Finian's Rainbow (29 May 2003 – 24 March 2021) was a British

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 ...

. He won ten of his fifteen starts, including the

Maghull Novices' Chase The Maghull Novices' Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Aintree over a distance of about 2 miles (1 mile 7 ...

Queen Mother Champion Chase The Queen Mother Champion Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. As part of a sponsorship agreement with the onli ...

, and

Melling Chase The Melling Chase, currently known for sponsorship purposes as the Marsh Chase, is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Aintr ...

. He was owned by Michael Buckley, trained by

Nicky Henderson Nicholas John Henderson (born 10 December 1950) is a British racehorse trainer. He has been British jump racing Champion Trainer six times. Background His father was Johnny Henderson who was one of the founders of the Racecourse Holdings Tru ...

, and was ridden by

Barry Geraghty Barry Geraghty (born 16 September 1979) is a retired Irish jockey. He is the second most successful jockey of all time at the Cheltenham Festival. Geraghty rode his first winner in January 1997 and three years later he became the Irish Champio ...

in all but one of his races.

Background

Finian's Rainbow was foaled on 29 May 2003. A

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...

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 ...

, he was bred by J. O'Keeffe. He was sired by Tiraaz, who won the

Prix Royal-Oak The Prix Royal-Oak 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 3,100 metres (about 1 mile and 7½ furlongs), and ...

in 1998. Finian's Rainbow's

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, a ...

was Trinity Gale, a daughter of top

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: ...

sire Strong Gale, who was the leading jump racing sire in Great Britain and Ireland for six seasons. Trinity Gale raced in seven

hurdle A hurdle (UK English, limited US English) is a moveable section of light fence. In the United States, terms such as "panel", "pipe panel" or simply "fence section" are used to describe moveable sections of fencing intended for agricultural us ...

races in 1993 and 1994, without winning; she did however win a point-to-point race at Ballon Racecourse. Finian's Rainbow died on 24 March 2021 from complications due to

colic Colic or cholic () is a form of pain that starts and stops abruptly. It occurs due to muscular contractions of a hollow tube ( small and large intestine, gall bladder, ureter, etc.) in an attempt to relieve an obstruction by forcing content out ...

Racing career

2008–09 season

In his first start under

rules Rule or ruling may refer to: Education * Royal University of Law and Economics (RULE), a university in Cambodia Human activity * The exercise of political or personal control by someone with authority or power * Business rule, a rule perta ...

, Finian's Rainbow won a two-mile

National Hunt flat race National Hunt flat races, informally known as bumper races, are a type of flat racing but run under National Hunt racing rules in Britain and Ireland. National Hunt flat races were created on 15 July 1891 when a conference between the stewards of ...

at Kempton Park, beating Stoney's Treasure by six

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 ...

. This was his only start of the 2008–09 season.

2009–10 season

At the start of the 2009–10 season he won his first race over

hurdles Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today, ...

in November, when he beat favourite Sereth by fifteen lengths in a Class 3 Novices' Hurdle race over two miles and half a furlong at Newbury. On his next start he finished third, one length behind winner Reve De Sivola, in the Grade 1

Challow Novices' Hurdle The Challow Novices' Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Newbury over a distance of about 2 miles and 4½ furlongs (2 m ...

. After winning another Class 3 Novices Hurdle at Ascot, Finian's Rainbow went to the

Cheltenham Festival The Cheltenham Festival is a horse racing-based meeting in the National Hunt racing calendar in the United Kingdom, with race prize money second only to the Grand National. The four-day festival takes place annually in March at Cheltenham Rac ...

, where he was one of seventeen horses to contest the

Neptune Investment Management Novices' Hurdle The Baring Bingham Novices' Hurdle (known as the Ballymore Novices' Hurdle for sponsorship reasons) is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years ...

Rite of Passage A rite of passage is a ceremony or ritual of the passage which occurs when an individual leaves one group to enter another. It involves a significant change of status in society. In cultural anthropology the term is the Anglicisation of ''rite ...

