Gilltown Stud

Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum's Raabihah (Sea the Stars {Ire}), who went untested as a juvenile, was up with the larks for a Jan. 23 debutantes' heat win at Cagnes-sur-Mer and doubled up with an impressive tally in ParisLongchamp's May 14 Listed Prix de la Seine before posting a commendable fourth, despite a troubled trip, pitched into Chantilly's rescheduled July 5 G1 Prix de Diane in her latest outing. Sent off as the 2-5 lock on a retrieval mission in Saturday's G3 Prix de Psyche Sky Sports Racing over...

There was a degree of worry and stress for the connections and abundant fans of Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) to endure during Tuesday's G1 Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup, but ultimately it was the familiar outcome as Bjorn Nielsen's chestnut wrought a fourth victory in this historic prize. Momentarily pinned behind Nayef Road (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Santiago (Ire) (Authorized {Ire}) inside the last two furlongs, the 4-7 favourite had to make his own racing room as the last furlong neared but by now there seems very little that...

There was a twist to Friday's G2 Hardwicke S., as the 4-year-old filly Fanny Logan (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) rolled back the years as a Frankie Dettori-ridden Royal Ascot winner in Sheikh Mohammed's vintage maroon-and-white silks. Building on a comeback second in Haydock's G3 Pinnacle S. over this mile-and-a-half trip last time June 7, last year's G3 Darley Pride S. scorer who campaigns under the Sheikha Al Jalila Racing banner was reserved in rear early off the honest tempo. Launched wide in the straight, the 17-2 shot struck the...

Soft ground? No worries. If anything, that extra dimension only served to exaggerate the superiority of Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) as Bjorn Nielsen's chestnut entered immortality with an emphatic third G1 Gold Cup at Royal Ascot. Joining Sagaro (GB) and now only one off Yeats (Ire) with his awe-inspiring tally, the 4-5 favourite was always well within his comfort zone sauntering around this part of Berkshire that he has made his own. Switched off in his customary mid-division pitch throughout the early stages, he was lightly squeezed into...

Following two fluent wins over a mile at Kempton and Sandown in August and September with a runner-up finish in the G3 Zetland S. at Newmarket in October, Miss Yoda (Ger) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) looked the clear pick of the trio heading for Friday's Listed Lingfield Oaks Trial which the John Gosden stable won in 2019 with the subsequent Epsom heroine Anapurna (GB) (Frankel {GB}). Missing the break as the fellow Gosden-trained Lake Lucerne (Dubawi {Ire}) was withdrawn having become upset in the stall next door, the even-money favourite...

Somewhere along the way, the Sport of Kings became the racing industry. That was inevitable because that's the way of the modern world in which most people have to earn a living. However, for many it remains a sport in which the joy comes from taking part, with the wins being the icing on the cake and any financial return a bonus. Few have played the game with a truer Corinthian spirit or more successfully than Bertram and Diana Firestone, who have graced the upper echelons of the sport which...