Papa Clem (foaled February 13, 2006 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 ...

) is an American

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 who was a contender for the 2009 U.S. Triple Crown. Papa Clem was bred and raced by Bo Hirsch who named the

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...

-based colt for his late father, Clement Hirsch, a respected Thoroughbred owner/breeder and a co-founder of the

Oak Tree Racing Association The Oak Tree Racing Association is an American nonprofit corporation that exists to conduct live thoroughbred horse racing in Southern California. Graded Stakes races at the Oak Tree meet Since Oak Tree Racing moved to Hollywood Park in 2010, some ...

. Clement Hirsch's grandchildren all called him "Papa Clem." Papa Clem was sired by

Smart Strike Smart Strike (foaled May 21, 1992 in Ontario – died March 25, 2015) was a Canadian Thoroughbred racehorse. The son of the Champion sire, Mr. Prospector, and out of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame mare Classy 'n Smart, Smart Strike is a ...

, the Leading sire in North America in 2007 and 2008. His dam was Miss Houdini who was bred by Clement Hirsch and raced by Bo Hirsch. Miss Houdini was the 2002 winner of the

Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

Del Mar Debutante Stakes The Del Mar Debutante Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old fillies run each year in early September at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. A Grade I event since 1999, the Debutante is raced on dirt at a distance of s ...

. Damsire, Belong To Me, was a stakes-winning son of three-time Leading sire in North America, Danzig. Papa Clem is conditioned for racing by trainer Gary Stute, son of long-time California trainer Melvin Stute and nephew of the late

Warren Stute Warren R. Stute (September 30, 1921 - August 9, 2007) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing trainer who conditioned racehorses for almost 70 years from a base in California. Clement L. Hirsch, co-founder and owner of Oak Tree Racing Associat ...

who trained horses for Clement Hirsch for more than 40 years. At age two, Papa Clem debuted in November 2008 at

Hollywood Park Racetrack Hollywood Park was a thoroughbred race course located in Inglewood, California, about 3 miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport and adjacent to the Forum indoor arena. In 1994, the original Hollywood Park Casino was added to t ...

and won for the first time in his third and final start at

Santa Anita Park Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during early fall, winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious races ...

. He made his three-year-old debut on February 9 at Santa Anita where he ran second by a head to

Pioneerof the Nile the Nile (May 5, 2006 – March 18, 2019) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who came second in the 2009 Kentucky Derby and sired the 2015 Triple Crown winner American Pharoah, as well as 2016 Champion 2-Year-Old Colt Classic Empire. Ba ...

in the Robert B. Lewis Stakes. His next race was the March 14th

Louisiana Derby The Louisiana Derby is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans, Louisiana. Run in late March, the race is open to horses, age three, willing to race miles on the dirt. It currently o ...

where, on a sloppy track at the

Fair Grounds Race Course Fair Grounds Race Course, often known as New Orleans Fair Grounds, is a thoroughbred racetrack and racino in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is operated by Churchill Downs Louisiana Horseracing Company, LLC. As early as 1838 Bernard de Marigny, Ju ...

, he finished second by 7¼ lengths behind

Friesan Fire Friesan Fire (foaled April 30, 2006, in Kentucky) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse. He was sired by 1992 American Horse of the Year, A.P. Indy, a son of the 1977 U.S. Triple Crown winner, Seattle Slew. His dam, Bollinger, is an Australian ...

. In the April 11th $1 million

Arkansas Derby The Arkansas Derby is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. It is currently a Grade I race run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. In 200 ...

on a fast track, Papa Clem came from behind to catch race favorite Old Fashioned and then battle with him down the homestretch to a win by a half-length. Papa Clem finished fourth in the May 2, 2009 Kentucky Derby, the first leg of the U.S. Triple Crown series. At age 4, after dropping six races in a row, Papa Clem battled for, and won, the 2010

San Fernando Stakes The San Fernando Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in mid January at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. Open to four-year-old horses, it is contested on at a distance of miles (8.5 furlongs) on Pro-Ride synthetic ...

. Papa Clem was retired to stud in 2010 and currently stands at Legacy Ranch in

Clements, California Clements is an unincorporated community in San Joaquin County, California, United States. Clements is located on California State Route 12 and California State Route 88, east-northeast of Lodi. Clements has a post office A post office is ...

for $6,500. In 2017, Papa Clem was bought by Turkish breeder Resat Akkan and brought to Turkey where he continues studding. In 2021 his half-sister Ce Ce won the GI Breeder's Cup Filly & Mare Sprint.

References

{{reflist
Papa Clem's pedigree and partial racing stats

The 2009 Arkansas Derby, with video, at the NTRA
2006 racehorse births Thoroughbred family 12-c Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States