Phar Lap (4 October 1926 – 5 April 1932) was a New Zealand-born champion Australian
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 ...
. Achieving great success during his distinguished career, his initial underdog status gave people hope during the early years of the
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
. He won 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 ...
, two
Cox Plates, the
Australian Derby, and 19 other
weight-for-age races. He is universally revered as one of the greatest race horses of all time, not just in Australia but in the history of Thoroughbred horse racing.
One of his greatest performances was winning the
Agua Caliente Handicap
The Agua Caliente Handicap is a defunct thoroughbred horse race that was once the premier event at Agua Caliente Racetrack in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, and the richest race in North America. Inaugurated in 1917 as the Coffroth Handicap, ...
in
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
in track-record time in his final race. He won in a different country, after a bad start many lengths behind the leaders, with no training before the race, and he split his hoof during the race.
After a sudden and mysterious illness, Phar Lap died in 1932 in
Menlo Park, California
Menlo Park ( ) is a city at the eastern edge of San Mateo County, California, San Mateo County in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. It is bordered by San Francisco Bay on the north and east; East Palo Alto, California, Eas ...
. At the time, he was the third-highest stakes-winner in the world. His
mounted hide is displayed at the
Melbourne Museum, his skeleton at the
Museum of New Zealand, and his heart at the
National Museum of Australia
The National Museum of Australia (NMA), in the national capital Canberra, preserves and interprets Australia's social history, exploring the key issues, people and events that have shaped the nation. It was formally established by the ''Nation ...
.
Name
The name Phar Lap derives from the common
Zhuang and
Thai word for lightning: ฟ้าแลบ , literally 'sky flash'.
Phar Lap was called "The Wonder Horse," "The Red Terror," and "Big Red" (the latter nickname was also given to two of the greatest United States racehorses,
Man o' War and
Secretariat). He was affectionately known as "Bobby" to his
strapper Tommy Woodcock He was also sometimes referred to as "Australia's Wonder Horse."
According to the
Museum of Victoria, Aubrey Ping, a medical student at the
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...
, suggested "Farlap" as the horse's name. Ping knew the word from his father, a Zhuang-speaking Chinese immigrant. Phar Lap's trainer
Harry Telford liked the name, but changed the F to PH to create a seven letter word, which was split in two in keeping with the dominant naming pattern of Melbourne Cup winners.
Early life
A
chestnut gelding
A gelding (Help:IPA/English, /ˈɡɛldɪŋ/) is a castration, castrated male horse or other equine, such as a pony, donkey or a mule. The term is also used with certain other animals and livestock, such as domesticated Camelidae, camels. By compa ...
, Phar Lap was foaled on 4 October 1926 in Seadown
near
Timaru
Timaru (; ) is a port city in the southern Canterbury Region of New Zealand, located southwest of Christchurch and about northeast of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast of the South Island. The Timaru urban area is home to peo ...
in the
South Island
The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...
of New Zealand.
He was
sired by
Night Raid from
Entreaty by Winkie. He was by the same sire as 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 ...
winner
Nightmarch. Phar Lap was a brother to seven other horses, Fortune's Wheel, Nea Lap (won 5 races), Nightguard, All Clear, Friday Night, Te Uira and Raphis, none of which won a principal (stakes) race. He was a half-brother to another four horses, only two of which were able to win any races at all.
[Pring, Peter; ''Analysis of Champion Racehorses'', The Thoroughbred Press, Sydney, 1977, ]
Sydney trainer Harry Telford persuaded American businessman David J. Davis to buy the colt at auction, based on his pedigree. Telford's brother Hugh, who lived in New Zealand, was asked to bid up to 190
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 ...
at the 1928
Trentham Yearling Sales. When the horse was obtained for a mere 160 guineas, he thought it was a great bargain until the colt arrived in Australia. The horse was gangly, his face was covered with warts, and he had an awkward gait. Davis was furious when he saw the colt as well, and refused to pay to train the horse. Telford had not been particularly successful as a trainer, and Davis was one of his few remaining owners. To placate Davis, he agreed to train the horse for nothing, in exchange for a two-thirds share of any winnings.
Telford leased the horse for three years and was eventually sold joint ownership by Davis.
