Shogun Lodge (25 September 1996 – 8 November 2003) was an 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 c ...

racehorse by American sire

Grand Lodge A Grand Lodge (or Grand Orient or other similar title) is the overarching governing body of a fraternal or other similarly organized group in a given area, usually a city, state, or country. In Freemasonry A Grand Lodge or Grand Orient is the us ...

. Shogun Lodge won three

Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern races, Pattern race sys ...

races, and remarkably ran 2nd in a further 12 Group 1 races. On 8 November 2003, Shogun Lodge collapsed and died while competing in the

Emirates Stakes The VRC Champions Mile, registered as the ''Cantala Stakes'', is a Group 1 Victoria Racing Club quality handicap Thoroughbred horse race run over 1,600 metres at Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne, Australia on the fourth and last day during the Me ...

. It was later revealed he died of a heart attack after suffering a lung haemorrhage during the race.

Racing career

Shogun Lodge made a winning debut in the Listed Canonbury Stakes at Randwick on 3 October 1998, and won three of his four starts prior to the

Golden Slipper The Golden Slipper Stakes is an Australian Turf Club Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old horses run over 1,200 metres on turf at set weights conditions, held at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse in Sydney, Australia. It is the premier two y ...

, in which he started favourite and finished a close third. At three and four, Shogun Lodge won his Group One races, the

Epsom Handicap The Epsom Handicap is an Australian Turf Club Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race for horses three years old and older, under handicap conditions over a distance of 1,600 metres at Randwick Racecourse, Sydney, Australia in early October. Prize money ...

, the Queen Elizabeth Stakes, and the

George Main Stakes The George Main Stakes, is an Australian Turf Club Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race run under Weight for Age conditions, over a distance of 1600 metres at Randwick Racecourse, Sydney, Australia in September. Total prize money for the race is A$1, ...

, in which he defeated the champion mare Sunline. Shogun Lodge won stakes races at two, three, four, five, and seven, and prize money of $4,640,315. In addition, Shogun Lodge was runner-up in 12 Group One races, including the

Doncaster Handicap The Doncaster Mile, registered as the Doncaster Handicap is an Australian Turf Club Group One Thoroughbred handicap race for horses three years old and older, held over 1,600 metres at Royal Randwick Racecourse, Sydney, Australia. Although the ra ...

(twice) and the

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

and AJC Derbies, and, since the introduction of the Group system in the late-1970s, few if any horses have been runner-up in more. These 12 races included defeats by the

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

Northerly, Sunline, and Lonhro, and he lost three races by a short-half-head. In one of his greatest performances, Shogun Lodge was beaten by Sunline in head-bobbing finish to the 2002 Doncaster Handicap, in which both horses carried topweight of 58 kilos, and gave 6.5 kilos to Defier, who went on to win three Group One races at

weight-for-age {{use dmy dates, date=October 2022 Weight for Age (WFA) is a term in thoroughbred horse racing which is one of the conditions for a race. History The principle of WFA was developed by Admiral Rous, a handicapper with the English Jockey Club. Rous ...

. At his next start, in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes, Shogun Lodge ran one of his worst races, finishing second-last, and, in an 'ominous' sign, was found to have had an 'irregular heart reading'.

Death

After his first and only winless season at six, Shogun Lodge won the City Tatt's Lightning Handicap first-up as a seven-year-old (coincidentally, over the same course as his debut win, five years earlier), and was sent to Flemington for two further races. In the early stages of the second of these races, the

, Shogun Lodge suffered a fatal

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

. His upset trainer, Bob Thomsen, said 'Oh God... I've probably handled the best horse this country's ever had. The best horse ever to put his head through a bridle was

Tulloch Tulloch may refer to: People with the surname *Alexander Bruce Tulloch (1838–1920), Major-general in the British Army, author *Bert Tulloch, English footballer *Bitsie Tulloch, American actress *Francis Tulloch (born 1940), Jamaican politician ...

and I handled him... his heart weighed 14-and-a-half (pounds)... I'll tell you what, Shogun wasn't far behind him...'The Age - Shogun shock mars big race
Retrieved on 6 June 2009

Race record

Pedigree

References

{{Reflist 1996 racehorse births 2003 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Australia Racehorses trained in Australia Thoroughbred family C12 Horses who died from racing injuries

Racing career

Death

Race record

Pedigree

See also

References