Media Puzzle (May 7, 1997 – June 22, 2006), foaled in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
was an
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
horse
The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...
best known for his win in the 2002
Melbourne Cup
The Melbourne Cup is a Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and over, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria as part of the Melbou ...
.
Background
Media Puzzle was bred by
Walter Haefner's Moyglare Stud Farm and owned by Dr. M. W. Smurfit. He was sired by
Theatrical
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The p ...
, the 1987
U.S. Champion Male Turf Horse, and out of the mare Market Slide by
Gulch
In xeric lands, a gulch is a deep V-shaped valley formed by erosion. It may contain a small stream or dry creek bed and is usually larger in size than a gully. Sudden intense rainfall upstream may produce flash floods in the bed of the gulch.
I ...
, the 1988
U.S. Champion Sprint Horse. Media Puzzle is the half brother of
Refuse to Bend
Refuse To Bend (17 March 2000 – 10 February 2012) was a Thoroughbred racehorse and sire.
Background
Refuse To Bend was a bay horse with a white star and white socks on his hind legs bred by his owner the Swiss businessman Walter Hae ...
, a four-time group 1 winning entire by
Sadler's Wells
Sadler's Wells Theatre is a performing arts venue in Clerkenwell, London, England located on Rosebery Avenue next to New River Head. The present-day theatre is the sixth on the site since 1683. It consists of two performance spaces: a 1,500-sea ...
.
Racing career
At age three, Media Puzzle's best showings were third-place finishes in the
Gallinule
Moorhens—sometimes called marsh hens—are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family (Rallidae). Most species are placed in the genus ''Gallinula'', Latin for "little hen".
They are close relatives of coots. They are of ...
and
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 ...
.
Plagued by tendon problems throughout his career, after a difficult 2001, Media Puzzle had his best year in 2002. Taken to
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, his winning time of 2.25.90 in the 2400-metre
Geelong Cup
The Geelong Cup is a Geelong Racing Club Group 3 Thoroughbred horse race, held under handicap conditions over a distance of 2400 metres at the Geelong Racecourse, Geelong, Victoria, Australia on a Wednesday in late October. The prize money for ...
broke the course record for the race. He went on to win the 2002
Melbourne Cup
The Melbourne Cup is a Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and over, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria as part of the Melbou ...
with
Damien Oliver
Damien Oliver (born 22 June 1972) is an Australian thoroughbred racing jockey. Oliver comes from a racing family; his father Ray Oliver had a successful career until his death in a race fall during the 1975 Kalgoorlie cup in Western Australia. ...
on board. Oliver's brother Jason had died one week before the Melbourne Cup win in 2002.
Death
Media Puzzle was
put down after shattering a leg at the
Ascot Gold Cup
The Gold Cup 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 2 miles 3 furlongs and 210 yards (4,014 ...
.
Media Puzzle is put down at Ascot
- ''The Border Mail'', 2006-06-24
See also
* 2002 Melbourne Cup
The 2002 Melbourne Cup was the 142nd running of the Melbourne Cup, a prestigious Australian Thoroughbred horse race. The race, run over , was held on 5 November 2002 at Melbourne's Flemington Racecourse.
It was won by Media Puzzle, trained by ...
* List of millionaire racehorses in Australia
Top prize money earners – Australian and New Zealand horses
* denotes still racing
The criteria for inclusion in the above list are as follows. The purpose of these criteria is to include only horses that should be recognised as being Austr ...
* List of Melbourne Cup winners
This is a list of the winners of the Melbourne Cup. The Melbourne Cup is Australia's major thoroughbred horse race. It is run at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne. Each year, internationally bred or owned horses compete in the race. Since 188 ...
References
Notes
Bibliography
*
External links
Media Puzzle's pedigree and partial racing stats
1997 racehorse births
2006 racehorse deaths
Horses who died from racing injuries
Racehorses bred in Kentucky
Racehorses trained in Ireland
Melbourne Cup winners
Thoroughbred family 10-a
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