Lochangel (foaled 5 April 1994) 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 and

broodmare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...

. She raced for the connections of her more famous older sister

Lochsong Lochsong (26 April 1988 – 27 May 2014) was a bay Thoroughbred filly who twice won the Cartier Award as Top European Sprinter and was voted 1993 European Horse of the Year. Background Lochsong was a bay mare bred by her owner, Jeff Smith's Li ...

and while never matching the achievements of her sibling she became a top-class racemare who excelled in sprint races on firm ground. As a juvenile she was beaten on her debut before winning 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 and ...

in the sixth of what became known as

Frankie Dettori Lanfranco Dettori (; born 15 December 1970), better known as Frankie Dettori, is an Italian horse racing jockey based in the United Kingdom. Dettori has been British flat racing Champion Jockey three times and has ...

's "Magnificent Seven". After failing to win in four attempts in 1997 she reached her peak as a four-year-old in 1998 when she won two races including the

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 ...

Nunthorpe Stakes The Nunthorpe Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged two years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is schedu ...

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 Racecourse, Ascot in prize money offered per meeting. It att ...

in August. She failed to win again and was retired from racing in 1999.

Background

Lochangel is a chestnut mare with a white

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...

and two white

socks A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. In the late ...

bred by her owner, Jeff Smith's Littleton Stud. She was sired by the American-bred stallion Night Shift, a son of

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 ...

. Night Shift sired many other good racehorses in a long stud career, including In The Groove,

Azamour Azamour (8 March 2001 – 5 April 2014) was a Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He won four Group One races including the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes and was Europe's Champion Older Horse in 2005. At his peak, he was rated the thir ...

Well Chief A well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. T ...

, Barons Pit (

Diadem Stakes A diadem is a type of crown, specifically an ornamental headband worn by monarchs and others as a badge of royalty. Overview The word derives from the Greek διάδημα ''diádēma'', "band" or "fillet", from διαδέω ''diadéō'', "I ...

) and Nicolotte (

Queen Anne Stakes The Queen Anne Stakes is a Group 1 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 (1,609 metres), and is scheduled to take pl ...

). Lochangel's dam Peckitt's Well was a useful racemare who won five races over sprint distances and was rated 98 by

Timeform Timeform is a sports data and content provider located in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. Founded in 1948, it provides systematic information on form to punters and others involved in the horse racing industry. The company was purchased by ...

in 1985. As a broodmare she made an immediate impact with her first foal

who was twice champion sprinter in Europe and was voted

Cartier Horse of the Year The Cartier Horse of the Year is an award in European horse racing, founded in 1991, and sponsored by Cartier SA as part of the Cartier Racing Awards. The award winner is decided by points earned in group races plus the votes cast by British racin ...

in 1993. Peckitt's Well was a distant descendant of the broodmare Fair Terms, the female-line ancestor of several major Japanese winners including

Narita Brian Narita Brian ( ja, ナリタブライアン, Hepburn: ; May 3, 1991 – September 27, 1998) was a Japanese racehorse. Until T M Opera O surpassed him in 2000, Narita Brian was the world's top money earner. Background Narita Brian was a bay ho ...

. Like Lochong, Lochangel was trained throughout her racing career 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 ...

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 ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

. Like many of Balding's trainees, she usually raced in a white sheepskin

noseband A noseband is the part of a horse's bridle that encircles the nose and jaw of the horse. In English riding, where the noseband is separately attached to its own headstall or crownpiece, held independently of the bit, it is often called a cavesson ...

Racing career

1996: two-year-old season

On her racecourse debut, Lochangel finished second in a

maiden race In horse racing a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the se ...

over six

furlongs A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hors ...

