As Royal Ascot drew to a close on Saturday, one of its luminaries of yesteryear, Superstar Leo (Ire) (College Chapel {GB}), died peacefully in America at the age of 26.
The winner of the Norfolk Stakes in 2000, she was an outstanding two-year-old for William Haggas, initially racing for her breeders, the trainer's father-in-law Lester Piggott and Tony Hirschfield, before being bought by Roy and Gretchen Jackson of Lael Stable. Having already won twice prior to Ascot, she then went on to win the Weatherbys Super Sprint and G2 Flying Childers Stakes, as well as finishing second in both the G1 Phoenix Stakes and G1 Prix de l'Abbaye.
Superstar Leo arguably made an even greater impact once retired to the paddocks at Peter Stanley's New England Stud as a long-term boarder for her American-based owners. Eleven of her 14 runners from 15 foals are winners, the best of them being the dual Group 3 winner Enticing (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}), who was a classy sprinter just like her sire and dam, and the Listed winner and G3 Jersey Stakes runner-up Sentaril (GB) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}).
Enticing, who died in 2022, has in turn produced One Master (GB) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), whose six stakes victories include three consecutive wins in the G1 Prix de la Foret for the Jacksons and Haggas.
“Superstar Leo was such a star,” said Haggas, who has trained the majority of the family and now has a member of the fourth generation of the family in One Master's first foal, a two-year-old colt by Dubawi (Ire) in training at his Somerville Lodge Stable at Newmarket.
“Really, she was the one who introduced us to the Jacksons in the first place and they have been wonderful to us ever since then,” he added.
“The Jacksons gave her a wonderful life. When she had been retired from breeding at New England Stud they had her flown to America so she could live out her retirement close to them. She died in her paddock on Saturday from a heart attack.”
It was Haggas's mother-in-law, former trainer Susan Piggott, who was initially responsible for her family's involvement with the Superstar Leo clan having bought her Philip Oppenheimer-bred dam Council Rock (GB) (General Assembly) from the Tattersalls December Sales in 1993 for 11,000gns.
One Master, who now also resides at New England Stud alongside her half-sister Arousing (GB) (Kodiac {GB}) and two of Superstar Leo's daughters, Sentaril and her full-sister Cloud Line (GB), has a Dubawi filly foal this season and is now in foal to Frankel (GB).
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