The Prix Royal-Oak is a

Group 1 Group 1 may refer to: * Alkali metal, a chemical element classification for Alkali metal * Group 1 (racing), a historic (until 1981) classification for Touring car racing, applied to standard touring cars. Comparable to modern FIA Group N * Group On ...

flat Flat or flats may refer to: Architecture * Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries Arts and entertainment * Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch * Flat (soldier), ...

horse race in France open to

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 ...

s aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 3,100 metres (about 1 mile and 7½ furlongs), and it is scheduled to take place each year in late October. It is France's equivalent of the

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 ...

, a famous race in England.

History

The event was established in 1861, and it was initially called the Grand Prix du Prince Impérial. It was originally restricted to three-year-olds, and was part of a series of races based on the English

Classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or highest quality, class, or rank – something that exemplifies its class. The word can be an adjective (a ''c ...

system. Its original distance was 3,200 metres. The race was renamed the Prix Royal-Oak and shortened to 3,000 metres in 1869. It was named after Royal Oak (foaled 1823), a key stallion in the establishment of thoroughbred breeding in France. Due to the Franco-Prussian War, the race was not run in 1870 and 1871. The Prix Royal-Oak was abandoned throughout World War I, with no running from 1914 to 1918. It was cancelled twice during World War II, in 1939 and 1940. It was staged at Le Tremblay in 1943 and 1944. The event was extended to 3,100 metres in 1964. The present system of race grading was introduced in 1971, and the Prix Royal-Oak was classed at the highest level, Group 1. For a period it was held in mid-September. It was switched to late October in 1977. Formerly France's equivalent of the St Leger Stakes in England, the Prix Royal-Oak was opened to horses aged four or older in 1979 and to geldings in 1986. Since then the race has dropped significantly in prestige.

Records

Most successful horse (2 wins): * Amilynx – ''1999, 2000'' * Westerner – ''2003, 2004'' * Tac De Boistron – ''2013, 2014'' * Vazirabad – ''2015, 2016'' Leading jockey (6 wins): *

Freddy Head Freddy Head (born 19 June 1947, in Neuilly, France) is a retired champion jockey in Thoroughbred horse racing and currently a horse trainer. Known also as "Freddie", his grandfather was a jockey as was his father Alec Head who also became a succes ...

– ''Dhaudevi (1968), Bourbon (1971), Busiris (1974), Gold River (1980), Agent Double (1984), Top Sunrise (1989)'' Leading trainer (7 wins): * François Mathet – ''Vamour (1959), Match (1961), Relko (1963), Reliance (1965), Sassafras (1970), Henri le Balafre (1975), Exceller (1976)'' *

André Fabre André Fabre (born 9 December 1945) is a French thoroughbred horse racing trainer. The son of a diplomat, Fabre graduated from university with a law degree but then decided to pursue a career in thoroughbred horse racing. He began by working in ...

– ''Star Lift (1988), Top Sunrise (1989), Raintrap (1993), Sunshack (1995), Amilynx (1999, 2000), Be Fabulous (2011)'' Leading owner (6 wins): * Frédéric de Lagrange – ''Palestro (1861), Fille de l'Air (1864), Gladiateur (1865), Nelusco (1868), Inval (1878), Zut (1879)''

Winners since 1969

Earlier winners

* 1861: Palestro * 1862: Souvenir * 1863: La Toucques * 1864: Fille de l'Air * 1865: Gladiateur * 1866: Etoile Filante * 1867: Patricien * 1868: Nelusco * 1869: Clotho * 1870–71: ''no race'' * 1872: Barbillon * 1873: Boiard * 1874: Mignonette * 1875: Perplexe * 1876: Kilt * 1877: Jongleur * 1878: Inval * 1879: Zut * 1880: Beauminet * 1881: Perplexite * 1882: Clio * 1883: Stockholm * 1884: Archiduc * 1885: Escarboucle * 1886: Gamin * 1887: Bavarde * 1888: Galaor * 1889: Pourtant * 1890: Alicante * 1891: Berenger * 1892: Chene Royal * 1893: Ramleh * 1894: Gouvernail * 1895: Bombon * 1896: Champaubert * 1897: Chambertin * 1898: Le Roi Soleil * 1899: Perth * 1900: Ivoire * 1901: Jacobite * 1902: Fer * 1903: Torquato Tasso * 1904: Macdonald II * 1905: Clyde * 1906:

Maintenon Maintenon () is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located southwest of the center of Paris. Maintenon, together with the neighbouring commune of Pierres, form an urban area of 7,075 inhabitants (2017).Ksar Ksar or qsar (Maghrebi Arabic: wiktionary:قصر, قصر ''qṣer'' or ڭصر ''gser'', plural ''qṣur''; Berber language, Berber: ⵉⴴⵔⵎ ''aghrem'' or ''ighrem'', plural: ''igherman''), plural ksars, qsars, ksour or qsour, is the Nor ...

* 1922: Keror * 1923: Filibert de Savoie * 1924: Uganda * 1925: Priori * 1926: Biribi * 1927: Fiterari * 1928: Cacao * 1929: Calandria * 1930: Taicoun * 1931: Deiri * 1932: Laeken * 1933: Jumbo * 1934: Brantôme * 1935: Bokbul * 1936: Fantastic * 1937: Victrix * 1938: Eclair au Chocolat * 1939–40: ''no race'' * 1941:

Le Pacha Le Pacha (foaled in 1938) was a Champion French Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred by Andre Schwob, his dam was Advertencia, a daughter of two-time Arc winner, Ksar. He was sired by Biribi who won the 1926 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and who was a son ...

* 1942: Tifinar * 1943: Verso II * 1944: Samaritain * 1945:

Caracalla Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor S ...

* 1946: Souverain * 1947: Tourment * 1948: Spooney * 1949: Ciel Etoile * 1950: Pan * 1951: Stymphale * 1952: Feu du Diable * 1953: Buisson d'Or * 1954: Sica Boy * 1955: Macip * 1956: Arabian * 1957: Scot * 1958: Wallaby * 1959: Vamour * 1960: Puissant Chef * 1961:

Match A match is a tool for starting a fire. Typically, matches are made of small wooden sticks or stiff paper. One end is coated with a material that can be ignited by friction generated by striking the match against a suitable surface. Wooden matc ...

* 1962: Sicilian Prince * 1963:

Relko Relko (1960–1982) was a French Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a racing career which lasted from 1962 until 1964 he ran thirteen times and won nine races. His most notable win came in the 1963 Derby. Background Relko was a "strong, c ...

* 1964: Barbieri * 1965: Reliance * 1966: Vasco de Gama * 1967: Samos * 1968: Dhaudevi

References

France Galop France Galop is the governing body of flat and steeplechase horse racing in France. It was founded on May 3, 1995, as the result of the amalgamation of four different industry organizations. Prominent owner/breeder Jean-Luc Lagardère was elected ...

/ Racing Post: ** , , , , , , , , , ** , , , , , , , , , ** , , , , , , , , , ** , , , , , , , , , ** , , * galop.courses-france.com: *
1861–18891890–19191920–19491950–19791980–present

– ''A Brief History: Prix Royal-Oak.''
galopp-sieger.de
– ''Prix Royal-Oak.''
horseracingintfed.com
– ''International Federation of Horseracing Authorities – Prix Royal-Oak (2018).''
pedigreequery.com
– ''Prix Royal-Oak – Longchamp.'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Prix Royal Oak Open long distance horse races Longchamp Racecourse Horse races in France

History

Records

Winners since 1969

Earlier winners

See also

References