Rain Lover (1964-1989) was a

champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, a ...

Australian

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 best remembered for his back-to-back wins in the 1968 and 1969 VRC Melbourne Cup.

Background

Rain Lover was sired by the good racehorse, Latin Lover (GB) (a son of the unbeaten Ribot). His dam Rain Spot was by Valognes (GB).Pring, Peter; "Analysis of Champion Racehorses", The Thoroughbred Press, Sydney, 1977, He was owned and bred by Clifford A. Reid, who won the 1945

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 Melb ...

with Rainbird. Trainer Mick L. Robins, a former

coal miner Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

from Broken Hill, New South Wales had obtained his trainer's licence just three months before he took over Rain Lover's conditioning.

Racing career

In his first Melbourne Cup triumph, under jockey Jim Johnson, Rain Lover won by a record eight-length margin and in a record time of 3:19.1. Controversy surrounded his second win as the hot favourite and heavily backed

Big Philou Big Philou (foaled in 1965) was a notable New Zealand bred Thoroughbred racehorse. He was by the good sire Le Filou (imported from France) from Pink Lady by Contact and he was trained by Bart Cummings. He is best remembered for the controversy s ...

trained by

Bart Cummings James Bartholomew Cummings (14 November 1927 – 30 August 2015), also known by his initials J. B. Cummings, was one of the most successful Australian racehorse trainers. He was known as the Cups King, referring to the Melbourne Cup, as he w ...

was the victim of a doping scandal and was withdrawn from the race 39 minutes before the start. Burdened with 9 st. 7 lbs. Rain Lover still went on to win the race in game fashion by a neck from Alsop and created history as the first back-to-back winner since

Archer Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

in 1861 and 1862. Amongst his other major wins were the SAJC

Adelaide Cup The Adelaide Cup is a South Australian Jockey Club Group 2 Thoroughbred handicap horse race for three-year-olds and older, run over 3,200 metres at Morphettville Racecourse in Adelaide, Australia on the second Monday in March. Total prize mone ...

, VATC

St George Stakes The Peter Young Stakes, registered as the St George Stakes, is a Melbourne Racing Club Group 2 Thoroughbred horse race held under weight for age conditions over a distance of 1800 metres at Caulfield racecourse, Melbourne, Australia in late Febru ...

(twice) and the AJC

Chipping Norton Stakes The Chipping Norton Stakes is an Australian Turf Club Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race for horses three years old and older, run at weight for age, over a distance of 1600 metres at Randwick Racecourse, Sydney, Australia in February or March. Prizem ...

Stud record

Retired to

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay ba ...

in 1970, Rain Lover enjoyed moderate success as a sire before his death in 1989. One of his best winners being Princess Veronica (VATC Easter Cup).

References

{{Reflist

External links

Rain Lover's pedigree and partial racing stats
1964 racehorse births 1989 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Australia Racehorses trained in Australia Melbourne Cup winners Australian Champion Racehorse of the Year Australian Racing Hall of Fame horses Thoroughbred family 1-g