Sea of Class (23 May 2015 – 22 July 2019) was an Irish-bred British-trained
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. She was unraced as a juvenile and beaten on her three-year-old debut, but then made rapid progress, winning the
Fillies' Trial Stakes
The Fillies' Trial Stakes is a Listed flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old fillies. It is run over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlongs () at Newbury in May.
History
The ...
in May and the
Abingdon Stakes in June. When stepped up to
Group 1 class she defeated top-class fields to take the
Irish Oaks
The Irish Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 4 furlongs (2,414 metres), and it is s ...
in July and the
Yorkshire Oaks
The Yorkshire Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile 3 fu ...
in August before being narrowly beaten in the
Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Initially it was believed that Sea of Class died from colic, the supposed colic subsequently proved to be lymphoma (a cancerous tumour), and an initial growth was removed. A further cancerous growth was discovered 19 days after the original operation; the discovery of the latter resulted in Sea of Class being euthanized on July 22, 2019. Sea of Class is widely regarded to be one of the best middle distance horses of her generation.
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Background
Sea of Class was a light-coloured chestnut filly with no white markings bred in Ireland by the Italian-based breeding company Razza del Velino SRL. She was a very late foal, being born on 23 May. As a yearling
Yearling may refer to:
*Yearling (horse), a horse between one and two years old
*''The Yearling
''The Yearling'' is a novel by American writer Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, published in March 1938. It was the main selection of the Book of the Mo ...
she was offered for sale at Tattersalls and bought for 170,000 guineas by McKeever Bloodstock. She passed into the ownership Sunderland Holding Inc and was sent into training with William Haggas at the Somerville Lodge stable in Newmarket, Suffolk
Newmarket is a market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk, England. Located (14 miles) west of Bury St Edmunds and (14 miles) northeast of Cambridge. It is considered the birthplace and global centre of thoroughbred hor ...
. She was ridden in all of her races by James Doyle James Doyle may refer to:
The arts
* James Francis Doyle (1840–1913), British architect
* James S. Doyle (born 1935), American journalist
* James William Edmund Doyle (1822–1892), English illustrator and antiquary
* Jimmy Doyle (musician) (194 ...
.
She was from the fifth crop of foals sired by Sea the Stars
Sea The Stars (foaled 6 April 2006) is a retired champion Irish Thoroughbred racehorse regarded as one of the greatest racehorses of all time. He won the 2000 Guineas, the Derby, the Eclipse Stakes – the first colt to accomplish this treble ...
who won the 2000 Guineas
The 2000 Guineas Stakes is a Group 1 flat race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) and scheduled to take place each year at ...
, Epsom Derby
The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey o ...
and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in 2009. His other major winners have included Harzand, Taghrooda
Taghrooda (foaled 27 January 2011) is an Irish bred British trained Thoroughbred racehorse. In 2014 she won the classic Oaks Stakes and went on to win Britain's premier weight-for-age race, the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. She subse ...
, Stradivarius and Sea The Moon
Sea The Moon (foaled 27 January 2011) is a retired German Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2014 Deutsches Derby. He was trained by Markus Klug, and bred and owned by Gestut Görlsdorf.
Background
Sea The Moon is a bay colt bred by Gestüt G ...
. Sea of Class's dam Holy Moon won two races in Italy and became a very successful broodmare whose other foals have included Charity Line ( Oaks d'Italia, Premio Lydia Tesio
The Premio Lydia Tesio is a Group 2 flat horse race in Italy open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Capannelle over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles), and it is scheduled to take place each year ...
), Final Score (Oaks d'Italia, Premio Lydia Tesio) and Cherry Collect ( Premio Regina Elena, Oaks d'Italia). Her dam Centinela was a half-sister to yet another Oaks d'Italia winner in Bright Generation and was a distant relative of Scratch.
