Detroit (24 February 1977 – 20 May 2001) was a French
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
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 pr ...
and
broodmare
A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...
who won 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 ...
in 1980. Unraced as a two-year-old, Detroit won her first four races in 1980 including the
Prix Fille de l'Air
The Prix Fille de l'Air is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Toulouse over a distance of 2,100 metres (about 1 mile and ...
,
Prix Chloé
The Prix Chloé is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 1,800 metres (about 1⅛ miles), and it is scheduled to take p ...
and
Prix de la Nonette
The Prix de la Nonette is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles), and it is scheduled to ...
. She was beaten when favourite for the
Prix Vermeille
The Prix Vermeille is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), an ...
before winning the Arc in record time. She remained in training as a four-year-old and won three more races including the
Prix Foy
The Prix Foy is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred colts and fillies aged four years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it i ...
. She was retired to stud where she produced the Arc de Triomphe winner Carnegie.
Background
Detroit was a brown mare with a white blaze and white
socks
A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. In the late ...
on her hind legs bred in France by Société Aland. She was sired by
Riverman
Riverman (1969–1999) was a French Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse.
Background
Foaled in Kentucky, Riverman was bred by Harry F. Guggenheim of the prominent American Guggenheim family. Riverman was from the mare (horse), mare River Lady ...
a French horse who won the
Poule d'Essai des Poulains
Molof (Ampas, Poule, Powle-Ma) is a poorly documented Papuan language spoken by about 200 people in Molof village, Senggi District, Keerom Regency.
Classification
Wurm (1975) placed it as an independent branch of Trans–New Guinea, but Ross ...
in 1972. As a breeding stallion he was highly successful, being the sire of many important winners including
Irish River
{{Infobox racehorse
, horsename = Irish River
, image =
, caption =
, sire = Riverman
, grandsire = Never Bend
, dam = Irish Star
, damsire = Klairon
, sex = Stallion
, foaled = 1976
, country = France
, colour = Chestnut
, breede ...
River Memories
{{Infobox racehorse
, horsename = River Memories
, image =
, caption =
, sire = Riverman
, grandsire = Never Bend
, dam = Le Vague a Lame
, damsire = Vaguely Noble
, sex = Filly
, foaled = 1984
, country = United States
, colour = ...
and
Triptych
A triptych ( ; from the Greek language, Greek adjective ''τρίπτυχον'' "''triptukhon''" ("three-fold"), from ''tri'', i.e., "three" and ''ptysso'', i.e., "to fold" or ''ptyx'', i.e., "fold") is a work of art (usually a panel painting) t ...
. Detroit's dam Derna had previously produced Durtal, who won the
Cheveley Park Stakes
The Cheveley Park Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it i ...
and was the dam of the
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 ...
winner
Gildoran
Gildoran (foaled 6 June 1980) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and stallion. A specialist stayer he won the Ascot Gold Cup in 1984 and 1985. His other wins included the Sagaro Stakes and the Goodwood Cup. In all, he won ...
. Another daughter of Derna was Valderna, the grand-dam of the New Zealand/Australian champion
Zabeel
Zabeel (25 October 1986 – 25 September 2015) was a New Zealand-bred racehorse who predominantly raced in Australia. He was retired to stud and became a champion sire. He is a bay son of Sir Tristram (IRE) from the Nureyev mare Lady Gisell ...
.
As a foal, Detroit was sold in a private deal for approximately £100,000 to
Robert Sangster
Robert Edmund Sangster (23 May 1936 – 7 April 2004)
. The filly was sent into training with Olivier Douieb at
Chantilly
Chantilly may refer to:
Places
France
*Chantilly, Oise, a city located in the Oise department
**US Chantilly, a football club
*Château de Chantilly, a historic château located in the town of Chantilly
United States
* Chantilly, Missou ...
.
Racing career
1980: three-year-old season
Detroit did not race as a two-year-old, beginning her racing career with a five-
length
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 Interna ...
win in a
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 ...
over 2100
metre
The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pref ...
s at
Saint-Cloud Racecourse
Hippodrome de Saint-Cloud is a grass race course for Thoroughbred flat horse racing opened in 1901 at 1 rue du Camp Canadien in Saint-Cloud near Paris, France. During World War 1, the race course site housed the No. 4 Canadian Stationary Hospital ...
in May 1980. She was then moved up in class for 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 ...
Prix de Fille de l'Air over the same course and distance on 21 June. Ridden by
Alain Lequeux
Alain Lequeux (1947 – 26 April 2006) was one of France's leading jockey
A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The w ...
