By Emma Berry
Since the turn of this century we have been blessed to see some special fillies and mares win the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Zarkava (Fr) was followed by Danedream (Ger), Solemia (Ire), Found (Ire), Treve (Fr) and Enable (GB), with the last two named each winning the great race twice. The latest to add her name to that roll of honour was Kirsten Rausing's homebred Alpinista (GB), in 2022.
This season the daughter of Frankel (GB) has become a mother for the first time after foaling a filly by Dubawi (Ire) in mid-February. Rausing, the owner of Lanwades Stud in Newmarket, is understandably proud of her six-time Group 1 winner who, now seven, is a fifth-generation of the Lanwades lynchpin Alruccaba (GB) (Crystal Palace {GB}) and from the family which includes the dual G1 Champion S. winner Alborada (GB) (Alzao), a full-sister to Alpinista's granddam and fellow Group 1 winner Albanova (GB).
“What I always say about Alpinista is that she is, of course, incapable of doing anything wrong. She is a wonderful heroine,” says the owner-breeder. “Last year she went in foal immediately at first attempt, and she has a really nice grey filly foal by Dubawi.
“Everything has gone well with both mare and foal, and again she's done it all completely right this year. She's back in foal to Study Of Man, so we're very excited to have her in foal to this up-and-coming horse.”
Six years ago this week, the Niarchos family homebred Study Of Man (Ire), by Deep Impact (Jpn) out of a Storm Cat daughter of Miesque, won the G2 Prix Greffulhe en route to landing the G1 Prix du Jockey Club. He began his second career at Lanwades in 2020, covering 71 mares in his first year, and the resultant offspring are now three-year-olds. It is fair to say that his burgeoning success has been one of the talking points of the season to date, with Rausing admitting that the phone has been ringing hot in the Lanwades office with a new wave of breeders keen to book a mare to Study Of Man.
“At the moment he is exceeding my expectations. It is exciting that Study Of Man can do this with a limited number of mares,” she says. “Things are really looking very exciting for the future.”
His five black-type performers from that first crop are led by last season's G2 Beresford S. winner Deepone (GB), who has been entered by trainer Paddy Toomey for the Irish 2,000 Guineas on May 25.
Recent Listed winner Birthe (Ire) is entered for Sunday's G2 Prix Saint-Alary, while Sunday's Pretty Polly S. runner-up Kalpana (GB) holds a G2 Ribblesdale entry along with Rausing's Francophone (GB), a winner at two and three, who could also be seen in next week's G3 Musidora S.
Sons And Lovers (GB), a winner on debut at Newmarket and subsequently third in the G3 Craven S., and the G3 Premio Parioli (Italian 2,000 Guineas) third Ghorgan (Ger) are also noteworthy.
“The winners keep coming; every day there's a new Study Of Man winner and some of them look quite exciting, such as the Juddmonte filly Kalpana,” Rausing says.
“We hope Sons And Lovers may also prove to be more than useful. He is heading for the [Listed] Heron Stakes at Sandown to start with, and then we'll see what happens.”
It is clearly a boost for Study Of Man to have Alpinista in his book for 2024. The mare appears to have taken to motherhood seamlessly and along with her own star offspring at Lanwades is Alpinista's full-brother, who is the result of the third mating of her dam Alwilda (GB) with champion sire Frankel.
A Listed winner in her racing days, Alwilda is by the late Lanwades resident Hernando (Fr), another Prix du Jockey Club winner for the Niarchos family. The 14-year-old mare also has a yearling filly by Frankel and has recently been covered by Sea The Stars, which means that her next foal will be bred on the cross which has produced the Group 1 winners Sea Of Class (Ire) and Sea La Rosa (Ire). The mare's second foal, Listed winner Alpenblume (GB) (Kendargent {Fr}), has also recently joined the Lanwades broodmare band and is now in foal to Frankel, while her two-year-old half-sister, Alpetta (GB) (Iffraaj {GB}), is in training with Sir Mark Prescott.
“Alpinista has a yearling full-sister, a very nice filly, slightly taller than Alpinista, and bay, not grey. She will go to the sales,” Rausing announces, before adding with no little understatement. “So that will hopefully create a bit of interest.”
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