Kempton Park Racecourse Kempton Park Racecourse is a horse racing track together with a licensed entertainment and conference venue in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, England, 16 miles south-west of Charing Cross, London and on a border of Greater London. The site has of ...

on 7 September 1996. Three weeks later she was ridden by

and started 5/4 joint favourite for the Blue Seal Stakes (for fillies with no more than one previous start) at

. She led from the start and won by three-quarters of a length from the

Henry Cecil Sir Henry Richard Amherst Cecil (11 January 1943 – 11 June 2013) was a British flat racing horse trainer. Cecil was very successful, becoming Champion Trainer ten times and training 25 domestic Classic winners. These comprised four winners o ...

-trained Corsini. Her win was significant as it was the sixth of Dettori's "Magnificent Seven": the 25-year-old Italian jockey won all seven races on the card including the

Queen Elizabeth II Stakes The Queen Elizabeth II Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is s ...

Mark of Esteem Mark of Esteem (26 March 1993 – 21 May 2014) was an Irish bred thoroughbred racehorse. In his two years of racing, he won four races and placed once from seven runs, with earnings of £365,139. Background Mark of Esteem was a bay horse with ...

, driving several

bookmakers A bookmaker, bookie, or turf accountant is an organization or a person that accepts and pays off bets on sporting and other events at agreed-upon odds. History The first bookmaker, Ogden, stood at Newmarket in 1795. Range of events Bookma ...

to near financial ruin.

1997: three-year-old season

Lochangel began her second season in the Listed

Chartwell Fillies' Stakes The Chartwell Fillies' Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 7 furlongs () at Lingfield Park in M ...

over seven furlongs at

Lingfield Park Racecourse Lingfield Park Racecourse (commonly referred to as Lingfield) is a horse racing course at Lingfield in Surrey, United Kingdom. It is owned by the ARC Racing and Leisure Group, formerly Arena Leisure Plc. Lingfield is best known as a winte ...

on 10 May. Starting the 5/2 favourite she led for most of the way but tired and was overtaken in the final furlong, finishing third behind Supercal and Baked Alaska. The filly was off the course for four months before returning in an all-aged handicap race at

Goodwood Racecourse Goodwood Racecourse is a horse-racing track five miles north of Chichester, West Sussex, in England controlled by the family of the Duke of Richmond, whose seat is nearby Goodwood House. It hosts the annual Glorious Goodwood meeting in lat ...

on 13 September in which she finished a close fourth under top weight of 139 pounds. Two weeks later she was stepped up in class for the

Group Three AP Films or APF, later becoming Century 21 Productions, was a British independent film production company of the 1950s until the early 1970s. The company became internationally known for its imaginative children's action-adventure marionette tel ...

at Ascot but finished unplaced behind

Elnadim Elnadim (28 April 1994 – 14 January 2015) was an American-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. After failing to win as a juvenile he developed into a high-class sprinter in 1997, winning four of his six races including the Ho ...

. On her only other appearance of the year she finished seventh of nine behind the five-year-old Bowden Rose in a handicap for fillies and mares at

Newmarket Racecourse Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of ...

in October.

1998: four-year-old season

On her first appearance as a four-year-old Lochangel started favourite for a minor stakes event over five furlongs at

Bath Racecourse Bath Racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue on Lansdown Hill, about northeast of Bath, Somerset, England. It is owned and operated by Arena Racing Company. The racecourse is a left-handed oval track of 1 mile 4 furlongs and 25 yards ...

on 28 April and finished second, two lengths behind the five-year-old

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 ...

Speed On. At the same track two weeks later the filly contested the Listed Somerset Stakes and started favourite against eight opponents including Carranita (winner of the

Summer Stakes The Summer Stakes is a Group races, Group 3 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to Filly, fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at York Racecourse, York over a ...

and the

Hopeful Stakes The Hopeful Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. Open to two-year-old horses, the Hopeful is the first Grade I stakes for two-year-olds each season and historically has ...

), Nadwah (

Queen Mary Stakes The Queen Mary Stakes is a Group races, Group 2 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old Filly, fillies. It is run at Ascot Racecourse, Ascot over a distance o ...

) and

Hever Golf Rose Hever Golf Rose (22 February 1991 – September 1999) was a thoroughbred racehorse who was bred and trained in the United Kingdom, and campaigned throughout Europe in a career that lasted from 1993 to 1998. She was a specialist sprinter, showing ...