, who had finished third in the previous season's

Champion Bumper The Champion Bumper is a Grade 1 National Hunt flat race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four to six years. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 miles and ½ f ...

started as the 7/2 favourite, with Finian's Rainbow third favourite at 11/2. He was with the leaders when they jumped the second to last hurdle, but could not keep pace with them in the final stages. The race was won by Peddlers Cross by one and a half lengths from Reve De Sivola, with Rite of Passage a further three and three quarter lengths back in third. Finian's Rainbow finished in fifth place, six and three quarter lengths behind the winner.

2010–11 season

Finian's Rainbow started the 2010–11 season in November 2010, when he won a Class 3 Novices' Chase at Newbury over two miles and one furlong, easily beating Hell's Bay by twelve lengths. The following January he won another Novices' Chase at Newbury, before starting as the 2/5 favourite for the Kingmaker Novices' Chase at

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

. He won the race by eleven lengths from Stagecoach Pearl, after being eased up in the final stages by jockey Andrew Tinkler. Finian's Rainbow went to the Cheltenham Festival again, this time contesting the

Arkle Challenge Trophy The Arkle Challenge Trophy is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the Old Course at Cheltenham, England, over a dista ...

. With regular jockey

back on board, he raced near the front of the ten-runner field throughout the race. He was leading until he hit the last fence, after which he was overtaken by Captain Chris and could not get back on terms. Captain Chris won the race by two and three quarter lengths from Finian's Rainbow, with Realt Dubh a further six lengths back in third and pre-race favourite Medermit in fourth place. At

Aintree Aintree is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. Historically in Lancashire, it lies between Walton and Maghull on the A59 road, north-east of Liverpool city centre, in North West England. It i ...

on 9 April, Finian's Rainbow was one of seven horses to run in the

over two miles. He started as the odd-on favourite for the race. Also near the front of the betting were Ghizao, Starluck and Dan Breen. Finian's Rainbow led the race from the start. He was challenged by Ghizao with two fences left to jump, but beat him by two lengths. The two were over twenty lengths clear of Dan Breen, who finished in third place. This was Finian's Rainbow's first Grade 1 win and his final race of the season.

2011–12 season

Early season

His first race out of novice company was the

Desert Orchid Chase The Desert Orchid Chase is a Grade 2 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Kempton Park over a distance of about 2 miles (3,219 metres), and during it ...

at Kempton Park in December 2011. He led in the early stages of the race, but was overtaken when he made a mistake jumping the fourth to last fence. He dropped about four lengths back, but ran on in the finishing straight and regained the lead in the final few yards, beating Wishful Thinking by three-quarters of a length. In the

Victor Chandler Chase The Clarence House Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of about 2 miles and 1 furlong (2 ...

he was beaten by one and a quarter lengths by Somersby. Finian's Rainbow was nearly four lengths ahead of leading novice

Al Ferof Al Ferof (30 March 2005) is a retired French-bred British-based National Hunt horse owned by John Hales. He was initially trained by Barry Murphy in wexford for Martin Timothy Murphy. He was then trained by Paul Nicholls (horse racing), Paul Ni ...

, who finished in third place.

Champion Chase

In the

at the Cheltenham Festival, he faced a quality field that included the previous two winners

Sizing Europe Sizing Europe (24 March 2002) is an Irish National Hunt horse, best known for winning the 2011 Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham. He won the Irish Champion Hurdle in 2008 before switching to chasing, where he has won six Grade 1s over f ...

and

Big Zeb Big Zeb (foaled 13 May 2001) is a retired, Irish Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who competed in National Hunt racing and was best known for his performances in Steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechases over the minimum distance of two mil ...

