Dream Well (born 1995 in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

) is a retired champion

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 ...

, bred by the

Niarchos family Stavros Spyrou Niarchos ( el, Σταύρος Σπύρου Νιάρχος, ; 3 July 1909 – 15 April 1996) was a Greek billionaire shipping tycoon. Starting in 1952, he had the world's biggest supertankers built for his fleet. Propelled by both ...

. Dream Well was purchased at the Agence Francaise Yearling Sale in

Deauville Deauville () is a commune in the Calvados department, Normandy, northwestern France. Major attractions include its harbour, race course, marinas, conference centre, villas, Grand Casino, and sumptuous hotels. The first Deauville Asian Film Fes ...

by Jean Louis Bouchard. He became best known for winning not only the

Prix du Jockey Club The Prix du Jockey Club, sometimes referred to as the French Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Chantilly over a ...

(French Derby), but also the

Irish Derby Stakes 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 ...

in 1998 – a classic double which until that year was only completed by

Assert Assertion or assert may refer to: Computing * Assertion (software development), a computer programming technique * assert.h, a header file in the standard library of the C programming language * Assertion definition language, a specification lang ...

and

Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary * Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...

in the 1980s.

Background

Dream Well's dam was Soul Dream, herself the daughter of the dual

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

Alleged In law, an allegation is a claim of an unproven fact by a party in a pleading, charge, or defense. Until they can be proved, allegations remain merely assertions.

. Sired by Champion

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 ...

, himself the winner of

Irish 2,000 Guineas The Irish 2,000 Guineas 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 mile (1,609 metres), and it is s ...

and the

Eclipse Stakes The Eclipse Stakes is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Sandown P ...

. Dream Well's ancestors through his great grand dam Mia Pola can be traced back to U.S. Triple Crown champion

War Admiral War Admiral (May 2, 1934 – October 30, 1959) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the fourth winner of the American Triple Crown. He was also the 1937 Horse of the Year and well known as the rival of Seabiscuit in the 'Match ...

, and also his pedigree carries a double cross of world-renowned sire

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 ...

, through his dam and sire.

Racing career

As a three-year-old, trained by

Pascal Bary Pascal Bary (born April 4, 1953) is a French racehorse trainer. He has been training since 1981, having previously worked as an assistant to François Boutin. He is based at Chantilly, Oise. Major wins Dubai * Dubai World Cup - (1) - ''Glória ...

and ridden by

Cash Asmussen Cash Asmussen (born March 15, 1962 in Agar, South Dakota) is an American thoroughbred horse racing jockey. Born Brian Keith Asmussen, in 1977 he legally changed his name to "Cash". From a Texas horse racing family, his parents, Keith and Marilyn ...

, Dream Well won the Prix du Jockey Club (French Derby) on only his fourth ever outing, beating Croco Rouge by ½ length. One month later in magnificent style, quickly leaving his rivals for dead, Dream Well completed the double by winning the Irish Derby and so beating City Honours by 4½ lengths. This led to Dream Well being voted the 1998 Irish Horse of the Year and 1998

European Horse of the Year The Cartier Racing Awards are awards in European horse racing, founded in 1991, and sponsored by Cartier SA, Cartier. The award winners are decided by points earned in group races (40%) plus the votes cast by British racing journalists (30%) and rea ...

Stud record

Dream Well was retired from racing at the end of the 1999 season and was sent to stud in Japan and, for one season, New Zealand. He returned to France in 2004 to stand at

Haras de Fresnay-le-Buffard Haras de Fresnay-le-Buffard was a Thoroughbred horse breeding farm in Neuvy-au-Houlme in the Orne department in Lower Normandy purchased by Marcel Boussac in 1919. Widely respected, Marcel Boussac was called "the greatest of French breeders" by Jo ...

, where he now stands. Dream Well now has his ow
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Pedigree

References

Dream Well's pedigree and racing stats

Dream Well at Haras de Fresnay-le-Buffard
{{Cartier Champion Three-year-old Colt 1995 racehorse births Racehorses bred in France Racehorses trained in France French Thoroughbred Classic Race winners European Thoroughbred Horse of the Year Cartier Award winners Irish Classic Race winners Thoroughbred family 16-c