Christine Guilbert

Sunday at Longchamp was a day for firsts. A Classic victory for Rouhiya (Fr) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) in the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches was an important milestone in the partnership between trainer Francis Graffard and the Aga Khan's powerful racing and breeding operation. Then came a first Classic in his adopted home country for 34-year-old Mario Barrati when Metropolitan (Fr) (Zarak {Fr}) landed the Poulains, a year after the Italian trainer had won the German 2,000 Guineas with Angers (Fr) (Seabhac). But perhaps most notable of all, especially as...

Completing a treble of shocks on Sunday's ParisLongchamp card, Alain Jathiere and Christine Guilbert's Birthe (Ire) (Study Of Man {Ire}--Barakaat {Fr}, by Lope De Vega {Ire}) belied odds of 11-1 when upstaging her peers to take the G2 St Mark's Basilica Coolmore Prix Saint-Alary. Coming off a win in Toulouse's Listed Prix Caravelle last month, the Laura Vanska trainee who cost a mere €10,000 at the Goffs Autumn Yearling Sale was settled on the rail early by Aurelien Lemaitre tracking the leading duo. Sent up the cutaway to take over...