. Ridden by

Martin Dwyer Martin Dwyer (born 28 June 1975 in Aintree, Liverpool, Merseyside) is an English Epsom Derby winning flat racing jockey having won the 2006 Vodafone Derby upon Sir Percy. This was his second classic success after winning The Oaks aboard Casual L ...

, she took the lead a quarter of a mile from the finish and drew away in the closing stages to record her first win for seventeen months, beating Desert Lady by three and a half lengths. Frankie Dettori resumed his partnership with the filly when she was stepped up in class for the

Temple Stakes The Temple Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Haydock Park over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled to ...

at Sandown on 25 May. She took the lead a furlong out but was overtaken and beaten three quarters of a length by the six-year-old gelding Bolshoi, with Elnadim in third and

Compton Place Compton Place is a mansion house in the parish of Eastbourne, East Sussex, England. It was rebuilt from 1726 by Sir Spencer Compton (later 1st Earl of Wilmington), to the design of the architect Colen Campbell, and was completed after Campbel ...

among the unplaced runners. At

Royal Ascot 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 and ...

in June she was one nineteen sprinters to contest the

King's Stand Stakes The King's Stand Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled t ...

. She led for most of the way but was again caught by Bolshoi in the final strides and was beaten one and a quarter lengths by the winner. In the

King George Stakes The King George Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is sc ...

at Goodwood in July she started favourite but finished third behind Land of Dreams and Lady Alexander after being hampered inside the final furlong. On 20 August Lochangel, with Dettori in the saddle, contested the Group One Nunthorpe Stakes over five furlongs on firm groundat

and started the 6/1 third choice in the betting behind Elnadim and Land of Dreams. Bolshoi was again in the field whilst the other runners included Arkadian Hero (

Mill Reef Stakes The Mill Reef Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-olds. It is run at Newbury over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled ...

), Sainte Marine (

Prix du Gros Chêne The Prix du Gros Chêne is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Chantilly over a distance of 1,000 metres (about 5 furlongs), and it is scheduled t ...

), Bollin Joanne (

Duke of York Stakes The Duke of York Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 6 furlongs () at York in May. History An ...

), My Best Valentine ( Bentinck Stakes), Averti (King George Stakes, 1997), Rambling Bear (King George Stakes, 1996), Yorkies Boy (

Palace House Stakes The Palace House Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres) on the Rowley ...

) and Almaty (

Molecomb Stakes The Molecomb Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old horses. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled to take place ...

). The French challenger Sainte Marine went into the lead and set a strong pace with Lochangel among her closest pursuers. In the last quarter mile Dettori tracked to the right and Lochangel made her challenge along the stands-side rail. She overtook the French filly inside the final furlong and won by a length, with the outsiders Dashing Blue (also trined by Ian Balding), Bishops Court and Rambling Bear filling the next three places. Her win was enthusiastically received by the York crowd, many of whom had backed the filly owing to Dettori's popularity. Asked to compare the winner to her older sister, Balding said "They're both super movers with devastating speed, but Lochangel is an awful lot easier to train. I adored Lochsong but she was half crazy". Lochangel was tried over six furlongs for the first time in almost a year when she started 9/2 second favourite for the

Haydock Sprint Cup The Sprint Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Haydock Park over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and ...

in September and finished sixth behind the three-year-old

Tamarisk The genus ''Tamarix'' (tamarisk, salt cedar, taray) is composed of about 50–60 species of flowering plants in the family Tamaricaceae, native to drier areas of Eurasia and Africa. The generic name originated in Latin and may refer to the Tam ...

. On her final appearance of the year she was sent to France for the

Prix de l'Abbaye The Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged two years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse, L ...

over 1000 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 tr ...

in October. She finished sixth behind My Best Valentine after fading in the last 200 metres.