Racing career
2018: three-year-old season
Spring
On her racecourse debut, Sea of Class contested a maiden race
In horse racing a maiden race is an event for horses that have not won a race. Horses that have not won a race are referred to as maidens. Maiden horse races are held over a variety of distances and under conditions with eligibility based on the se ...
over one mile at Newmarket Racecourse
Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of ...
on 18 April in which she started the 5/4 favourite in a field of nine fillies. She took the lead approaching the final furlong but was caught in the last strides and beaten a neck by the 14/1 outsider Ceilidhs Dream. Despite her defeat she was then stepped up in class for the Listed Fillies' Trial Stakes over ten furlongs at Newbury Racecourse on 19 May. Starting the 9/4 second choice in the betting, she took the lead a furlong out and won "readily" by two lengths
Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a base unit for length is chosen, from which all other units are derived. In the Intern ...
from the Aidan O'Brien-trained Athena, with five lengths back to the favoured Crystal Hope in third.
Summer
In the Listed Abingdon Stakes, since 2018 run as the Johnnie Lewis Memorial Stakes to commemorate Major Johnnie Lewis, a bloodstock agent who died in June 2017, Sea of Class started the 30/100 favourite against six opponents. After being restrained by Doyle in the early stages she went to the front approaching the final furlong and won "comfortably" by two lengths from Mrs Sippy.
On 21 July Sea of Class was the only British-trained filly to be sent to Ireland to contest the 2018 running of the Irish Oaks over one and half miles at Curragh
The Curragh ( ; ga, An Currach ) is a flat open plain of almost of common land in County Kildare. This area is well known for Irish horse breeding and training. The Irish National Stud is located on the edge of Kildare town, beside the ...
and was made the 11/4 second choice in the betting. Her six opponents included the Epsom Oaks winner Forever Together
"Forever Together" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Randy Travis. It was released in September 1991 as the second single from his album ''High Lonesome (Randy Travis album), High Lonesome''. It peaked at number ...
, Magic Wand (winner of the Ribblesdale Stakes, and 10/11 favourite) and Bye Bye Baby (Blue Wind Stakes
The Blue Wind Stakes is a Group 3 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlongs (2,012 metres) at ...
) (all trained by O'Brien) as well as Mary Tudor ( Salsabil Stakes) and the maiden race winners Romiyna and Tissiak. Sea of Class was held up at the rear of the field before being switched to the outside to make her challenge in the straight. She moved into second place behind Forever Together entering the final furlong and caught the Epsom Oaks winner in the last strides to win by a neck under a "hands and heels" ride. Commenting on the extreme waiting tactics employed by Doyle Haggas commented "I did ask him to be brave, but I didn't think he’d be that brave" whilst Doyle said "I had full confidence in her. Let's hope there's improvement again. It's only her fourth race and a lot of these that ran today had plenty of experience".
The Yorkshire Oaks on 23 August saw Sea of Class matched against older fillies and mares for the first time. She started the 7/4 favourite ahead of Laurens whilst the other six runners were Coronet (Ribblesdale Stakes), Magic Wand, Bye Bye Baby, Eziyra (Ballyroan Stakes
The Ballyroan Stakes is a Group 3 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 4 furlongs (2,414 metres), and it is schedul ...
), Horseplay (Lancashire Oaks
The Lancashire Oaks is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Haydock Park over a distance of 1 mile, 3 furlongs and 175 yards (2, ...
) and Flattering. She raced at the rear of the field before making a forward move on the outside in the straight and accelerating into the lead a furlong out. She quickly drew clear of her rivals and won in "impressive" style by two and a quarter lengths from Coronet. Haggas, who was celebrating said 58th birthday said "She was devastating. You always hope they are going to do something like that, but she really was impressive". After the race bookmakers
A bookmaker, bookie, or turf accountant is an organization or a person that accepts and pays off bets on sporting and other events at agreed-upon odds.
History
The first bookmaker, Ogden, stood at Newmarket in 1795.
Range of events
Bookma ...
elevated the filly to joint-favourite for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe even though she had not been entered for the race and that her participation was dependent on her owner paying a supplementary entry fee.
