African Song (19 March 1977 – after 1993) was an Irish-bred, British-trained

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

racehorse and

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" a ...

. He was inexpensively bought as a

yearling Yearling may refer to: *Yearling (horse), a horse between one and two years old *''The Yearling ''The Yearling'' is a novel by American writer Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, published in March 1938. It was the main selection of the Book of the Mo ...

and had a brief racing career which comprised only five races in a four-month period in the spring and summer of 1980. After finishing third on his debut he won a minor race at

Sandown Sandown is a seaside resort and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the south-east coast of the Isle of Wight, United Kingdom with the resort of Shanklin to the south and the settlement of Lake, Isle of Wight, Lake in between. Together ...

before finishing third in the

Duke of York Stakes The Duke of York Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 6 furlongs () at York in May. History An ...

. At

Royal Ascot Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races and ...

in June he recorded an emphatic victory in the

Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern races, Pattern race sys ...

King's Stand Stakes The King's Stand Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled t ...

but his career was then interrupted by injury and he finished last in his only subsequent race. He made little impact as a breeding stallion.

Background

African Song was a dark-coated bay horse with a white

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...

bred in Ireland by W Moloney. As a

he was sent to the October sales at Newmarket and was bought for 7,400

guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from t ...

. He entered the ownership of Geoffrey Kaye and was sent into training with Paul Kelleway at his Shalfleet stables on the Bury Road in Newmarket. Kelleway was a former

National Hunt In horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Republic of Ireland, National Hunt racing requires horses to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is informally known as "jumps" and is divided into two major distinct branches: ...

jockey who had great success as a trainer with cheaply-bought horses including

Swiss Maid Swiss Maid (13 February 1975 – after 1992) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare, who was rated the best three-year-old filly in Europe in 1978. Unraced as a two-year-old, she won only one of her first eight races in 1978 and ap ...

and

Madam Gay Madam Gay (25 February 1978 – 1983) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. She showed some promise as a two-year-old in 1980 before developing into a top-class middle distance performer in the following year. Her only victory in a thirteen r ...

African Song was sired by African Sky who won the

Prix du Palais Royal The Prix du Palais-Royal is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and it is sch ...

Prix Quincey The Prix Quincey is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is scheduled to take ...

and

Prix de la Forêt The Prix de la Forêt is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and it is ...

as a three-year-old in 1973. As a breeding stallion as the sire of the outstanding racemare

Kilijaro Kilijaro (8 February 1976 – after 1990) was an Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. She was the best filly of her generation in Ireland at both two and three years of age, winning the Phoenix Stakes and finishing second in th ...

. African Song's dam Goldwyn Princess was of little use as a racehorse, racing only as a two-year-old in 1972 and finishing well beaten in both of her races. She was a half-sister to Broadway Melody, the dam of the

Prix Morny The Prix Morny is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,200 metres (about 6 furlongs), and it is scheduled to ...

winner Broadway Dancer and a distant relative of the

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, France, over a distance ...

winner

Marienbard Marienbard (foaled 1997) was an Ireland, Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse best known for his win in the 2002 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Background Marienbard is a bay horse bred in Ireland by Saif Ali. He was sir ...

Racing career

1980: three-year-old season

African Song did not run as a two-year-old, making his racecourse debut in a six-

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hors ...

maiden race In horse racing a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the se ...

Newmarket Racecourse Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of ...

in April. He was strongly backed in the betting market but finished third after weakening in the closing stages. He was then dropped to five furlongs for a maiden at

Sandown Park Racecourse Sandown Park is a horse racing course and leisure venue in Esher, Surrey, England, located in the outer suburbs of London. It hosts 5 Grade One National Hunt races and one Group 1 flat race, the Eclipse Stakes. It regularly has horse racing ...

and won easily from twenty opponents after leading from the start. The colt was then stepped up in class and matched against older horses in the

Group Three AP Films or APF, later becoming Century 21 Productions, was a British independent film production company of the 1950s until the early 1970s. The company became internationally known for its imaginative children's action-adventure marionette tel ...

over six furlongs at

York Racecourse York Racecourse is a horse racing venue in York, North Yorkshire, England. It is the third biggest racecourse in Britain in terms of total prize money offered, and second behind Ascot Racecourse, Ascot in prize money offered per meeting. It att ...

in May. He finished third behind his fellow three-year-old Flash N Thunder and the seven-year-old

gelding A gelding is a castrated male horse or other equine, such as a pony, donkey or a mule. Castration, as well as the elimination of hormonally driven behavior associated with a stallion, allows a male equine to be calmer and better-behaved, makin ...

Gypsy Dancer, beaten three

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 ...

by the winner. At

in June African Song was moved up to Group One level for the King's Stand Stakes run over five furlongs on good to firm ground. Ridden by

Pat Eddery Patrick James John Eddery (18 March 1952 – 10 November 2015) was an Irish flat racing jockey and trainer. He rode three winners of the Derby and was Champion Jockey on eleven occasions. He rode the winners of 4,632 British flat races, a f ...

he started at odds of 10/1 in a fourteen-runner field. The best of his rivals appeared to be Abdu (runner-up in the William Hill Sprint Championship), Greenland Park (winner of the

Queen Mary Stakes The Queen Mary Stakes is a Group races, Group 2 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old Filly, fillies. It is run at Ascot Racecourse, Ascot over a distance o ...

Molecomb Stakes The Molecomb Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled to take place ...

and

Cornwallis Stakes The Cornwallis Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Newmarket over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled to take place ...

), Runnett (later to win the

Haydock Sprint Cup The Sprint Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Haydock Park over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and ...

) and Abeer (Queen Mary Stakes,

Flying Childers Stakes The Flying Childers Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 5 furlongs and 3 yards (1,008 metres), and it is sched ...

). Racing down the centre of the course African Song went to the front soon after the start and dominated the race, going clear of his rivals by half way and winning by one and a half lengths from Runnett with Abdu in third place. African Song was scheduled to reappear in the

King George Stakes The King George Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is sc ...

Goodwood Racecourse Goodwood Racecourse is a horse-racing track five miles north of Chichester, West Sussex, in England controlled by the family of the Duke of Richmond, whose seat is nearby Goodwood House. It hosts the annual Glorious Goodwood meeting in lat ...

in July but went lame just before the start and was withdrawn from the race. In the William Hill Sprint Championship at York in August he started well but dropped away to finish tailed-off last behind

Sharpo Sharpo (1977–1994) was the champion United Kingdom, British Thoroughbred sprinter of 1982. He won seven races and more than £230,000 in prize money during a career which was restricted by his marked preference for soft ground. He develope ...

having sustained a

pastern The is a part of the leg of a horse between the fetlock and the top of the hoof. It incorporates the long pastern bone (proximal phalanx) and the short pastern bone (middle phalanx), which are held together by two sets of paired ligaments to fo ...

injury. In September it was announced that the colt had been retired from racing.

Assessment

In 1980 the independent Timeform organisation gave African Song a rating of 121, sixteen pounds behind their best sprinter

Moorestyle Moorestyle (1977–1984) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was unfashionably bred, sold cheaply as a yearling and began his career in minor races. As a three-year-old however, he improved to become the one of the outstanding ...

. In the official International Classification however, he was rated only eight pounds inferior to Moorestyle, who was the top-rated three-year-old in Europe,

Stud record

African Song began his stud career at the Haras du Theil-en-Auge in Normandy, and later stood in Denmark. His last recorded foals were born in 1994.

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist 1977 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 12-g