{{Infobox racehorse , horsename = Irish River , image = , caption = , sire = Riverman , grandsire = Never Bend , dam = Irish Star , damsire = Klairon , sex =

Stallion A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded (castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" nec ...

, foaled = 1976 , country = France , colour =

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 ...

, breeder = Mrs. Raymond Ades , owner = Mrs. Raymond Ades , trainer =

John Cunnington, Jr. John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, record = 12: 10-0-1 , earnings = US$622,739 (equivalent) , race = Prix du Bois (1978)
Prix Morny (1978)
Prix de la Salamandre (1978)
Grand Critérium (1978)

Prix de Fontainebleau The Prix de Fontainebleau is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and geldings. It is run over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile) at Long ...

(1979)
Poule d'Essai des Poulains (1979)
Prix d'Ispahan (1979)

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 ...

(1979)
Prix du Moulin de Longchamp (1979) , awards= , honours = , updated= August 11, 2007 Irish River (April 2, 1976 – April 25, 2004) was a French Thoroughbred

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 ...

who won seven

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 in France during his two-years of racing.

Background

Bred and raced by Mrs. Raymond Ades, he was out of the mare Irish Star. His

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" a ...

was the influential Riverman, a grandson of the extremely important stallion, Nearco. He was trained by

Racing career

Racing at age two in 1978, Irish River made six starts. After winning his first two races, the colt finished fourth in the July 30th

Group Two A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...

Prix Robert Papin to winner Pitasia. However, three weeks later he defeated Pitasia in capturing the Group One Prix Morny. At the end of the year he won his fifth race, the prestigious Grand Critérium. In the 1979 season, three-year-old Irish River duplicated his previous year's record by again winning five of his six starts. His only loss was a third-place finish in the

Prix Lupin The Prix Lupin was a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It was run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,100 metres (about 1 mile and 2½ furlongs), and it was scheduled to take place each year in ...

. Irish River ended his career as a winner of seven Group One races.

Stud record

At the end of his racing career Irish River was acquired by

John R. Gaines John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

who brought him to stand at stud at his

Gainesway Farm Gainesway Farm is an American Thoroughbred horse breeding business in Lexington, Kentucky. It was originally called Greentree Farms. The 1,500 acre (6 km²) property has been home to stallions such as Youth and Exceller and numerous others w ...

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

where his influential sire Riverman had stood. Beginning in 1980, Irish River had a successful twenty-two-year career as a stallion. Due to declining fertility, he was pensioned in 2001 having sired 87 stakes winners including: *

Or Vision Or or OR may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * "O.R.", a 1974 episode of M*A*S*H * Or (My Treasure), a 2004 movie from Israel (''Or'' means "light" in Hebrew) Music * ''Or'' (album), a 2002 album by Golden Boy with Miss ...

(1983) - multiple stakes winning Filly in France as well as a multiple stakes producer * Hatoof (1989) - Champion in France in 1991 and 1993. Voted the 1994 United States Eclipse Award for Outstanding Female Turf Horse * Paradise Creek (1989) - multiple Grade I winner in the U.S. and winner of the 1994

Eclipse Award for Outstanding Male Turf Horse The American Champion Male Turf Horse award is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor. The award originated in 1953 when the ''Daily Racing Form'' (DRF) named Iceberg II their champion. The Thoroughbred Racing Association (TRA) added the ca ...

* Brief Truce (1989) - won Grade I

St. James's Palace Stakes The St James's Palace Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old colts. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 7 furlongs and 213 yards (1,603 metres). It is sched ...

, earned 1992 European highweight honors * River Bay (1993) - millionaire multiple stakes winner in France and the United States * Natalie Too (1994) - 1997 Champion three-year-old filly in Peru * Irish Prize (1996) - millionaire multiple stakes winner Irish River is the damsire of notable runners such as: * Arcangues (1988) - 1993 Breeders' Cup Classic winner * Saffron Walden (1996) - won Group One Irish 2,000 Guineas * David Junior (2002)- Eclipse Stakes, Champion Stakes, Dubai Duty Free At age twenty-eight, Irish River died suddenly of a massive heart attack on April 25, 2004, at Gainesway Farm.

References

Irish River's pedigree and partial racing stats
1976 racehorse births 2004 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in France Racehorses trained in France Thoroughbred family 1-w