Glint of Gold (5 April 1978 – 1990) 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 ...
racehorse and
sire. A middle-distance specialist, he was noted for his toughness and consistency, winning ten races, finishing second six times and third once in a seventeen race career which lasted from July 1980 until September 1982. He won races in four countries including six at
Group One level. His major victories included the
Gran Criterium
The Gran Criterium is a Group 2 flat horse race in Italy open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Milan over a distance of 1,500 metres (about 1 mile), and it is scheduled to take place each year in October.
The event ...
and
Derby Italiano
The Derby Italiano is a Group 2 flat horse race in Italy open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Capannelle over a distance of 2,200 metres (about 1 mile and 3 furlongs), and it is scheduled to take place each year in ...
in Italy, the
Grand Prix de Paris
The Grand Prix de Paris is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and i ...
and
Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud
The Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Saint-Cloud over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is ...
in France, the
Preis von Europa
The Preis von Europa is a Group 1 flat horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Cologne over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is scheduled to take place ea ...
and
Grosser Preis von Baden
The Grosser Preis von Baden is a Group 1 flat horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Baden-Baden over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is schedu ...
in Germany and the
Great Voltigeur Stakes
The Great Voltigeur Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old colts and geldings. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 1 ...
and
John Porter Stakes
The John Porter Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs () a ...
in Britain. He was also placed in
The Derby,
St Leger Stakes
The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a ...
,
Coronation Cup
The Coronation Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards (2 ...
and
. He was retired to stud at the end of the 1982 season and had modest success as a sire of winners.
Background
Glint of Gold was a strongly-built, good-looking
bay horse with a white
star bred by his owner
Paul Mellon. He was sired by Mellon's stallion
Mill Reef
Mill may refer to:
Science and technology
*
* Mill (grinding)
* Milling (machining)
* Millwork
* Textile mill
* Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel
* List of types of mill
* Mill, the arithmetic unit of the Analytical Engine ear ...
and American-bred horse who won the Epsom Derby,
and
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 1971. Mill Reef's other offspring included
Reference Point,
Milligram
The kilogram (also kilogramme) is the unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI), having the unit symbol kg. It is a widely used measure in science, engineering and commerce worldwide, and is often simply called a kilo colloquially. ...
,
Shirley Heights
Shirley Heights (1 March 1975 – 17 March 1997) was a British Thoroughbred race horse and winner of the Derby in 1978. The colt had previously won the Royal Lodge Stakes and the Dante Stakes, and he went on to win the Irish Derby before his ra ...
,
Lashkari and
Doyoun
Doyoun (8 March 1985 – 5 December 2002) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire, best known for winning the classic 2000 Guineas in 1988. In a racing career which lasted from October 1987 until October 1988 he ran seven times and wo ...
. Glint of Gold was the first foal of his dam Crown Treasure, a daughter of
Graustark
Graustark is a fictional country in Eastern Europe used as a setting for several novels by George Barr McCutcheon. Graustark's neighbors, which also figure in the stories, are Axphain to the north and Dawsbergen to the south.
Description
Gr ...
who was sent to Europe in to be covered by Mill Reef and remained there for several years owing to import restrictions. A year after Glint of Gold was foaled, Crown Treasure produced his full-brother
Diamond Shoal
Diamond Shoal (6 May 1979 – ca.1996) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He showed some promise as a two-year-old, winning two of his six races. In the following year he won only one minor race but was placed in several major rac ...
, an outstanding middle-distance performer who won the
Gran Premio di Milano
The Gran Premio di Milano is a Group 2 flat horse race in Italy open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Milan over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is scheduled to take place each year in June.
The event ...
, Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud, Grosser Preis von Baden in 1983. She later produced Crystal Spirit, a leading
hurdler
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, ...
who won the
Sun Alliance Hurdle and the
Cleeve Hurdle
The Cleeve Hurdle is a Grade 2 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run on the New Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 3 miles ( ...
in 1991.
Like many of Mellon's best horses, Glint of Gold was trained at
Kingsclere
Kingsclere is a large village and civil parish in Hampshire, England.
Geography
Kingsclere is approximately equidistant ) from the towns of Basingstoke and Newbury on the A339 road.
History
Kingsclere can trace back its history to a p ...
in
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...
by
Ian Balding
Ian Balding (born 7 November 1938) is a retired British horse trainer. He is the son of the polo player and racehorse trainer Gerald Matthews Balding and the younger brother of trainer Toby Balding. Ian Balding was born in the US, but his famil ...
. He was ridden in most of his races by the British jockey John Matthias. Like many of Balding's horses, Glint of Gold usually raced on a
sheepskin noseband.
