Suave Dancer (1988–1998) is a French

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 ...

race horse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

Background

Bred by Lillie F. Webb's

Xalapa Farm Xalapa Farm is an American thoroughbred horse breeding stable near Paris, Kentucky. History Xalapa was founded by William Thomas Buckner of Virginia in 1827 and passed on to a son Henry who in 1897 sold it to Confederate Col. William Erskine Sim ...

near

Paris, Kentucky Paris is a home rule-class city in Bourbon County, Kentucky. It lies northeast of Lexington on the Stoner Fork of the Licking River. Paris is the seat of its county and forms part of the Lexington–Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. As ...

, Suave Dancer was sired by Green Dancer out of the mare Suavite, both American thoroughbreds. A male line descendant of

Northern Dancer Northern Dancer (May 27, 1961 – November 16, 1990) was a Thoroughbred who, in 1964, became the first Canadian-bred horse to win the Kentucky Derby. He then became one of the most successful sires of the 20th century. He is considered a Canad ...

through

Nijinsky II Nijinsky (21 February 1967 – 15 April 1992) was a Canadian-bred, Irish-trained champion Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was the outstanding two-year-old in Europe in 1969 when he was unbeaten in five races. In the following season, he bec ...

, and a female line descendant of Ribot via

Tom Rolfe Tom Rolfe (April 14, 1962 – June 12, 1989) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He was the leading colt of his generation in the United States, winning the Preakness Stakes and being voted American Champion Three-Year-Old Male Ho ...

, Suave Dancer was owned by French businessman

Henri Chalhoub Henri is an Estonian, Finnish, French, German and Luxembourgish form of the masculine given name Henry. People with this given name ; French noblemen :'' See the ' List of rulers named Henry' for Kings of France named Henri.'' * Henri I de Mon ...

and trained by

Chantilly Chantilly may refer to: Places France *Chantilly, Oise, a city located in the Oise department **US Chantilly, a football club *Château de Chantilly, a historic château located in the town of Chantilly United States * Chantilly, Missou ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

-based

Englishman The English people are an ethnic group and nation native to England, who speak the English language, a West Germanic language, and share a common history and culture. The English identity is of Anglo-Saxon origin, when they were known in ...

, John E. Hammond.

Racing career

Ridden by American jockey

Cash Asmussen Cash Asmussen (born March 15, 1962 in Agar, South Dakota) is an American thoroughbred horse racing jockey. Born Brian Keith Asmussen, in 1977 he legally changed his name to "Cash". From a Texas horse racing family, his parents, Keith and Marily ...

, who actually selected and purchased the horse for the owner, Suave Dancer won the 1991

Prix du Jockey Club The Prix du Jockey Club, sometimes referred to as the French Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Chantilly over ...

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris, France, over a distance ...

, was second to Generous in the

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 ...

then came back to win 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 (2,01 ...

. For his performance in 1991, Suave Dancer was voted the Cartier Three-Year-Old European Champion Colt.

Stud record

In 1991

The National Stud The National Stud is a United Kingdom Thoroughbred horse breeding farm located two miles from Newmarket. The Stud originated in 1916 as a result of a gift by William Hall Walker (later Lord Wavertree) of the entire bloodstock of his stud farm ...

at Newmarket bought a half-share in Suave Dancer. 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 ...

, he was later sent to Eliza Park Stud in Romsey, Victoria, Australia. Suave Dancer was the sire of 11 stakes winners including Compton Admiral and Volvoreta (

Prix Vermeille The Prix Vermeille is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), a ...

) before his untimely death at age ten in December 1998.

References

Suave Dancer pedigree, career highlights
{{Cartier Champion Three-year-old Colt 1988 racehorse births 1998 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in France Arc winners Cartier Award winners Thoroughbred family 4-r