, she started the 2.1/1 favourite and won by two and a half lengths from Gold River. On 19 July, the filly started the 1.4/1 favourite for the Group Three Prix Chloé over 1800 m at
Evry Racecourse
EVRY A/S was a Norwegian information technology company that supplies services relating to computing, including operation, outsourcing, and online banking. The company is headquartered in Oslo. It was established through a merger between EDB Bus ...
and won by one and a half lengths from Licara. Detroit's next race was the Prix de la Nonette over 2000 m at
Deauville Racecourse
Hippodrome Deauville-La Touques is a race track for thoroughbred horse racing located in Deauville in the Calvados département, in the Normandy ''région'' of France. Originally called Hippodrome de la Touques, it was named for the Touques River t ...
on 31 August. She started the 9/10 favourite and won by two lengths from India Song with the
Prix de Malleret
The Prix de Malleret is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Saint-Cloud over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is scheduled to ...
winner Luth de Saron in third place.
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 ...
took over from Lequeux for Detroit's next race, the Group One
Prix Vermeille
The Prix Vermeille is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), an ...
over 2400 m at
Longchamp Racecourse
The Longchamp Racecourse (french: Hippodrome de Longchamp) is a 57 hectare horse-racing facility located on the Route des Tribunes at the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, France. It is used for flat racing and is noted for its variety of interlaced tr ...
on 14 September. She started the 11/4 favourite against a strong field which included Aryenne (
Poule d'Essai des Pouliches
The Poule d'Essai des Pouliches is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile) at ...
),
Mrs Penny
Mrs Penny (22 March 1977 – 1997) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. She won six of her twenty-two races and was rated the best British filly of her generation at both two and three years of age. In 1 ...
(
Prix de Diane
The Prix de Diane, sometimes referred to as the French Oaks, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 2,100 metre ...
Irish 1,000 Guineas
The Irish 1,000 Guineas is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is scheduled to ...
) and Gold River. Detroit was unable to obtain a clear run until the closing stages, but then produced a strong late run to finish third, beaten half a length and three quarters of a length by Mrs Penny and the Irish-trained outsider Little Bonny. Many observers, including Timeform, considered Detroit to have been a very unlucky loser. On 5 October, Detroit was one of twenty horses to contest Europe's most prestigious
weight-for-age
{{use dmy dates, date=October 2022
Weight for Age (WFA) is a term in thoroughbred horse racing which is one of the conditions for a race.
History
The principle of WFA was developed by Admiral Rous, a handicapper with the English Jockey Club. Rous ...
race, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe over 2400 m at Longchamp. Ridden by Eddery, she started the 6.7/1 fourth choice in the betting behind the British four-year-old
Ela-Mana-Mou
Ela-Mana-Mou (1976–2008) was a British Thoroughbred race horse and sire. In a career which lasted from 1978 until October 1980, he ran sixteen times and won ten races. He was one of the best British two-year-olds of 1978, when he defeated T ...
, the French colt
Le Marmot
Le Marmot (14 May 1976 – 1981) was a French Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He won two of his three race as a two-year-old in 1978 including the Prix La Rochette before emerging as a top-class performer in the following year when he won ...
and the 1979 Arc winner
Three Troikas
Three Troikas (foaled 1976) was a French Thoroughbred champion racehorse who was owned, trained, and raced by three members of the famous Head family. The highlight of her career came in an impressive victory in the 1979 Prix de l'Arc de Triomp ...
. Unusually, the race was run on firm ground and the presence of several
pacemakers
An artificial cardiac pacemaker (or artificial pacemaker, so as not to be confused with the natural cardiac pacemaker) or pacemaker is a Implant (medicine), medical device that generates electrical impulses delivered by electrodes to the Heart ...
ensured that the early pace was very fast. Eddery retrained the filly in the early stages before moving to the outside to make her challenge in the straight. Detroit made rapid progress, overtaking Ela-Mana-Mou and Three Troikas inside the last 200 m and holding the late run of
Argument
An argument is a statement or group of statements called premises intended to determine the degree of truth or acceptability of another statement called conclusion. Arguments can be studied from three main perspectives: the logical, the dialectic ...
to win by half a length. The winning time of 2:28.0 was a new record for the race.