Racing career
1980: two-year-old season
Glint of Gold ran three times as a two-year-old in 1980. He made a successful debut at
Ascot Racecourse
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 a ...
in July when he won the Sandwich Stakes over seven furlongs. In August he started favourite for the
Acomb Stakes
The Acomb Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at York over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each yea ...
(now a
Group Three race) 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 in prize money offered per meeting. It attracts around 350 ...
but was beaten into second place by Cocaine. In October he was moved up in class and sent to Italy to contest the Group One
Gran Criterium
The Gran Criterium is a Group 2 flat horse race in Italy open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Milan over a distance of 1,500 metres (about 1 mile), and it is scheduled to take place each year in October.
The event ...
over 1600m in Milan. He won from Bold Brigadier, No Piracy and thirteen others.
1981: three-year-old season
Glint of Gold began his three-year-old season by winning the Warren Stakes over one and a half miles at
Epsom Downs Racecourse on 21 April, after which he was offered at odds of 33/1 for the Derby Stakes over the same course and distance. In May he was sent to Italy for the second time for the Derby Italiano over 2400m at the
Capannelle Racecourse
Capannelle Racecourse ( it, Ippodromo delle Capannelle) is a horse racing venue in Rome, Italy. The course was constructed in 1881, and it was rebuilt in 1926 to a design by Paolo Vietti-Violi.
It was recently the venue of two Group 1 flat ra ...
in Rome for which he was the only foreign challenger and started odd-on favourite. Matthias sent him into the lead in the straight and he won very easily by two lengths from My Franky.
At Epsom on 3 June Glint of Gold was one of eighteen colt to contest the 202nd running of the Derby and started at odds of
13/1 behind
Shergar
Shergar (3 March 1978 – ) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. After a very successful season in 1981 he was retired to the Ballymany Stud in County Kildare, Ireland. In 1983 he was stolen from the stud, and a ransom of ...
, Shotgun and
Kalaglow
Kalaglow (1978–1994) was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred race horse. In a career which lasted from August 1980 until October 1982 he ran fourteen times and won ten races. He is most notable for his performances in 1982 when he ...
. Glint o Gold was towards the rear of the field in the early stages before making steady progress in the straight. He never had any chance with Shergar, who won by a record margin of ten lengths but was clearly the best of the other runners, beating Scintillating Air by two length for the second place. Matthias reportedly believed that he had won the race as he crossed the line: "I thought I had won ... Shergar had gone so far clear I didn't see him". In late June, Glint of Gold was sent to France for the Grand Prix de Paris over 3000 metres 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 ...
but the race was cancelled and then rescheduled for 4 July because of industrial action by
Pari-Mutuel
Parimutuel betting or pool betting is a betting system in which all bets of a particular type are placed together in a pool; taxes and the "house-take" or "vigorish" are deducted, and payoff odds are calculated by sharing the pool among all winni ...
staff. Glint of Gold became the first British-trained winner of the race since Lemonora in 1921 as he defeated Tipperary Fixer by three lengths with the favourite Vayrann in third place. In August Glint of Gold returned to England for the Great Voltigeur takes, a trial race for the St Leger Stakes, run over one and a half miles 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 in prize money offered per meeting. It attracts around 350 ...
. Carrying a seven-pound weight penalty as a Group One winner, he started even money favourite
and produced a "striking"
performance, taking the lead in the straight and winning by three lengths from
Little Wolf who was in turn seven lengths clear of the other five runners.
On 12 September at
Doncaster Racecourse, Glint of Gold was one of six colts to oppose Shergar in the 205th running of the St Leger. Since winning the Derby, the Aga Khan's colt had won the Irish Derby and the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes and started the 4/9 favourite, with Glint of Gold second in the betting on 4/1. Matthias tracked the leaders before turning into the straight in second place behind Bustomi, with Shergar in third. As Shergar began to struggle, Glint of Gold moved into the lead two furlongs from the finish and looked the likely winner but was overtaken and beaten two and a half lengths by the 28/1 outsider
Cut Above
Cut Above (19 April 1978 – ca. 1991) was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire best known for his upset win in the 1981 St Leger Stakes. As a two-year-old he showed useful form despite being beaten in both of his races and won the Wh ...
. Having already won Group One races in Italy and France, Glint of Gold ended his season with a win in Germany's most valuable race, the
Preis von Europa
The Preis von Europa is a Group 1 flat horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Cologne over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is scheduled to take place ea ...
in
Köln in October. Racing on heavy ground, he took the lead in the straight and won by three and a half length from the
Polish
Polish may refer to:
* Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe
* Polish language
* Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...
horse Czubaryk and the Russian filly Struna.
