Sigy (horse)
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Sigy (foaled 9 March 1976) was a French
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 ...
. She was best known for her exploits as a two-year-old in 1978, when she won her last three races culminating with a win over
colts Colt(s) or COLT may refer to: *Colt (horse), an intact (uncastrated) male horse under four years of age People * Colt (given name) *Colt (surname) Places *Colt, Arkansas, United States * Colt, Louisiana, an unincorporated community, United State ...
and older horses in the
Prix de l'Abbaye The Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged two years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,000 metres (about 5 furlon ...
. At the end of the season she was rated the best racehorse of her age and sex in Europe. Her three-year-old career was disappointing, although she did win the
Prix du Gros Chêne The Prix du Gros Chêne is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 1,000 metres (about 5 furlongs), and it is s ...
. She later had some success as a broodmare.


Background

Sigy was a big, powerfully-built bay mare, bred in France by Roland de Chambure. She was sired by Habitat, an American-bred, British-raced miler who became one of the leading European stallions of the 1970s and 1980s. His other progeny included
Habibti Habibti (foaled March 1980) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare who was one of the highest-rated sprinters in European racing history. Habibti was unbeaten as a two-year-old, winning the Group Two Lowther ...
,
Marwell Marwell Zoo is a zoo situated in Colden Common near Winchester, in the English county of Hampshire. It is owned and run by the registered charity Marwell Wildlife. The zoo is home to over 500 animals of 145 species. The charity undertakes a ...
,
Rose Bowl Rose Bowl or Rosebowl may refer to: * Rose Bowl Game, an annual American college football game * Rose Bowl (stadium), Pasadena, California, site of the football game, and the home stadium of the UCLA Football team * Rose Bowl (cricket ground), West ...
,
Flying Water Flying Water (8 April 1973 – 25 June 1978) was a French Thoroughbred racehorse. In a racing career that was disrupted by injury, she ran eleven times and won six races between July 1975 and June 1978. After winning her only race as a two-year- ...
and Steinlen and he was the British Champion broodmare sire on three occasions. Her dam, Satu was a successful racehorse who won the Prix Fille de l'Air in 1968. She was broodmare owned by the Cliveden Stud in England when she was covered by Habitat in 1975 but was sold, with Sigy in utero for 10,500
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 Newmarket in December 1975. Sigy's racing career was guided by the Head family: she was owned by Ghislaine, trained by Criquette and ridden in most of her races by Freddy.


Racing career


1978: two-year-old season

On her racecourse debut, Sigy finished third behind Promise of Joy over 1000 metres and then won 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 the same distance at
Maisons-Laffitte Racecourse The Hippodrome de Maisons-Laffitte at 1 avenue de la Pelouse in the northwestern Parisian suburb of Maisons-Laffitte in France was a turf horse racing facility and track for Thoroughbred flat racing. Opened in 1878 by Joseph Oller, inventor of t ...
. When moved up in class for the
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 ...
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 ...
over 1100 m on 30 July she finished fifth behind Pitasia, Promise of Joy, Some Guy and
Irish River {{Infobox racehorse , horsename = Irish River , image = , caption = , sire = Riverman , grandsire = Never Bend , dam = Irish Star , damsire = Klairon , sex = Stallion , foaled = 1976 , country = France , colour = Chestnut , breeder ...
. In August, Sigy ran in the Prix de la Vallee d'Auge over 1000 m 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 ...
and showed improved form to win by four lengths. The winning time of 56.80 seconds beat the previous course record, set by
Nonoalco Nonoalco (1971–1992) was an American-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. He won 2000 Guineas in 1974. Background He was out of the mare Seximee, a daughter of the 1954 Preakness Stakes winner Hasty Road. His sire was the very impor ...
in 1973, by half a second. In early September, Sigy met Promise of Joy for the third time in the Group Three Prix d'Arenberg 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 ...
. She decisively reversed the previous form, leading from the start and winning by four lengths. On 1 October, Sigy was moved into
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 ...
competition for France's most prestigious sprint race, the Prix de l'Abbaye 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 ...
. She started second favourite at odds of 19/10, with the betting being headed by the Irish-trained three-year-old Solinus, the winner of 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 ...
, the
July Cup The July Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 me ...
and the
William Hill Sprint Championship 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 ...
. As in her two previous races, Sigy led from the start, established a clear lead and was never seriously challenged, winning easily by three lengths from Solinus. Timeform described the performance as the best by a two-year-old over the distance since
Deep Diver ''Deep Diver'' was the name of a deep-sea scientific research submersible designed by Edwin Albert Link. ''Deep Diver'' was the first small submersible designed for lockout diving, allowing divers to leave and enter the craft while underwater. I ...
won the same race in 1971.


