Tapestry foaled 18 January 2011 is an Irish

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. She ran three times as a two-year-old, winning on her first two starts including the Debutante Stakes. Her greatest success came in 2014 when she won the 2014

Yorkshire Oaks The Yorkshire Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile ...

ending the Oaks and

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 ...

winner Taghrooda's unbeaten record. She will stay in training as a 4 year old in 2015.

Background

Tapestry is a bay filly, she is her dam Rumplestiltskin's 3rd foal. Her sire is

Galileo Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642), commonly referred to as Galileo Galilei ( , , ) or mononymously as Galileo, was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a poly ...

, therefore, she is bred on the same Danehill

cross that has produced leading horses like

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 ...

, Teofilo and Roderic O'Connor. She is a full sister to

John F Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until Assassination of John F. Kennedy, his assassination in 1963. He was the first Catholic Chur ...

. She is trained by

Aidan O'Brien Aidan Patrick O'Brien (born 16 October 1969 in County Wexford, Ireland) Aidan O'Brien bio NTRA. ...

and owned by John Magnier's wife Sue, and running in her famous navy blue silks.

Two Year-Old Career

Tapestry's career began in July 2013 in a maiden race at the

Curragh The Curragh ( ; ) is a flat open plain in County Kildare, Ireland. This area is well known for horse breeding and training. The Irish National Stud is on the edge of Kildare town, beside the Japanese Gardens. Pollardstown Fen, the larges ...

. She was trainer Aidan O'Brien's second string with his son Joseph O'Brien riding the 6/4 joint favourite Snow. With 1 furlong to travel, Tapestry was 5th, but quickened to win by half a length under a ride by

Seamie Heffernan James Anthony "Seamie" Heffernan (born 17 July 1972) is an Irish flat racing jockey associated for most of his career with the stable of horse racing trainer Aidan O'Brien. From a family with no racing connections, Heffernan was introduced to t ...

.
She returned to the

in August to contest the Group 2 Debutante Stakes. She was one of 6 fillies in the race, 3 of them trained by Aidan O'Brien. The 4/5 favourite was asked to quicken by Joseph O'Brien in the closing stages overtaking stablemate Perhaps to win by 1 and 3/4 lengths. The win caused some bookmakers to cut their ante post odds on her winning 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 ...

. Aidan O'Brien said after the race she could be aimed at the

Moyglare Stud Stakes The Moyglare Stud Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to two-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), and it is schedu ...

.
For her final start of 2013 Tapestry ran in the Molyglare stud stakes, one of the leading races for 2 year old fillies with many past winners going on to win 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 was supplemented late for the race at a cost of €22,500. This race matched her against Kiyoshi who had won the Albany Stakes, Kiyoshi started 13/8 favourite with Tapestry at 2/1. The race was won by the

Queen Anne Stakes The Queen Anne Stakes is a Group 1 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 (1,609 metres), and is scheduled to take p ...

winner

Rizeena Rizeena (foaled 24 March 2011) is an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. As a two-year-old she won the Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot, before going on to win the Group 1 Moyglare Stud Stakes later in the year, and in 2014 she w ...

at a price of 9/2. Tapestry passed the winning post in the third place but a stewards enquiry found Jamie Spencer's filly Kiyoshi, who finished 2nd, to have interfered with her run and reversed the placings. After the race Aidan O'Brien praised her performance "She ran very well, As for the rest of this year, she has the option of going for the

Fillies' Mile The Fillies' Mile 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 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is sc ...

at Newmarket or we might just leave her off for the rest of the season."

Three Year-Old Career

During a stable tour in early 2014 Aidan O'Brien revealed Tapestry would be sent straight to 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 ...

without a prep run. She and

dominated the Ante post betting for the Guineas but mid April bookmakers began to lengthen their prices on tapestry due to the amount of bets on her rival.
Tapestry was joined in the

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 fellow Aidan O'Brien filly Bracelet, who had won the 1000 Guineas Trial Stakes and was ridden by Ryan Moore. On the day of the race a large number of bets before the off saw Tapestry's price shorten from 6/1 to 4/1 making her favourite for the race. She raced competitively for the first few furlongs but as the leaders began to quicken she had nothing to give with Joseph O'Brien pulling her up to finish in last place behind winner

Miss France Miss France is a national beauty pageant in France held annually in December. The competition was first held in 1920, and has been organized continuously since 1947. The trademark for the pageant is owned by the company Miss France SAS, and is ...

. Later Aidan O'Brien blamed himself for the flop as he knew she wasn't 100% fit for the race and should never have run her. He also ruled her out of running in the

Irish 1000 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 schedule ...

.
Despite at one stage being the Ante post favourite Tapestry was scratched from The Oaks and instead was entered in 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 ...

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 ...

2 weeks later. She never looked to threaten and finished 6th behind

. Her first Irish appearance of 2014 was in the

Irish Oaks The Irish Oaks 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 and 4 furlongs (2,414 metres), and it ...

. Joseph O'Brien chose to ride her over his

Epsom Oaks The Oaks Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 ya ...

ride

Marvellous ''Marvellous'' is a 90-minute British drama television film first broadcast on BBC Two on 25 September 2014. Directed by Julian Farino and written by Peter Bowker, it is about the life of Neil Baldwin from Westlands, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Sta ...

. She finished 2nd to Bracelet, ridden by

Colm O'Donoghue Colm O'Donoghue (born 13 November 1980) is an Irish jockey. For most of his career, he was based at the Ballydoyle racing stables in Rosegreen, Cashel, County Tipperary. Career In his final days as a schoolboy in 1996, O'Donoghue rang Aidan ...

