Search For A Song (foaled 30 March 2016) is an Irish

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 best known for her performances over extended distances. After being unraced as a juvenile she won on her racecourse debut in 2019 and finished fourth in 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 ...

before going on to win the

Galtres Stakes The Galtres Stakes is a Listed 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 furlongs and 188 yards (2,385 metres ...

and the

Irish St Leger The Irish St Leger is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 6 furlongs (2,816 metres), and it i ...

. In 2020 she won a second Irish St Leger as well as finishing second in the

British Champions Long Distance Cup The British Champions Long Distance Cup is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 7 furlongs and 20 ...

and third in the

Tattersalls Gold Cup The Tattersalls Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 110 yards (2,112 ...

Background

Search For A Song is a chestnut mare with a broad white blaze and white

socks A sock is a piece of clothing worn on the feet and often covering the ankle or some part of the calf. Some types of shoes or boots are typically worn over socks. In ancient times, socks were made from leather or matted animal hair. In the late ...

on her hind legs bred and owned by the Moyglare Stud. She was sent into training with

Dermot Weld Dermot K. Weld (born 29 July 1948), a former jockey is one of Ireland's most successful racehorse trainers. He holds the record for the most winners trained in Ireland (2,578 set in August 2000). Weld maintains his stable, Rosewell House, in C ...

at the

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 ...

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...

. She was from the fourteenth crop of foals sire by

Galileo Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He was ...

, who won the

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...

Irish Derby The Irish Derby (Irish: Dearbaí na hÉireann) is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 ...

and

King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes The King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot o ...

in 2001. His other progeny include

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Frankel Frankel is the surname of: * Benjamin Frankel (1906–1973), British composer * Bethenny Frankel (born 1970), American chef and reality television personality * Charles Frankel (1917–1975), American philosopher, known for Charles Frankel Prize * ...

Waldgeist Waldgeist (foaled 17 February 2014) is a British-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. He has raced in six countries, namely France, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States and Hong Kong. He showed top-class form as a two- ...

Nathaniel , nickname = {{Plainlist, * Nat * Nate , footnotes = Nathaniel is an English variant of the biblical Greek name Nathanael. People with the name Nathaniel * Nathaniel Archibald (1952–2018), American basketball player * Nate A ...

New Approach New Approach (foaled 18 February 2005) is a retired Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and active stallion. In a racing career which lasted from July 2007 to October 2008 he ran eleven times and won eight races. He was undefeated in five races as a tw ...

Rip Van Winkle "Rip Van Winkle" is a short story by the American author Washington Irving, first published in 1819. It follows a Dutch-American villager in colonial America named Rip Van Winkle who meets mysterious Dutchmen, imbibes their liquor and falls aslee ...

, Found, Minding and

Ruler of the World Ruler of the World (foaled 17 March 2010) is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse who won The Derby in 2013. He was unraced as a two-year-old. In 2013, he won a maiden race at the Curragh and the Group Three Chester Vase before winning the Derb ...

. Search For A Song's dam, Polished Gem won one minor race from five attempts, but has been a very successful broodmare, producing several other winners including

Free Eagle Free Eagle (foaled 4 May 2011) is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse. He was very lightly campaigned in his early career, appearing four times in two years. As a juvenile he won impressively on his debut but was comprehensively beaten by Australia ...

, Sapphire (

British Champions Fillies and Mares Stakes The British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes is a Group races, Group 1 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to Filly, fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is ...

) and Custom Cut (

Sandown Mile The Sandown Mile is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres) at Sandown Park in late April. Histor ...

). Polished Gem is a daughter of the

Irish 1,000 Guineas The Irish 1,000 Guineas 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 (1,609 metres), and it is scheduled to ...

winner

Trusted Partner Trusted Partner (foaled 22 May 1985) was an American-bred, Irish-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. She showed great promise as a two-year-old in 1987 when she won both of her races including the C L Weld Park Stakes and won the Irish ...

Racing career

2019: three-year-old season

On 30 May Search For A Song made her racecourse debut in 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 ten

furlongs A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hors ...

on good to firm ground at

Fairyhouse Racecourse Fairyhouse Racecourse is a horse racing venue in the Republic of Ireland. It is situated in the parish of Ratoath in County Meath, on the R155 road, R155 Regional road (Ireland), regional road, off the N3 road (Ireland), N3. It hosted its first ...

in which she was ridden by

Chris Hayes Christopher Loffredo Hayes (; born February 28, 1979) is an American political commentator, television news anchor, activist, and author. Hayes hosts ''All In with Chris Hayes'', a weekday news and opinion television show on MSNBC. Hayes also ...

and started the 4/6 favourite in a six-runner field. After racing prominently from the start she went to the front in the last quarter mile and pulled away to win "comfortably" by four

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 Lady Olenna. At

Naas Racecourse Naas Racecourse is a horse racing venue in Naas, County Kildare, Ireland, approximately 18 miles from Dublin. The course stages both Flat racing and National Hunt racing and in 2010 fifteen race meetings were held there. The Naas Races Company w ...

on 26 June Search For A Song was stepped up in class and went off the 2/1 favourite for the

Listed Listed may refer to: * Listed, Bornholm, a fishing village on the Danish island of Bornholm * Listed (MMM program), a television show on MuchMoreMusic * Endangered species in biology * Listed building, in architecture, designation of a historicall ...

Naas Oaks Trial. She led for most of the race but was overtaken inside the last quarter mile and finished second, two and three quarter lengths behind the

Jessica Harrington Jessica Jane Harrington (née Fowler, born 12 February 1947) is an Irish professional horse trainer. Harrington specialises in National Hunt racing but has also had success in Flat racing. Personal life Harrington was born in London. Her father ...

