was sent to Japan to contest the
Mile Championship The Mile Championship is an International Grade I flat horse race in Japan for thoroughbreds three-year-old and above, run over a distance of 1,600 metres (approximately 1 mile) on the turf at Kyoto Racecourse in November. It was first run in 19 ...
at
Kyoto Racecourse is located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. It is used for horse racing. It has a capacity of 120,000. The current stand was built in 1999. History Kyoto Racecourse opened at its current location in December 1, 1925. In prepara ...
in November. She produced a strong run along the inside rail in the straight, but weakened in the last 200 metres to finish seventh behind the locally trained Eishin Apollon.


2012: four-year-old season

Immortal Verse remained in training as a four-year-old but made only two appearances and failed to recover her best form. She finished last of five behind Elusive Kate in the
Prix Rothschild The Prix Rothschild is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and ...
on 29 July and eighth of eleven behind Excelebration when attempting to repeat her 2011 success in the Prix Jacques Le Marois.


Assessment

In the 2011 World Thoroughbred Rankings, Immortal verse was given a rating of 121, making her the 38th best racehorse in the world, and the best three-year-old filly trained in France.


Breeding record

Immortal Verse was retired from racing to become a broodmare. In 2013 she produced a colt foal sired by
Dansili Dansili (27 January 1996 – 22 December 2021) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. He won five races, including the Prix du Muguet. After retiring from racing he became a successful stallion, with his progeny including Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe ...
. She was covered again by Dansili in 2013 and in December that year she was offered for sale at
Tattersalls Tattersalls (formerly Tattersall's) is the main auctioneer of race horses in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Founding It was founded in 1766 by Richard Tattersall (1724–1795), who had been stud groom to the second Duke of Kingston. ...
in Newmarket. She was bought for 4.7 million
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 ...
(a European record for a broodmare) by Adrian Nicol, acting on behalf of the
Coolmore Stud Coolmore Stud, in Fethard, County Tipperary, Ireland, is the headquarters of one of the world's largest breeding operation of thoroughbred racehorses. Through its racing arm, Ballydoyle, Coolmore also has raced many classic winners and champio ...
. Her 2019 foal by
Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (also Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi da Caravaggio; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), known mononymously as Caravaggio, was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the fina ...
, named Tenebrism, won the 2021
Cheveley Park Stakes The Cheveley Park Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres) and is ...
to give Immortal Verse a first
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 races, Pattern race sys ...
win as a broodmare. Her 2022 foal, a colt by
Wootton Bassett Royal Wootton Bassett , formerly Wootton Bassett, is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 13,570 at the 2021 Census. In the north of the county, it lies to the west of the town of Swindon and northeast of ...
, named Henri Matisse, gave Immortal Verse a first classic win by winning the 2025
Poule d'Essai des Poulains Molof (Ampas, Poule, Powle-Ma) is a poorly documented Papuan languages, Papuan language spoken by about 200 people in :id:Molof, Senggi, Keerom, Molof village, Senggi District, Keerom Regency. Classification Stephen Wurm, Wurm (1975) placed it a ...
.


Pedigree

*Immortal Verse is
inbred Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders an ...
3 ×4 to Northern Dancer, meaning that the stallion appears in both the third and fourth generation of his pedigree. She is also inbred 4 × 4 to the mare Special.


References

{{reflist, 30em 2008 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in France Thoroughbred family 8-c