Saumarez (28 March 1987–2012) was a
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 ...
who won
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
's most 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 ...
in 1990.
Background
Saumarez was sired by the 1985
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 ...
winner
Rainbow Quest in his first season at stud. He was owned by
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
superstar
Wayne Gretzky
Wayne Douglas Gretzky ( ; born January 26, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former head coach. He played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for four teams from 1979 to 1999. Nicknamed "the Great One ...
and owner of his
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The Kings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. ...
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...
team,
Bruce McNall. He was trained at trained by
Henry Cecil
Sir Henry Richard Amherst Cecil (11 January 1943 – 11 June 2013) was a British flat racing horse trainer. Cecil was very successful, becoming Champion Trainer ten times and training 25 domestic Classic winners. These comprised four winners o ...
at his Warren Place stable at
Newmarket, Suffolk
Newmarket is a market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk (district), West Suffolk district of Suffolk, England, 14 miles west of Bury St Edmunds and 14 miles northeast of Cambridge. In 2021, it had a population of 16,772. It is a global ...
.
Racing career
Saumarez failed to win at age two in 1989 then got his first win in 1990 under
Steve Cauthen
Steve Cauthen (born May 1, 1960) is a retired American jockey.
In 1977 he became the first jockey to win over $6 million in a year working with agent Lenny Goodman, and in 1978 he became the youngest jockey to win the U. S. ...
in the Aldborough Maiden Stakes. Following a win in the Harvester Graduation Stakes, he finished second to winner Blue Stag in the
Dee Stakes at
Chester Racecourse
Chester Racecourse, also known as the Roodee, is a racecourse located in Chester, England. The horse racing venue is officially recognised by Guinness World Records as the "oldest racecourse still in operation". Horse racing in Chester dates ...
.
In June he was sent to France where
Nicolas Clément
Nicolas Clément (12 January 1779 – 21 November 1841) was a French physicist and chemist.
He was a colleague of Charles Desormes, with whom he conducted the Clément-Desormes experiment. The two chemists are also credited with determining a ...
took over as trainer. Steve Cauthen rode Saumarez to victory in the
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 ...
and then under French jockey
Gérald Mossé
Gérald Mossé (born 3 January 1967 in France) is a jockey in thoroughbred horse racing. He began riding professionally in April 1983. His success during his apprenticeship under Patrick-Louis Biancone led to an offer to ride for renowned trainer ...
, he won the
Prix du Prince d'Orange
The Prix du Prince d'Orange is a group-3 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles), and it is scheduled ...
in September and October's prestigious,
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 ...
. For majority owner Bruce McNall, it was his second Arc win, having won it in 1987 with
Trempolino
Trempolino (March 17, 1984 –March 19, 2018) was a French Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse best known for winning the prestigious Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in 1987.
Background
He was bred by Marystead Farm, the American arm of French h ...
. Nicolas Clément became the youngest
trainer to win this race. Saumarez was then sent to the United States for the
Breeders' Cup Turf
The Breeders' Cup Turf is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race on turf for three-year-olds and up. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The race's current ...
at
Belmont Park
Belmont Park is a thoroughbred racing, thoroughbred horse racetrack in Elmont, New York, just east of New York City limits best known for hosting the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the American Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United Stat ...
in
Elmont, New York
Elmont is an unincorporated Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located in northwestern Hempstead, New York, Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, New York, United States, along its border with the borough ...
where he finished fifth to
In the Wings whom he had beaten in the Arc.
Stud record
Sold for $8 million to a syndicate led by C A B St. George, Saumarez was retired to
stud
Stud may refer to:
Animals
* Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding
** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred
Arts and entertainment
* Stud (band), a British progressive rock group
* The Stud (bar), a gay bar in San Francisco
* ...
. He formerly stands at Odessa Stud in
Ceres, Western Cape
Ceres is the administrative centre and largest town of the Witzenberg Local Municipality in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Ceres serves as a regional centre for the surrounding towns of Wolseley, Tulbagh, Op-die-Berg and Prince ...
in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
and Died in 2012. He has sired twelve stakes winners and notably is the damsire of 2007
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,
Authorized
Authorization or authorisation (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences), in information security, computer security and identity management, IAM (Identity and Access Managemen ...
.
Saumarez at Cheval Bleu
/ref>
Pedigree
*Saumarez was 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 ...
4 × 4 to Nasrullah, meaning that this stallion appeared twice in the fourth generation of his pedigree.
References
External links
Video at YouTube of Saumarez winning the 1990 Prix de l'Arc De Triomphe
(called by Tom Durkin)
{{Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe Winners
1987 racehorse births
2012 racehorse deaths
Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom
Racehorses trained in France
Arc winners
Thoroughbred family 16-a