, despite stumbling out of the starting stalls and knocking her saddle to her rump.
A month later Tapestry was entered in the

Yorkshire Oaks The Yorkshire Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile ...

to face John Gosden's star filly

Taghrooda Taghrooda (foaled 27 January 2011) is an Irish bred British trained Thoroughbred racehorse. In 2014 she won the classic Oaks Stakes and went on to win Britain's premier weight-for-age race, the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. She subse ...

who had made history becoming the first oaks winner to win 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 ...

. Ryan Moore was enlisted to ride her with Joseph O'Brien riding last years runner up Venus de Milo. Connections of Taghrooda were confident in the filly and unsurprisingly bookies made her 1/5 to win. In the race Volume made the running with Taghrooda taking over in the home straight,

Paul Hanagan Paul Hanagan (born 8 September 1980 in Warrington, Cheshire) is a Classic-winning British flat racing jockey. Hanagan was twice been crowned champion jockey on the flat in Britain, riding 165 winners in 2011 to defend his title, having won hi ...

pushed her along however Moore was able to get Tapestry ahead of her to win by a length ending her unbeaten run. Aidan O'Brien said "She went weak from halfway in the Guineas, which was probably down to pushing her in the spring, She had a break after that and the lads have done an unbelievable job to get her back. What she did in the

rish Rish ( Riš) is a village in Smyadovo Municipality, Shumen Province, Bulgaria, with a population of 6931 as of 2024. Population According to the 2011 Census, the population of Rish consists mainly of Bulgarian Turks (72.6%), followed by a ...

Oaks was extraordinary and Ryan produced her unbelievably today."
It was reported Tapestry's need start would be back over a mile in the Matron Stakes, billed as a rematch with

. Joseph O'Brien was back in the saddle having ridden Tapestry's younger brother

to victory in the Juvenile Turf Stakes earlier in the day. Despite starting second favourite at 9/4 Tapestry finished 9th of the 10 runners. Despite an entry in the

Prix de l'Opéra The Prix de l'Opéra is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles) each ...

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 ...

Tapestry was supplemented for the 2014 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at a cost of €120,000. Ridden by Ryan Moore she finished 13th behind Trévé.

Pedigree

{{Pedigree , name = Tapestry (IRE), 2011 , f =

(IRE)
1998 , m =

Rumplestiltskin "Rumpelstiltskin" ( ; ) is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in the 1812 edition of '' Children's and Household Tales''. The story is about an imp who spins straw into gold in exchange for a woman's firstborn child. Plot ...

(IRE)
2005 , ff =

Sadler's Wells Sadler's Wells Theatre is a London performing arts venue, located in Rosebery Avenue, Islington. The present-day theatre is the sixth on the site. Sadler's Wells grew out of a late 17th-century pleasure garden and was opened as a theatre buil ...

(USA)
1981 , fm =

Urban Sea Urban Sea (18 February 1989 – 2 March 2009) was an American bred Thoroughbred racemare best known for winning France's most prestigious race, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, in 1993 and for her importance as a world-class broodmare. She is one ...

(USA)
ch. 1989 , mf = Danehill (USA)
1986 , mm = Monevassia (USA)
1994 , fff =

Northern Dancer Northern Dancer (May 27, 1961 – November 16, 1990) was a Thoroughbred that, in 1964, became the first Canadian-bred horse to win the Kentucky Derby. After being retired from racing, he became one of the most successful Stallion, sires of the 2 ...

, ffm = Fairy Bridge , fmf =

Miswaki Miswaki (February 22, 1978 – December 17, 2004) was an American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse that was a Group One winner in France and a stakes race winner in the United States. He was an important sire of 97 stakes race winners and was the Le ...

, fmm = Allegretta , mff = Danzig , mfm = Rayzana , mmf =

Mr Prospector Mr. Prospector (January 28, 1970 – June 1, 1999) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who became an outstanding breeding stallion and notable sire of sires. A sprinter whose career was cut short by repeated injuries, he won seven of his 14 s ...

, mmm =

Miesque Miesque ( ; March 14, 1984 – January 20, 2011) was a champion Thoroughbred racemare. At age three, she was a dual Classic winner in France and Britain, then went on to win the Breeders' Cup Mile in America. Her four-year-old campaign was highl ...

, ffff =

Nearctic The Nearctic realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting the Earth's land surface. The Nearctic realm covers most of North America, including Greenland, Central Florida, and the highlands of Mexico. The parts of North America ...

, fffm =

Natalma Natalma (March 26, 1957 – January 29, 1985) was an American-bred Thoroughbred racehorse best known as the dam (mother) of the most important sire, and sire of sires, of the late 20th Century, Northern Dancer. She also established a highly inf ...

, ffmf =

Bold Reason Bold Reason (1968–1985) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and Leading broodmare sire in Great Britain & Ireland, Champion broodmare sire. Background Bold Reason was bred by Harry F. Guggenheim, Harry Guggenheim, and was si ...

, ffmm = Special , fmff =

, fmfm = Hopespringseternal , fmmf = Lombard , fmmm = Anatevka , mfff =

, mffm = Pas de Nom , mfmf = His Majesty , mfmm = Spring Adieu , mmff =

Raise A Native Raise a Native (April 18, 1961 – July 28, 1988) was an undefeated Thoroughbred Horse racing, racehorse that was named 1963 champion two-year-old colt in the Turf and Sport Digest poll and was the highest rated juvenile in the Experimental Free ...

, mmfm = Gold Digger , mmmf = Nureyev , mmmm = Pasadoble

References

2011 racehorse births Racehorses trained in Ireland