1999: five-year-old season

Lochangel remained in training in 1999 but failed to win in six starts. She produced her best performance on her seasonal debut when she finished second to Tipsy Creek in the Temple Stakes on 31 May. She then finished fourth in the King's Stand Stakes before running unplaced behind

Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century clas ...

in the

July Cup The July Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run on the July Course at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres ...

and the Nunthorpe Stakes. She was then sent to Ireland and dropped in class for the Flying Five at

Leopardstown Racecourse Leopardstown Racecourse is an Ireland, Irish horse-racing venue, located in Leopardstown, Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, 8 km south of the Dublin city centre. Like the majority of Irish courses, it hosts both National Hunt and Flat racing. Th ...

in September and started favourite but finished third to Tedburrow. Lochangel made her final appearance later that month in the

World Trophy The World Trophy is a Group 3 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Newbury over a distance of 5 furlongs and 34 yards (1,037 metres), and it is ...

(then a Listed race) at Newbury. She never looked likely to win and finished seventh of the thirteen runners behind Imperial Beauty. Her retirement was announced shortly after her run at Newbury. Balding said "She's been a wonderful mare for the stable, and had so much class and a lovely temperament. I actually think Lochangel has been desperately unlucky this season. She was badly drawn in the King's Stand Stakes, which I thought she had a great chance of winning, and since then the going has gone against her... Now I just hope she produces lots of lovely babies – and you can be sure they'll be coming to me!"

Breeding record

Lochangel was retired from racing to become a broodmare for the Littleton Stud. The mare was offered for sale at

Tattersalls Tattersalls (formerly Tattersall's) is the main auctioneer of race horses in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Founding It was founded in 1766 by Richard Tattersall (1724–1795), who had been stud groom to the second Duke of Kingston. T ...

in December 2007 but was bought back by Jeff Smith when the bidding stopped at 150,000

guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from t ...

. To date she has produced eight named foals: *Star Pupil, a chestnut colt, foaled in 2001, sired by Selkirk. Won one race. *Angel Wing, chestnut filly, 2002, by

Barathea Barathea, sometimes spelled barrathea, is a soft fabric, with a broken twill weft rib, giving a surface that is lightly pebbled or ribbed, with the effect of a twill running both left and right. Original developed as a cloth for mourning clothes ...

. Unraced, dam of Norse King (

Prix du Conseil de Paris The Prix du Conseil de Paris is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about miles), and it is sched ...

Prix Exbury The Prix Exbury is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles) at Saint-Cloud in March. His ...

). *Apache Angel, chestnut colt (later gelded), 2003, by

Indian Ridge Indian Ridge (22 March 1985 – 17 October 2006) was an Irish-bred British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He showed promising but unexceptional form as a two-year-old in 1987 when he won twice from four starts in minor races. He established h ...

*Indian Angel, chestnut filly, 2005, by Indian Ridge. Unraced. *Celestial Dream, bay filly, 2006, by

Oasis Dream Oasis Dream (foaled 30 March 2000) is retired thoroughbred racehorse and active sire who was bred and trained in the United Kingdom. He was the highest-rated two-year-old in the 2002 European flat racing season and won the Cartier Racing Award f ...

. Won one race. *Strictly Dancing, bay filly, 2007, by

Danehill Dancer Danehill Dancer was a bay horse bred by L. K. and K. McCreery and foaled on 20 January 1993. He was sired by Danehill, who won the Haydock Sprint Cup in 1989. Danehill Dancer's dam is Mira Adonde, a daughter of Sharpen Up. Mira Adonde was tra ...

. Won one race. Dam of Dancing Star ( Stewards' Cup). *Heavenly Song, bay filly, 2008, by

Oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...

. Failed to win in two races. *Verne Castle, chestnut colt, 2013, by

Sakhee's Secret Sakhee's Secret (13 March 2004 – 17 November 2021) was a Thoroughbred racehorse. He is owned and bred by octogenarian, Bridget Swire. Sakhee's Secret defeated older horses to win the 6 furlong July Cup at Newmarket Racecourse which was a key ...

Pedigree

References

{{reflist 1994 racehorse births Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Thoroughbred family 13-a