1982: four-year-old season
Glint of Gold began his third season in the
John Porter Stakes
The John Porter Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs () a ...
at
Newbury Racecourse
Newbury Racecourse is a racecourse and events venue in the civil parish of Greenham, adjoining the town of Newbury in Berkshire, England. It has courses for flat races and over jumps. It hosts one of Great Britain's 36 annual Group 1 flat ...
in April. Starting at odds of 7/2
he appeared to be less than fully fit but won by a neck from Amyndas, to whom he was conceding six pounds. Two weeks later at
Newmarket Racecourse
Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of British horserac ...
he was beaten by
Ardross in a closely contested finish for the
Jockey Club Stakes
The Jockey Club Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile and 4 furlongs (2,414 metres) on ...
. On 3 June Glint of Gold started the 7/4 favourite for the
Coronation Cup
The Coronation Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards (2 ...
at Epsom. Matthias tracked the pacemaker Show-A-Leg before taking the lead in the straight but was overtaken in the closing stages and beaten half a length by Easter Sun. Matthias was criticised by some commentators who felt that he should have taken the lead earlier and made better use of Glint of Gold's stamina. At
Royal Ascot Glint of Gold ran in the Group Two
Hardwicke Stakes
The Hardwicke Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 211 yards (2,406 metres), and ...
in which he was held up by Matthias before making his challenge in the straight. In a rough finish
he took the lead in the final furlong but was overtaken and beaten by a length by Critique, an unpredictable horse who was given a much-praised ride by
Lester Piggoott. Following further criticism of Matthias, Pat Eddery took over as Glint of Gold for his remaining races.
After three consecutive defeats in England, Glint of Gold was sent to France for the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud over 2500m on 4 July. Eddery sent him into the lead from the start and set such a strong pace that most of his opponents were struggling by the time they entered the straight. The French-trained five-year-old Lancastrian emerged as his only serious challenger and briefly took the lead 100m from the finish, but Glint of Gold rallied strongly in the closing strides to win by a head. Eddery was again in the saddle on 24 July when Glint of Gold contested Britain'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 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. Starting at odds of 10/1, Glint of Gold tracked the leaders before making a strong challenge in the straight. He appeared to have taken a narrow lead approaching the final furlong but was outpaced in the closing stages and eventually beaten into third place by Kalaglow and
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 ...
. It was the first and only time that Glint of Gold failed to finish first or second.
In September, Glint of Gold was sent to Germany for the second time when he was matched against the German Horse of the Year in the
Grosser Preis von Baden
The Grosser Preis von Baden is a Group 1 flat horse race in Germany open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Baden-Baden over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), and it is schedu ...
. Starting the odds-on favourite, he led from the start and won very easily by two and three quarter lengths. He was than aimed at 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 ...
, but after his training was interrupted by a minor tendon injury and a high temperature, he was withdrawn from the race and retired to stud.
Assessment
In 1981, Glint of Gold was given a rating of 128 by the independent Timeform organisation, twelve pounds below the top-rated Shergar. In their annual Racehorses of 1981, Timeform described him as "a very hardy, genuine and courageous racehorse".
In the official International Classification, he was rated thirteen pounds behind Shergar as the ninth best three-year-old colt in Europe. In the following year's International Classification he was rated the tenth best horse of any age in Europe, seven pound behind the top-rated
Golden Fleece
In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece ( el, Χρυσόμαλλον δέρας, ''Chrysómallon déras'') is the fleece of the golden-woolled,, ''Khrusómallos''. winged ram, Chrysomallos, that rescued Phrixus and brought him to Colchis, where ...
. In the Gilbey Racing Awards, based on point awarded for performances in major races across Europe, Glint of Gold was named "Middle Distance Champion".
Stud record
Glint of Gold was retired from racing to become a breeding stallion at the Derisley Wood Stud near Newmarket. He had some success as a sire of flat race horses with his best winners including
Heart of Darkness (
National Stakes
The Vincent O'Brien National Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 7 furlongs (1,408 metr ...
) and
Tessla (
Fillies' Mile
The Fillies' Mile 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 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is sche ...
). He also made an impact as a
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: ...
stallion, siring Dawson City (
Dipper Novices' Chase), Ikdam (
Triumph Hurdle
The Triumph Hurdle is a Grade 1 National Hunt hurdle race in Great Britain which is open to horses aged four years. It is run on the New Course at Cheltenham over a distance of about 2 miles and 1 f ...
) and Vagog (
Long Walk Hurdle
The Long Walk 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 Ascot over a distance of about 3 miles and 1 furlong (3 ...
).
Pedigree
References
{{reflist
1978 racehorse births
Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom
Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom
Thoroughbred family 21-a