Although standing a winning racehorse at stud could be quite lucrative, Telford gelded Phar Lap anyway, hoping the colt would concentrate on racing.
Racing career
Phar Lap finished last in the first race and did not place in his next three races. He won his first race on 27 April 1929, the
Maiden Juvenile Handicap at Rosehill, ridden by Jack Baker of
Armidale, a 17-year-old
apprentice
Apprenticeship is a system for training a potential new practitioners of a Tradesman, trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study. Apprenticeships may also enable practitioners to gain a license to practice in ...
. He didn't race for several months but was then entered in a series of races, in which he moved up in class. Phar Lap took second in the Chelmsford Stakes at Randwick on 14 September 1929, and the racing community started treating him with respect. He won the Rosehill Guineas by three lengths on 21 September 1929, ridden by
James L. Munro.
As his achievements grew, there were some who tried to halt his progress. Criminals tried to shoot Phar Lap
on the morning of Saturday 1 November 1930 after he had finished track work. They missed, and later that day he won the Melbourne Stakes, and three days later the Melbourne Cup as odds-on favourite at 8 to 11.
In the four years of his racing career, Phar Lap won 37 of 51 races he entered, including 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 ...
, being ridden by
Jim Pike, in 1930 with 9 st 12 lb (). In that year and 1931, he won 14 races in a row. From his win as a three-year-old in the
VRC St. Leger Stakes until his final race in Mexico, Phar Lap won 32 of 35 races. In the three races that he did not win, he ran second on two occasions, beaten by a short head and a neck, and in the 1931 Melbourne Cup he finished eighth when carrying 10 st 10 lb ().
Phar Lap at the time was owned by American businessman David J. Davis and leased to Telford. After their three-year lease agreement ended, Telford had enough money to become joint owner of the horse. Davis then had Phar Lap shipped to North America to race. Telford did not agree with this decision and refused to go, so Davis, who along with his wife traveled to Mexico with him, brought Phar Lap's strapper
Tommy Woodcock as his new trainer.
Phar Lap was shipped by boat to
Agua Caliente Racetrack near
Tijuana
Tijuana is the most populous city of the Mexican state of Baja California, located on the northwestern Pacific Coast of Mexico. Tijuana is the municipal seat of the Tijuana Municipality, the hub of the Tijuana metropolitan area and the most popu ...
,
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, to compete in the
Agua Caliente Handicap
The Agua Caliente Handicap is a defunct thoroughbred horse race that was once the premier event at Agua Caliente Racetrack in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, and the richest race in North America. Inaugurated in 1917 as the Coffroth Handicap, ...
, which was offering the largest prize money ever offered in North America racing. Phar Lap won in track-record time while carrying 129 pounds (58.5 kg). The horse was ridden by Australian jockey
Billy Elliot for his seventh win from seven rides. From there, the horse was sent to a private ranch near
Menlo Park, California, while his owner negotiated with racetrack officials for special race appearances.
Death
Early on 5 April 1932, the horse's
strapper for the North American visit,
Tommy Woodcock, found him in severe pain and with a high temperature. Within a few hours, Phar Lap
haemorrhaged to death. An autopsy revealed that the horse's stomach and intestines were inflamed, leading many to believe the horse had been deliberately poisoned. There have been alternative theories, including accidental poisoning from lead insecticide and a stomach condition. It was not until the 1980s that the infection could be formally identified.
In 2000, equine specialists studying the two necropsies concluded that Phar Lap probably died of
duodenitis-proximal jejunitis, an acute bacterial
gastroenteritis
Gastroenteritis, also known as infectious diarrhea, is an inflammation of the Human gastrointestinal tract, gastrointestinal tract including the stomach and intestine. Symptoms may include diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Fever, lack of ...
.

In 2006,
Australian Synchrotron research scientists said it was almost certain Phar Lap
was poisoned with a large single dose of
arsenic
Arsenic is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol As and atomic number 33. It is a metalloid and one of the pnictogens, and therefore shares many properties with its group 15 neighbors phosphorus and antimony. Arsenic is not ...
in the hours before he died, perhaps supporting the theory that Phar Lap was killed on the orders of US gangsters, who feared the Melbourne Cup-winning champion would inflict big losses on their illegal
bookmaker
A bookmaker, bookie, or turf accountant is an organization or a person that accepts and pays out bets on sporting and other events at agreed-upon odds
In probability theory, odds provide a measure of the probability of a particular outco ...
s. No evidence of involvement by a criminal element exists, however.