Autumn
On 3 October Sea of Class was entered in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe after her owners paid a supplementary fee of €120,000. Four days later the filly started the 5.4/1 joint second choice in the betting for the race over 2400 metres at Longchamp Racecourse despite being drawn on the wide outside. When asked for advice on how to deal with the unfavourable draw the trainer's father-in-law Lester Piggott
Lester Keith Piggott (5 November 1935 – 29 May 2022) was an English professional jockey and trainer. With 4,493 career flat racing wins in Britain, including a record nine Epsom Derby victories, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest f ...
said "Don't change the tactics, drop her out the back and pray". Doyle dropped the filly in at the rear of the field and turned into the straight last of the nineteen runners. Sea of Class then began to make rapid progress, cutting through the field and overtaking horse after horse but failing by a short neck to overhaul the favourite Enable. The filly's owner Christopher Tsui
Christopher Tsui (born 1981 in Hong Kong) is a businessman and a Cartier Racing Award, Champion Thoroughbred Horse racing, racehorse owner. Educated in Paris and London, he graduated in 2008 from Cass Business School with a master's in Managemen ...
commented "I was proud of my filly, I thought she ran a fantastic race. It's the most disappointed I’ve been to win €1 million". On the following day Haggas said "Sea of Class arrived back from France this morning in good shape... She won't be running again this year and the intention is to keep her for next year. She ran a great race yesterday and hopefully she can go one better next year".
In the 2018 World's Best Racehorse Rankings The 2018 World's Best Racehorse Rankings, sponsored by Longines was the 2018 edition of the World's Best Racehorse Rankings. It was an assessment of Thoroughbred racehorses issued by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities
The Long ...
Sea of Class was given a rating of 122, making her the 20th best racehorse in the world and the third best three-year-old filly behind Almond Eye
Almond Eye (Japanese アーモンドアイ, foaled 10 March 2015) is a champion Japanese Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Japanese Fillies' Triple Crown in 2018, and holds a world record over 2,400 meters on turf. She is also a two-time winn ...
and Alpha Centauri
Alpha Centauri ( Latinized from α Centauri and often abbreviated Alpha Cen or α Cen) is a triple star system in the constellation of Centaurus. It consists of 3 stars: Alpha Centauri A (officially Rigil Kentaurus), Alpha Centaur ...
.
2019: four-year-old season
On her four-year-old debut, Sea of Class started the 5/1 fourth choice in the betting for the Prince of Wales's Stakes
The Prince of Wales's Stakes 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 1 mile 1 furlong and 212 yards (2,004 met ...
over ten furlongs at Royal Ascot
Ascot Racecourse ("ascot" pronounced , often pronounced ) is a dual-purpose British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. It hosts 13 of Britain's 36 annual Flat Group 1 horse races and ...
on 19 June. The race was run in very difficult conditions, with the course being swept by heavy rain and the filly never looked likely to win, coming home fifth of the eight runners behind Crystal Ocean
Crystal Ocean (foaled 8 February 2014) is a British Thoroughbred racehorse. After finishing second on his only appearance as a juvenile he developed into a high-class middle-distance performer in the following year when he won the Gordon Stakes, ...
.
Death
On 3 July 2019, the filly underwent surgery after she supposedly contracted colic
Colic or cholic () is a form of pain that starts and stops abruptly. It occurs due to muscular contractions of a hollow tube ( small and large intestine, gall bladder, ureter, etc.) in an attempt to relieve an obstruction by forcing content out ...
, however it was later announced that a 'large mass' had been removed and was awaiting results of a biopsy. Four days later it was reported that she would never race again and was "fighting for her life". Over two weeks later, on 22 July 2019, she was confirmed to have died, after further surgery revealed the cause of death as being malignant lymphoma
Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). In current usage the name usually refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enlar ...
.
Pedigree
*Sea of Class is inbred 3 × 4 to Miswaki, meaning that this stallion appears in both the third and fourth generations of her pedigree. She is also inbred 4 × 4 to Nijinsky.
References
{{Reflist
External links
Career 1-2-3 Colour Chart
– ''Sea of Class''
2015 racehorse births
2019 racehorse deaths
Racehorses bred in Ireland
Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom
Thoroughbred family 14-f
Irish Classic Race winners