1979: three-year-old season

On her three-year-old debut, Sigy started the 1/5 favourite for the
Prix de Saint-Georges The Prix de Saint-Georges is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 1,000 metres (about 5 furlongs) at Longch ...
at Longchamp on 6 May but finished third, beaten seven lengths by the five-year-old King of Macedon. On 19 June she showed signs of a return to form in the Prix du Gros-Chene at Chantilly, leading from the start and winning by two and a half lengths from Lanngar. The filly was then sent overseas for the first time and moved up in distance for the six furlong
July Cup The July Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 me ...
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 looked unimpressive before the race and finished last of the eleven runners behind
Thatching Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge ('' Cladium mariscus''), rushes, heather, or palm branches, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. Since the bulk of ...
. On 7 October at Longchamp, Sigy attempted to repeat her success of 1978 in the Prix de l'Abbaye. She started the 6/1 fourth-choice in the betting but finished last of the thirteen runner field behind the British-trained four-year-old Double Form. Two weeks later, over the same course and distance, Sigy appeared for the final time in the Prix du Petit Couvert and started the 6/4 favourite. She led until the last 200 m but faded to finish fifth behind the two-year-old Manjam.


Assessment and honours

In the inaugural International Classification, a collaboration between the official handicappers of France, Ireland and the United Kingdom, Sigy was rated the best two-year-old filly in Europe two pounds behind the leading colt Tromos and level with the leading French colt
Irish River {{Infobox racehorse , horsename = Irish River , image = , caption = , sire = Riverman , grandsire = Never Bend , dam = Irish Star , damsire = Klairon , sex = Stallion , foaled = 1976 , country = France , colour = Chestnut , breeder ...
. The independent Timeform organisation rated her the best two-year-old filly of the season with a rating of 132. During the 1970s the only two-year-old fillies to be more highly rated by the organisation were
Jacinth Jacinth (, ) or hyacinth () is a yellow-red to red-brown variety of zircon used as a gemstone. In Exodus 28:19, one of the precious stones set into the ''hoshen'' (the breastplate worn by the High Priest of Israel) is called, in Hebrew, '' les ...
(133 in 1972) and
Rose Bowl Rose Bowl or Rosebowl may refer to: * Rose Bowl Game, an annual American college football game * Rose Bowl (stadium), Pasadena, California, site of the football game, and the home stadium of the UCLA Football team * Rose Bowl (cricket ground), West ...
(133 in 1974). In the following year she was rated 119 by Timeform, while the International Classification rated her sixteen pounds inferior to the top-rated
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 eleven below the top sprinter Thatching.


Stud record

Sigy produced at least eight foals, three of whom won important races. *Sicyos (chestnut colt, foaled 1981, sired by
Lyphard Lyphard (10 May 1969 – 10 June 2005) was an American-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and an important Horse breeding#Terminology, sire. Background American bred in Pennsylvania, Lyphard was a son of Northern Dancer ...
), won Prix d'Arenberg,
Prix de Saint-Georges The Prix de Saint-Georges is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 1,000 metres (about 5 furlongs) at Longch ...
*J. O.'s Optifast (brown colt, foaled 1982 sired by J. O. Tobin) *Petite Soeur (brown filly, foaled 1984, sired by
Lyphard Lyphard (10 May 1969 – 10 June 2005) was an American-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and an important Horse breeding#Terminology, sire. Background American bred in Pennsylvania, Lyphard was a son of Northern Dancer ...
) *Radjhasi (chestnut colt, foaled 1985, sired by
Raja Baba Raja Baba (April 5, 1968 – October 9, 2002) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who became the 1980 Leading sire in North America, Champion sire in North America. Background Raja Baba was sired by Bold Ruler, the leading sire in North Ameri ...
), won
Prix Eclipse The Prix Eclipse is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 1,200 metres (about 6 furlongs), and it is scheduled to take place e ...
*Company (chestnut filly, foaled 1987, sired by Nureyev) *King's Signet (chestnut colt, foaled 1989, sired by Nureyev), won Stewards' Cup *Zary (bay filly, foaled 1991, sired by Danzig), won one race *Sakieh (bay filly, foaled 1994, sired by
Green Desert ''Green Desert'' is the twenty-seventh major release and the fifteenth studio album by electronic artists Tangerine Dream. The music was recorded in Berlin in 1973, during a period when Peter Baumann had temporarily left Germany to tour Nepal and ...
)


Pedigree


References

{{reflist 1976 racehorse births Racehorses bred in France Racehorses trained in France Thoroughbred family 14-c