Sydney veterinarian Percy Sykes believes deliberate poisoning did not cause the death. He said "In those days, arsenic was quite a common tonic, usually given in the form of a solution (
Fowler's Solution)", and suggests this was the cause of the high levels. "It was so common that I'd reckon 90 percent of the horses had arsenic in their system."
In December 2007, Phar Lap's
mane was tested for multiple doses of arsenic which, if found, would point to accidental poisoning.
In April 2008, an 82-page handwritten notebook belonging to Telford and containing recipes for tonics given to Phar Lap in the days before swabbing was sold by a Melbourne auction house. It showed that Phar Lap was given tonics designed to boost his performance that included arsenic, strychnine, cocaine and caffeine. The find gave credence to Woodcock's deathbed admission in 1985 that Phar Lap may have been given an overdose of a tonic before the horse died in 1932. The notebook was sold to the Melbourne Museum for $37,000.
On 19 June 2008, the Melbourne Museum released the findings of the forensic investigation conducted by Ivan Kempson, University of South Australia, and Dermot Henry, Natural Science Collections at Museum Victoria. Kempson analysed six hairs from Phar Lap's mane at the
Advanced Photon Source at
Argonne National Laboratory
Argonne National Laboratory is a Federally funded research and development centers, federally funded research and development center in Lemont, Illinois, Lemont, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1946, the laboratory is owned by the United Sta ...
near
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
. These high resolution X-rays detect arsenic in hair samples, showing the specific difference "between arsenic, which had entered the hair cells via the blood and arsenic which had infused the hair cells by the
taxidermy
Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body by mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the proces ...
process when he was stuffed and mounted at the museum".
Kempson and Henry discovered that in the 30 to 40 hours before Phar Lap's death, the horse ingested a massive dose of arsenic. "We can't speculate where the arsenic came from, but it was easily accessible at the time", Henry said.
In October 2011 the ''
Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper in ...
'' published an article in which a New Zealand physicist and information from Phar Lap's strapper state that the great horse was never given any tonic with arsenic and that he died of an infection. Said Putt, "Unless we are prepared to say that
Tommy Woodcock was a downright liar, which even today, decades after the loveable and respected horseman's death, would ostracise us with the Australian racing public, we must accept him on his word. The ineluctable conclusion we are left with, whether we like it or not, is that Phar Lap's impeccable achievements here and overseas were utterly tonic, stimulant, and drug-free."
Contradicting this is the tonic book of Harry Telford, Phar Lap's owner and trainer, on display in Museum Victoria, Melbourne. One recipe for a "general tonic" has a main ingredient of arsenic and has written below it: "A great tonic for all horses".
Legacy
Following his death, Phar Lap's heart was donated to the Institute of Anatomy in
Canberra
Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...
and his skeleton to the
New Zealand's National Museum in
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
. After preparations of the hide by New York City taxidermist
Louis Paul Jonas,
Phar Lap's stuffed body was placed in the Australia Gallery at
Melbourne Museum. The hide and the skeleton were put on exhibition together when
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa lent the skeleton to the Melbourne Museum in September 2010 as part of celebrations for the 150th running of the
2010 Melbourne Cup.
Phar Lap's heart was remarkable for its size, weighing , compared with a normal horse's heart at . Now held at the
National Museum of Australia
The National Museum of Australia (NMA), in the national capital Canberra, preserves and interprets Australia's social history, exploring the key issues, people and events that have shaped the nation. It was formally established by the ''Nation ...
in Canberra, it is the object visitors most often request to see. The author and film maker
Peter Luck was convinced the heart is a fake. In Luck's 1979 television series ''This Fabulous Century'', the daughter of Walker Neilson, the government veterinarian who performed the first post-mortem on Phar Lap, says her father told her the heart was necessarily cut to pieces during the autopsy, and the heart on display is that of a draughthorse. However the expression "a heart as big as Phar Lap" to describe a very generous or courageous person became a popular idiom.
