Le Havre

Arqana's August Sale bursts from the stalls next Friday which means it will be Christmas before we know it. It also means that over the three days which follow the spotlight will be shone on some of the finest yearlings from France and beyond as the European yearling season gets underway in its customary fashion of part-holiday/part-serious business in Deauville. In the days building up to the sale, we will be profiling some of the largest drafts at Arqana, beginning with Anna Sundstrom's Coulonces, which has 20 set to go...

Always leave them wanting more, they say. In the case of Ace Impact (Fr) (Cracksman {GB}) there is little doubt that racing fans would have thrown wide their arms in joy had he stayed in training next year.  Those closer to the business end of the stallion market will appreciate the fine line that had to be walked by Kamel Chehboub and his daughter Pauline in making their decision either to continue the racing career of the unbeaten colt they share with Serge Stempniak, or hasten his departure to their...

4th-CD, $120k, Msw, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/16mT, 2:15 p.m. ET LE LEVRE (Le Havre {Ire}) makes her first trip to the races for the sneaky debut barn of Al Stall, Jr. and is a half-sister to four winners from as many to race out of Sunny Again (GB) (Shirocco {Ger}), whose notable produce include Italian highweight and Group 3 winner Elisa Again (GB) (Champs Elysees {GB}); Berkshire Rocco (Fr) (Sir Percy {GB}), a winner at listed level in England and narrowly beaten in the 2020 G1 Pertemps St Leger; and...

Is it just me or should France be known as the bloodstock land of opportunity? This is the country that saw Wootton Bassett (GB) and Walk In The Park (Ire) pull themselves up by the bootstraps after entering the stud book at relatively modest sums. There are few serious racing nations that provide as much of a chance for a stallion to flourish than France does. Take Kauto Star (Fr), the greatest staying chaser of the modern era, as an example. He hailed from the largely unheralded Village Star (Fr)...

Having provided the winners of this year's Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, Prix de Diane, Prix Jacques le Marois, Grand Prix de Paris and Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud, Frankel (GB), unsurprisingly, has been named the champion sire of France in 2022. He ceded his position as champion in Britain and Ireland to Dubawi (Ire), whom he finished in front of when it comes to overall European earnings. Of the winners of the above named Group 1 races--Alpinista (GB), Nashwa (GB), Inspiral (GB) and Onesto (Ire)--all bar Alpinista remain in training...

In the stallion yard at Sumbe's Haras de Montfort, the reputation of the late Le Havre (Ire) casts a long, figurative shadow. He was of course not the only stallion on the roster, but he was the first, back in the days when the farm was launched under its original guise of Haras de la Cauviniere, and he became one of France's most important stallions, given plenty of respect from breeders father afield in Europe and Japan. Le Havre is hard to replace, but in the season after his death,...

by Sue Finley & Katie Petrunyak Since 1958, the Head family has been raising champion Thoroughbreds at Haras du Quesnay, just a few kilometers from the Arqana sales ring. But now, with the passing of the family patriarch, Alec Head, and the sale of the historic nursery, the family's colors will fly for the last time at the December Breeding Stock sale, with the complete dispersal of the Heads' bloodstock interests. Le Quesnay will offer 48 broodmares, fillies and foals during the sale. "It's a big bunch of horses, and...

BADEN-BADEN, Germany--A German breeder, a British stallion, an American buyer. In a fully reopened world, the international participation that had been anticipated ahead of BBAG's major yearling sale was played out as Jason Litt made a splash on his first visit to Baden-Baden when signing for the sole Kingman (GB) yearling in the sale, offered by the day's leading vendor Gestut Fahrhof and commanding the top price of €450,000. Along with Litt, buyers from Britain, China, Ireland, France, Italy, Dubai, Hong Kong, the Czech Republic, and of course Germany underlined...

BADEN-BADEN, Germany--In a special year for German racing as the country celebrates the sport's 200th anniversary, what better way to bring the curtain down on Baden-Baden's Grosse Woche than by having dual German Horse of the Year Torquator Tasso (Ger) return to defend his crown in Sunday's G1 Grosser Preis von Baden? Before that, however, there is the not insignificant matter of around 200 of the country's best yearlings coming under the hammer on Friday in a catalogue that a number of potential buyers around the BBAG sales ground on...

Performance or pedigree? In an ideal world a breeder would choose both when buying a mare but, depending on budget, almost inevitably there has to be a compromise. In recent weeks in TDN we have heard from Mark Johnston about his selection process when buying yearlings, in which he is particularly keen on a decent rating for the dam. On the opposite side of the equation this week as vendor, Andreas Putsch is in agreement. "For us it is all about selection, of the matings, of culling, and trying to...

Le Havre (Ire) (Noverre), winner of the 2009 G1 Prix du Jockey Club and one of France's leading sires, has been retired at the age of 16 at Sumbe's Haras de Montfort et Préaux in Normandy. He has been hailed as "the most important horse of my life" by his owner Gérard Augustin-Normand. In a statement released on Saturday, Sumbe manager Mathieu Alex said, "Due to health issues which occurred at the end of last year, the decision was made to end his stallion career. We owe him so much...

If having the winner of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe counted as a breakthrough moment for Siyouni (Fr) in 2020, his reputation climbed higher still as his son St Mark's Basilica (Fr) romped through his Classic year, winning the Poule d'Essai des Poulains, Prix du Jockey Club, Eclipse S. and Irish Champion S. on his way to becoming the top-rated horse in the world in 2021. Both he and Sottsass are now residents of the Coolmore stallion barn, where they will be given plenty of opportunities to attempt to...