1981: four-year-old season
Detroit's form in the early part of 1981 was disappointing. She finished fourth of the six runners behind Argument in the
Prix d'Harcourt
The Prix d'Harcourt is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles) at Longchamp in Apr ...
and fifth of nine behind the same horse in the
Prix Ganay
The Prix Ganay is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 2,100 metres (about 1 mile and 2½ furlongs) at Longc ...
on 3 May. Detroit was off the course for sixteen weeks before returning to win a minor race over 2200 m at Clairefontaine in August. She then followed up by winning the Prix Ridgway at Deauville, beating Ruscelli by one and a half lengths. According to Timeform, she looked to be in much better condition than in spring, but wore bandages on her legs, suggesting injury problems. In September, Detroit started odds-on favourite for the Prix Foy over 2400 m at Longchamp. In a slowly run race, she accelerated clear of her three opponents early in the straight and was eased down in the closing stages to win by two lengths from Lancastrian, with Gold River in third place. On 4 October, Detroit started the 7/2 second favourite in her attempt to win a second Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and was ridden by
Freddy Head
Freddy Head (born 19 June 1947, in Neuilly, France) is a retired champion jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing and currently a horse trainer. Known also as "Freddie", his grandfather was a jockey as was his father Alec Head who also became a succes ...
, who had opted to ride her in preference to Gold River. Detroit was well-placed in the early stages but dropped away in the straight and finished twentieth of the twenty-four runners behind Gold River. On her only subsequent appearance, Detroit finished fifth behind
April Run
{{Infobox racehorse
, horsename = April Run
, image =
, caption =
, sire = Run the Gantlet
, grandsire = Tom Rolfe
, dam = April Fancy
, damsire = No Argument
, sex = mare
, foaled = 1978
, country = Ireland
, colour = Bay
, breede ...
Aqueduct Race Track
Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park and Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack located within New York City limits. Its racing ...
.
Assessment
In 1980, Detroit was given a rating of 131 by the independent Timeform organisation, making her the highest-rated three-year-old filly of the year. She was also the top-rated three-year-old filly in the official International Classification, two pound ahead of Mrs Penny. Timeform awarded Detroit a rating of 126 in 1981. In the International Classification she was rated the second-best older female in Europe, seven pounds below Gold River.
In their book, ''A Century of Champions'', based on the Timeform rating system, John Randall and Tony Morris rated Detroit an "inferior" winner of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.
Broodmare career
Detroit was retired from racing to become a broodmare for her owner's Swettenham Stud. She produced at least twelve foals between 1983 and 2001:
*Lake Erie (bay colt, foaled in 1983, sired by Kings Lake), won six races, including the
St. Simon Stakes
The St. Simon Stakes is a Group races, Group 3 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Newbury Racecourse, Newbury o ...
*Nordic Legend (bay colt, 1985, by
Northern Dancer
Northern Dancer (May 27, 1961 – November 16, 1990) was a Thoroughbred who, in 1964, became the first Canadian-bred horse to win the Kentucky Derby. He then became one of the most successful sires of the 20th century. He is considered a Canad ...
), unraced
*Nocturnal Song (bay filly, 1986, by Northern Dancer), unraced
*Antisaar (bay colt, 1987, by Northern Dancer), won two races including
Prix Guillaume d'Ornano
The Prix Guillaume d'Ornano is a Conditions races, Group 2 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbreds. It is run at Deauville-La Touques Racecourse, Deauville o ...
*Wayne County (bay colt, 1990, by
Sadler's Wells
Sadler's Wells Theatre is a performing arts venue in Clerkenwell, London, England located on Rosebery Avenue next to New River Head. The present-day theatre is the sixth on the site since 1683. It consists of two performance spaces: a 1,500-sea ...
), won four races
* Carnegie (bay colt, 1991, by Sadler's Wells), won seven races including Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe
*Honfleur (brown filly, 1992, by Sadler's Wells), won two races
*Mayenne (brown filly, 1994, by Nureyev), unraced. Female-line ancestor of
Twilight Payment
Twilight Payment (foaled 6 May 2013) is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2020 Melbourne Cup. Bred and originally trained by Jim Bolger he did not race until he was three years old but showed promising form over exten ...
.
*Lamarque (bay filly, 1995, by Nureyev), unraced
*Valencay (bay filly, 1996, by Sadler's Wells), unraced
*Loire Valley (bay filly, 1998, by Sadler's Wells), unraced
*Mennetou (bay filly, 2001, by
Entrepreneur
Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...
), unraced
Detroit died shortly after the birth of her last foal on 20 May 2001 at the Swettenham Stud.