-trained Trethias. On 20 July the filly was moved to the highest level to contest the

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 ...

over one and a half miles at the

. After racing in mid-division she stayed on well in the closing stages without ever looking likely to win and came home fourth behind Star Catcher, Fleeting and Pink Dogwood. For her next start Search For A Song was sent to England and started 2/1 favourite for the Listed Galtres Stakes at

York Racecourse York Racecourse is a horse racing venue in York, North Yorkshire, England. It is the third biggest racecourse in Britain in terms of total prize money offered, and second behind Ascot Racecourse, Ascot in prize money offered per meeting. It att ...

on 22 August. Ridden by

Oisin Murphy Oisin Murphy (born 6 September 1995) is an Irish jockey based in the United Kingdom who competes in flat racing. He has won a British Classic and a number of Group 1 races. He was British Champion Jockey in 2019, 2020 and 2021. Early li ...

she raced in third place before taking the lead in the straight and stayed on well to win by one and three quarter lengths and a head from Vivionn and Spirit of Appin. Dermot Weld commented "She did that very nicely. Oisin did a nice job getting her in behind the speed and she's a nice staying filly. I was quite relaxed throughout the race... I really see her coming into her own as a four-year-old." On 15 September Search For A Song was ridden by Hayes took on nine older male opponents in the Irish St Leger at the Curragh and started at odds of 10/1.

Cross Counter Cross Counter (foaled 5 April 2015) is a Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2018 Melbourne Cup. After winning two minor races he was gelded before returning in the summer of 2018 to win two more races including the Gordon Stake ...

went off favourite while the other contenders included

Kew Gardens Kew Gardens is a botanical garden, botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botany, botanical and mycology, mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1840, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its li ...

, Latrobe and

Capri Capri ( , ; ; ) is an island located in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrento Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples in the Campania region of Italy. The main town of Capri that is located on the island shares the name. It has been ...

. After pulling against Hayes' attempts to restrain her the filly took the lead at half way and kept on well in the straight to win by two and a half lengths from Kew Gardens. After the race Weld said "Search For A Song was running so freely early on that it was either going to work out brilliantly or be a disaster. Chris made the right call and it was a very brave one and a hard one to make... When she got to the front the filly settled and we knew she would stay, there's a lot of stamina in her pedigree. The world could be her oyster next year."

2020: four-year-old season

The flat racing season in Britain and Ireland was restructured as a result of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

and Search For A Song made her first appearance in the ten and a half furlong

Mooresbridge Stakes The Mooresbridge Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlongs (2,012 metres) at the Curragh in ...

which was run behind closed doors at the Curragh on 12 June. Ridden by the apprentice jockey Oisin Orr she took the lead three furlongs from the finish but faded badly in the last quarter mile and finished sixth of the nine runners behind the four-year-old gelding Leo De Fury. Worse was to follow in the

Munster Oaks The Munster Oaks is a Group races, Group 3 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbred Filly, fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Cork Racecourse, Cork over a dis ...

Cork Racecourse Cork Racecourse, also known as Cork Racecourse Mallow, is a horse racing venue at Mallow, County Cork, Ireland which stages both National Hunt racing and Flat racing. It is located 35 km north of Cork and 64 km from Limerick The cours ...

on 5 July when the filly (equipped with a

hood Hood may refer to: Covering Apparel * Hood (headgear), type of head covering ** Article of Academic dress#Hood, academic dress ** Bondage hood, sex toy * Hoodie, hooded sweatshirt Anatomy * Clitoral hood, a hood of skin surrounding the clitori ...

for the first time) lost her footing and "stumbled badly" after two furlongs before being pulled up by Orr soon afterwards. Later that month she started a 50/1 outsider for the Group 1

and produced a much better performance, staying on strongly from the rear of the field to take third place behind Magical and Sir Dragonet. On 13 September Search For A Song, with Orr in the saddle, attempted to repeat her 2019 success in the Irish St Leger and went off the 7/1 fifth choice in the betting behind

Sovereign ''Sovereign'' is a title which can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French , which is ultimately derived from the Latin , meaning 'above'. The roles of a sovereign vary from monarch, ruler or ...

, Fujaira Prince (

Ebor Handicap The Ebor Handicap is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile 5 furlongs and 188 yards (2,787 metres). It is ...

Twilight Payment Twilight Payment (foaled 6 May 2013) is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2020 Melbourne Cup. Bred and originally trained by Jim Bolger he did not race until he was three years old but showed promising form over exten ...

and Passion ( Stanerra Stakes). She was restrained towards the rear of the eight-runner field before moving up into third place behind Fujaira Prince and Twilight Payment approaching the last quarter mile. She gained the advantage 150 yards from the finish and pulled away in the closing stages to win by two lengths. Weld commented "I've trained her for the day for a long time. I had wanted to get that Group 1 form into Search For A Song over a mile and a quarter in case people thought she was only a staying mare. You saw what Magical, who beat her in the Tattersalls Gold Cup, did (in the

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 ...

), so I was quietly confident she'd win today." Oisin Orr said "The filly settled well today and everything went smooth. I had to make a bit of room for myself, but she picked up well when I got the gap."

took the ride when Search For A Song ended her season in the

over two miles at

Ascot Racecourse 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 17 October. Starting the 7/1 second favourite she stayed on well from the rear of the field to take second place, without ever looking likely to challenge the emphatic winner Trueshan.

Pedigree

* Search For A Song is

inbred Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and o ...

3 × 4 to Northern Dancer, meaning that this stallion appears once in the third generation and once in the fourth generation of her pedigree.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Career 1-2-3 Colour Chart
– ''Search For A Song'' 2016 racehorse births Racehorses bred in Ireland Racehorses trained in Ireland Thoroughbred family 9-f Irish Classic Race winners