Several books and films have featured Phar Lap, including the 1983 film ''
Phar Lap
Phar Lap (4 October 1926 – 5 April 1932) was a New Zealand-born champion Australian Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse. Achieving great success during his distinguished career, his initial underdog status gave people hope during the ear ...
'', and the song "Phar Lap—Farewell To You".
Phar Lap was one of five inaugural inductees into both the
Australian Racing Hall of Fame and
New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame. In the
Blood-Horse magazine ranking of the
Top 100 U.S. Thoroughbred champions of the 20th century, Phar Lap was ranked No. 22.
The horse is considered to be a national icon in both Australia and New Zealand.
In 1978 he was honoured on a
postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail). Then the stamp is affixed to the f ...
issued by
Australia Post and features in the
Australian citizenship test.
Phar Lap has been honoured with a $500,000 life-sized bronze memorial near his birthplace in
Timaru, New Zealand, that was unveiled on 25 November 2009.
The statue is located at the entrance to Phar Lap Raceway in
Washdyke. There is also a life-sized bronze statue at
Flemington Racecourse in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
.
Phar Lap has several residential streets named after him in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. (In many cases, the name is merged into a single word "Pharlap".)
In 1931,
Gilbert Percy Whitley
Gilbert Percy Whitley (9 June 1903 – 18 July 1975) was a British-born Australian ichthyologist and malacologist who was curator of fishes at the Australian Museum in Sydney for about 40 years.
Early life and education
Gilbert Percy Whitley ...
, an ichthyologist at the
Australian Museum
The Australian Museum, originally known as the Colonial Museum or Sydney Museum. is a heritage-listed museum at 1 William Street, Sydney, William Street, Sydney central business district, Sydney CBD, New South Wales. It is the oldest natural ...
, proposed a new genus of seahorse, ''Farlapiscis'', named after Phar Lap. ''Farlapiscis'' was subsequently categorised as a
junior synonym of the genus ''
Hippocampus
The hippocampus (: hippocampi; via Latin from Ancient Greek, Greek , 'seahorse'), also hippocampus proper, is a major component of the brain of humans and many other vertebrates. In the human brain the hippocampus, the dentate gyrus, and the ...
''.
1930 racebook
File:1930 AJC St Leger Racebook P1.jpg, 1930 AJC St Leger racebook front cover
File:1930 AJC St Leger Racebook P2.jpg, 1930 AJC St Leger showing raceday officials
File:1930 AJC St Leger Racebook P4.jpg, 1930 AJC St Leger and the winner, Phar Lap
File:1930 AJC St Leger Racebook P6.jpg, 1930 AJC St Leger raceday showing music entertainment for patrons
File:1930 AJC St Leger Racebook P5.jpg, Raceday catering arrangements and racecourse detectives
File:1930 AJC St Leger Racebook P3.jpg, Back cover showing charges at the entrance gates
Race record
1928/1929: Two-year-old season
1929/1930: Three-year-old season
1930/1931: Four-year-old season
1931/1932: Five-year-old season
Total: 51 starts – 37 wins, 3 seconds, 2 thirds, 2 fourths, 7 unplaced
Pedigree
See also
*
Thoroughbred racing in Australia
*
Thoroughbred racing in New Zealand
*
List of Melbourne Cup winners
*
List of notable Thoroughbred racehorses
*
List of racehorses
*
New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame
*
Repeat winners of horse races
Notes
External links
Killing Phar Lap: A Forensic Investigation PodcastPhar Lap at Museum Victoria, Melbourne AustraliaPhar Lap at Te Papa, New ZealandPhar Lap's heart at the National Museum of Australia, Canberra
National Museum of Australia: Protecting and photographing Phar Lap's heart
Phar Lap Australia's Wonder HorseDigital Photo Collection on Phar LapImages and link to the story of Phar Lap at Museum Victoria
Photo album owned by David Davis, owner of Phar Lap
Photos of Phar Lap's heart
{{Authority control
1926 racehorse births
1932 racehorse deaths
Australian Racing Hall of Fame horses
New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame horses
Racehorses bred in New Zealand
Racehorses trained in Australia
Melbourne Cup winners
Cox Plate winners
Victoria Derby winners
Horse monuments
Thoroughbred family 2-r
Animal sculptures in Australia
Individual taxidermy exhibits
Deaths by arsenic poisoning