Patrick Louis Biancone (born June 7, 1952 in

Mont-de-Marsan Mont-de-Marsan (; Occitan: ''Lo Mont de Marçan'') is a commune and capital of the Landes department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. Population Military installations The French Air and Space Force operates the ''Constantin Rozan ...

Landes ''Landes'', or ''Lanas'' in Gascon, means moorland or heath. ''Landes'' and ''Lanas'' come from the Latin ''plānus'' meaning “‘flat, even, level, plain’”. They are therefore cognate with the English plain (and plane), the Spanish word '' ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

) is a

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 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 ...

trainer. He is currently based 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 ...

, but enjoyed success in both

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

earlier in his career. He was the head trainer for the

Daniel Wildenstein Daniel Leopold Wildenstein (11 September 1917 – 23 October 2001) was a French art dealer, historian and owner-breeder of thoroughbred race horses. He was the third member of the family to preside over Wildenstein & Co., one of the most succes ...

stable in France, where his horses won numerous important races including back-to-back victories (with

All Along All Along (7 April 1979 – 23 February 2005) was a champion Thoroughbred racemare that was foaled in France. She was one of the top fillies of the last part of the 20th century, racing mostly in Europe. All Along was named into the National ...

and

Sagace Sagace (1980–1989) was a French Thoroughbred champion racehorse. His sire Luthier had been the Leading sire in France in 1976. Trained by Patrick Biancone and ridden by Yves St. Martin for prominent owner/breeder Daniel Wildenstein, at age t ...

) in the 1983 and 1984

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, France, over a distance ...

. After leaving his native France, for most of the 1990s Biancone trained in

but in 1999 was suspended after two of his horses tested positive for banned medications. Biancone trained

Triptych A triptych ( ; from the Greek language, Greek adjective ''τρίπτυχον'' "''triptukhon''" ("three-fold"), from ''tri'', i.e., "three" and ''ptysso'', i.e., "to fold" or ''ptyx'', i.e., "fold") is a work of art (usually a panel painting) t ...

, who won the 1987

Irish Champion Stakes The Irish Champion Stakes (Irish: Curadh-Dhuais na hÉireann) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Leopardstown over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlongs (2,012 ...

and the 1988

Coronation Cup The Coronation Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards (2, ...

. However, his most famous horse is the '83 Arc winner

, a

filly A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

who also raced in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

and was voted both French and U.S. Horse of the Year honors and was inducted into the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame. Among his efforts in the United States, Patrick Biancone trained Lion Heart, who finished second in the 2004

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...

. In 2005, he trained Angara to win the Beverly D stakes. The following year, Biancone's Gorella took the Beverly D. On June 22, 2007, Biancone became the subject of an investigation by the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority (KHRA) and his Keeneland barns were raided by Kentucky stewards. Cobra venom, which is barred by state regulation from racetrack grounds, was found in a crystalline form in a refrigerator in Biancone's barn during the raid. Snake venom is a

neurotoxin Neurotoxins are toxins that are destructive to nerve tissue (causing neurotoxicity). Neurotoxins are an extensive class of exogenous chemical neurological insultsSpencer 2000 that can adversely affect function in both developing and mature ner ...

that can be injected to deaden pain in a joint or nerve. On September 17, 2007 Dr. Rodney Stewart, Biancone's

veterinarian A veterinarian (vet), also known as a veterinary surgeon or veterinary physician, is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, vet ...

, was suspended for a total of five years by the KHRA for possessing cobra venom, two other Class A Drugs, and various other violations that resulted from the investigation after the June raid. On October 4, 2007 Biancone was suspended for one year in by The KHRA, a penalty that on October 17, 2007 was shortened to a 6-month suspension with the caveat that Biancone could not apply for a trainer's license for another 6-months after the suspension ends. As a part of this settlement, Biancone agreed to remove his name as the "trainer of record" for his

Breeders' Cup The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Grade I Thoroughbred horse races, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982. From its inception in 1984 through 2006, it was a single-day event; starting in 2007, ...

entries and to end his appeal of the suspension. During the suspension his horses were moved to trainers that he has no business relationship, and he is banned from both the public and private areas of Kentucky race tracks (and through reciprocity all North American tracks). The day after his settlement agreement with the KHRA, Biancone issued a press release that indicated that he was innocent.Curb My Enthusiasm: Biancone's Statement

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Biancone, Patrick 1952 births Living people People from Mont-de-Marsan French horse trainers American horse trainers Sportspeople from Landes (department)