The 1972 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe was a

horse race Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

held at Longchamp on Sunday 8 October 1972. It was the 51st running of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. The winner was Margit Batthyany's San San, an American-bred three-year-old filly trained in France by

Angel Penna Sr. Angel A. Penna Sr. (September 30, 1923 –January 15, 1992) was an Argentine-born U. S. Racing Hall of Fame Thoroughbred horse trainer. Penna was an international trainer who worked and raced on three continents. He conditioned more than 250 ...

and ridden by Freddy Head. San San was the first filly to win the race since La Sorellina in 1953. Head had previously won the race on Bon Mot in 1966 whilst Batthyany and Penna were winning the race for the first time.

The contenders

In French racing, horses in the same ownership are usually "coupled" and treated as a single entry for betting purposes. The favourite for the race was the three-year-old colt Hard To Beat, winner of the

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Prix Lupin The Prix Lupin was a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It was run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,100 metres (about 1 mile and 2½ furlongs), and it was scheduled to take place each year in ...

, Prix du Jockey Club and Prix Niel. Next in the betting was the three-horse

Nelson Bunker Hunt Nelson Bunker Hunt (February 22, 1926 – October 21, 2014) was an American oil company executive. He was a billionaire whose fortune collapsed after he and his brothers William Herbert and Lamar tried to corner the world market in silver ...

entry comprising Roberto (

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey o ...

, Benson and Hedges Gold Cup), Rescousse ( Prix de Diane) and Pleben ( Grand Prix de Paris). Apart from Roberto, Ireland was also represented by Boucher, the winner of the St Leger. The three British challengers were Erimo Hawk (

Ascot Gold Cup The Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 2 miles 3 furlongs and 210 yards (4,014 ...

), Parnell (

Irish St Leger The Irish St Leger is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 6 furlongs (2,816 metres), and it i ...

) and Steel Pulse (

Irish Derby The Irish Derby (Irish: Dearbaí na hÉireann) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 ...

). Other international contenders were My Mourne from Spain and Mejiro Musashi from Japan. The other French-trained runners included Sharapour (

Prix Dollar The Prix Dollar is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,950 metres (about 1 mile and 1¾ furlongs), and it ...

), San San ( Prix Vermeille), Regal Exception ( Irish Oaks), Mister Sic Top ( Prix d'Ispahan) and Homeric. Hard To Beat started at odds of 1.2/1 ahead of the Bunker Hunt entry on 4.5/1. Parnell was next in the betting on 9.5/1, with Boucher and Sharapour on 17/1 and San San on 18.5/1.

The race

Roberto took the lead soon after the start and set an exceptionally fast pace from Regal Exception and the Argentinian-bred Snow Castle with the back markers in the early stages including My Mourne, Mejiro Musashi and San San. Entering the final turn, Roberto maintained a one length advantage over Regal Exception, followed in order by Snow Castle, Parnell, Sharapour, Boucher, Hard To Beat and Homeric as San San and Rescousse began to make progress from the rear of the field. In the straight Roberto and Regal Exception battled for the lead ahead of Homeric but San San was now making rapid headway on the outside. As Roberto dropped back and Regal Exception began to struggle the race looked to have devolved into a two-horse contest between San San and Homeric in the last 100 metres. San San got the better of Homeric and then held of the late challenge of Rescousse to win by one and a half

lengths Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the Intern ...

and half a length. Regal Exception held on to take fourth ahead of the 84/1 outsider Card King and Sharapour. Roberto faded into seventh, but was still the first three-year-old to cross the line, a length in front of Hard To Beat.

Race details

* Sponsor: none * Purse: * Going: Firm * Distance: 2,400 metres * Number of runners: 19 * Winner's time: 2:38.3

Full result

* Abbreviations: ns = nose; shd = short-head; hd = head; snk = short neck; nk = neck

Winner's details

Further details of the winner, San San * Sex: Filly * Foaled: 1969 * Country: United States * Sire:

Bald Eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

; Dam: Sail Navy (

Princequillo Princequillo (1940–1964) was a Thoroughbred racehorse conceived in France and born in Ireland. He is known for his performances in long-distance races and his successes as a sire. Background His sire, Prince Rose, stood at the Haras de Cheff ...

) * Owner: Margit Batthyany * Breeder:

Harry F. Guggenheim Harry Frank Guggenheim (August 23, 1890 – January 22, 1971) was an American businessman, diplomat, publisher, philanthropist, aviator, and horseman. Early life He was born August 23, 1890, in West End, New Jersey. He was the second son of Flo ...

References

{{Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe 1972 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe