Hector Protector (foaled 1988 in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

) was an American-bred, French-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. He was a full brother to the Champion filly Bosra Sham, who was trained by Henry Cecil. She was a champion miler and despite her bad feet she won the 1000 Guineas Stakes G1 over 1600 meters. The great trainer Henry Cecil considered her to be the best filly he ever trained. He was the leading European two-year-old of 1990 when he was undefeated in six races.

Background

Hector Protector was a

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 ...

horse bred in

Stavros Niarchos 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 ...

. He was conditioned for racing by

François Boutin François Boutin (21 January 1937 – 1 February 1995) was a French Thoroughbred horse trainer. The son of a farmer, he was born in the village of Beaunay in the northerly Seine Maritime département. He began riding horses at a young age and ...

Racing career

At age two, under jockey

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 ...

, Hector Protector won three

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 ...

races, the 1990

Grand Critérium Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and c ...

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 ...

, and the

Prix de la Salamandre The Prix de la Salamandre was a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It was run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and it was scheduled to take place each year in Sep ...

. Ridden by Head at age three, the colt finished fourth to winner Generous in the 1991 Epsom Derby in England. Back in France, he won two more Group Ones, the 1991

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 ...

and the

Prix Jacques Le Marois The Prix Jacques Le Marois is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred colts and fillies aged three years or older. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile ...

Stud record

Retired from racing, Hector Protector was purchased by Zenya Yoshida, the prominent Japanese horseman and owner of Shadai Farm in

Shiraoi, Hokkaido is a town located in Iburi, Hokkaido, Japan. As of September 2016, the town had a population of 17,759. It was established in 1867 by the feudal lords of Sendai. Most of the area of the town is forested and parts lie within the Shikotsu-Tōya Nat ...

. Yoshida brought him to stand at

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay ba ...

in Japan.

References

1988 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in France Thoroughbred family 22-b {{Racehorse-stub