. These were the first three in the betting, with Sizing Europe starting as the 4/5 favourite, Finian's Rainbow at 4/1, Big Zeb at 13/2. Wishful Thinking was leading until he fell at the fourth fence and went through the rail, injuring a photographer. Sizing Europe and Finian's Rainbow began to pull clear with two fences left to jump. However, the last fence was omitted as the photographer and Wishful Thinking's jockey

Richard Johnson Richard or Dick Johnson may refer to: Academics * Dick Johnson (academic) (1929–2019), Australian academic * Richard C. Johnson (1930–2003), professor of electrical engineering * Richard A. Johnson, artist and professor at the University of ...

were injured. This appeared to cause some confusion as to whether the fence should be jumped, with the leading pair veering right to miss the fence and coming close to each other. Finian's Rainbow and Sizing Europe fought for the lead along the finishing straight, until Finian's Rainbow slowly pulled away in the final 100 yards. He beat Sizing Europe by one and a quarter lengths. Big Zeb was another fifteen lengths behind in third, and Gauvain a further eleven lengths down in fourth place. After the race Sizing Europe's jockey Andrew Lynch said to trainer Henry de Bromhead, "the last cost me the race". Finian's Rainbow's jockey Barry Geraghty said: "It's a brilliant day – you dream of days like this. I'm genuinely so delighted for Michael Buckley. He's had a good few disappointments this season, but he's had patience with this fellow and I really am delighted for him."

Melling Chase

In his final start of the season, Finian's Rainbow started as the 13/8 favourite for the two and a half mile

, further than he had previously raced over fences. In the early stages he tracked leaders

Albertas Run Albertas Run (foaled 23 April 2001) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in National Hunt races. He won two National Hunt Flat races and became a successful hurdler, winning the National Hunt Novices' Handicap H ...

and Poquelin. He hit the tenth fence, but took the lead from Albertas Run two fences out. He then pulled clear to win by seven lengths from Wishfull Thinking, with Albertas Run finishing in third place. Trainer

said after the race: ''"Today he was always in a comfortable position just behind and you hoped he was in cruise control and he probably was. When he'' eraghty''switched him on he picked it up very quickly."'' At the end of the season he had an official rating of 173, making him the Anglo-Irish Champion two-mile chaser for the season. He was the fourth highest rated chaser overall, behind

Kauto Star Kauto Star (19 March 2000 – 29 June 2015) was a French-bred National Hunt champion racehorse trained by Paul Nicholls in Somerset and owned by Clive Smith. He was known for his versatility and longevity, being the only horse ever to be top ...

Long Run In economics, the long-run is a theoretical concept in which all markets are in equilibrium, and all prices and quantities have fully adjusted and are in equilibrium. The long-run contrasts with the short-run, in which there are some constraints an ...

and

Master Minded {{Infobox racehorse , horsename = Master Minded , image_name = Master Minded.jpg , caption = Master Minded at Sandown in 2011. , sire = Nikos , grandsire = Nonoalco , dam = Haute Tension , damsire = Garde Royale , sex = Gelding , foaled ...

2012–13 season

Finian's Rainbow made a disappointing start to the 2012–13 National Hunt season, when, in heavy ground, he finished last of the four runners and 24 lengths behind winner Captain Chris in the

Amlin 1965 Chase The 1965 Chase is a Grade 2 National Hunt racing, National Hunt Steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot Racecou ...

. It was originally intended that he would run in the

King George VI Chase The King George VI Chase is a Grade 1 National Hunt steeplechase in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Kempton Park over a distance of ...

Boxing Day Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide (26 December). Though it originated as a holiday to give gifts to the poor, today Boxing Day is primarily known as a shopping holiday. It ...

, but was withdrawn, with trainer Nicky Henderson saying he would not run due to the heavy ground.

Pedigree

''Note: b. =

Bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...

, br. =

Brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing or painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors orange and black. In the RGB color model used ...

, ch. =

Chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...

, gr. =

Grey Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...

References

{{reflist 2003 racehorse births Cheltenham Festival winners Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 9 2021 racehorse deaths