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Sapphire Stakes (Ireland)
The Sapphire Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 5 furlongs (1,006 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each year in July. The event was established in 2001, and it was originally classed at Listed level. For several years it was registered as the Richard H. Faught Memorial Stakes. It was renamed the Sapphire Stakes and promoted to Group 3 status in 2008. It was raised to Group 2 level in 2015. The Sapphire Stakes was originally part of the Curragh's three-day Irish Derby Festival meeting. In 2015 it was moved to the Irish Oaks meeting and it is currently held on the second day, the day after the Irish Oaks. Records Most successful horse (2 wins): * Benbaun – ''2005, 2009'' Leading jockey (3 wins): * Johnny Murtagh – ''Deportivo (2003), Snaefell (2007), Definightly (2012)'' Leading trainer (2 wins): * Michael Halford – ''Snaef ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Curragh Racecourse
The Curragh Racecourse is a flat racecourse in County Kildare, Ireland. The racecourse is home to Ireland’s five most important flat races, known as the Irish Classic Races, Classics. Racing takes place 23 days each year from the end of March until late October. Guided tours of the venue are available outside of race days. History The name "Curragh" comes from the Irish language word ''Cuirreach'', meaning "place of the running horse". The first recorded race on the plain took place in 1727, but it was used for races before then. The first Derby was held in 1866, and in 1868 the Curragh was officially declared a horse racing and training facility by act of parliament. Racecourse redevelopment Redevelopment of the Curragh grandstand and racecourse facilities began in 2017 with completion due in time for commencement of the 2019 Irish Flat season. A truncated racing fixture list continued to be held at the course during this period with temporary facilities in place for t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Dermot Weld
Dermot K. Weld (born 29 July 1948), in Kildare, is a former jockey, and one of Ireland's most successful racehorse trainers, setting the record in 2000 for the most winners trained in Ireland with 2,578. He won the Irish Flat Training Championship 8 times in 1983, 1985, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994, 1996, and 1998. As a trainer, he won the Melbourne Cup in Australia twice, all five of the Irish Classics, the Epsom Derby and Oaks, the Hong Kong Mile, Italian and American Derby, and Breeders' Cup Turf. Education Educated at Newbridge College, became a qualified veterinarian ( UCD 1970) and at that time, the youngest qualified vet in Ireland. In 2016, Weld was awarded UCD Alumnus of the Year in Veterinary Medicine. Career Weld started his career as an amateur jockey, obtaining a training licence in 1972, and took over the stable, at Rosewell House, in Curragh, Ireland, from his father, Charlie Weld, who was also a successful racehorse trainer. He went on to win the Irish Flat Tr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Colin Keane
Colin Keane (born 12 September 1994) is an Irish jockey who competes in flat racing. He was Irish flat racing Champion Jockey in 2017, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024. Keane was born in County Meath and rode his first race winner at Dundalk in December 2010. He became stable jockey for racehorse trainer Ger Lyons in 2014 and won the Irish apprentice jockeys' championship that year with 54 winners, having finished runner-up the previous season. Keane was runner-up to Pat Smullen in the Irish jockeys' championship in 2015 and won his first championship in 2017 with a total of 100 winners. In 2019 he was runner-up in the championship to Donnacha O'Brien, with 103 winners to O'Brien's 111; this was the first season in which two jockeys both rode 100 winners in an Irish season. Keane won his second Irish champion jockeys' title in 2020 with 100 winners, ahead of Shane Foley who finished with 92 wins. Foley had led by 20 winners on 20 August but a run of success for Keane during S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Havana Grey
Havana Grey (foaled 12 February 2015) is a British Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. A specialist sprinter, he competed over a distance of 5 furlongs. As a two-year-old, he won four out of his eight races. As a three-year-old, he raced eight times and won two races including the Group 1 Flying Five Stakes. Trained by K.R. Burke, he was ridden in all but two of his races by P. J. McDonald. At the end of the 2018 season he was retired to stud and in 2022 was crowned champion first-season sire. Background Havana Grey is a grey horse bred by Mickley Stud & Lady Lonsdale and foaled on 12 February 2015. At 15.2½ hands, he is not large for a racehorse and has relatively short legs. His dam, the grey Blanc de Chine, won 6 races from 20 starts over 5 furlongs. His sire, Havana Gold, was bay and won five races over 6 furlongs to a mile, including the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat. Havana Grey was from his sire's first crop and sold to Global Racing Club & Mrs E. Burke for €70,000 at Arqana's Au ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Declan McDonogh
Declan McDonogh (born 21 January 1980) in County Meath is an Irish jockey who competes in Flat racing. McDonogh rode his first winner at Leopardstown Racecourse in June 1995 and has worked for trainers Kevin Prendergast, John Oxx and Joseph O'Brien . He was Irish flat racing Champion Jockey in the 2006 season. Major wins Ireland * Phoenix Stakes - (1) - '' La Collina (2011)'' * Pretty Polly Stakes - (2) - ''Polaire (1999), Rebelline (2001)'' *Tattersalls Gold Cup - (1) - ''Rebelline (2002)'' *Vincent O'Brien National Stakes - (2) - ''Kingsfort (2009), Thunder Moon (2020)'' ---- France *Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp The Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged two years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,000 metres (about 5 furlongs ... - (1) - ''Maarek (2013)'' References 1980 births Living people Irish jockeys Equestrians from County Mea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Paul Mulrennan
Paul Mulrennan is an English flat racing jockey, whose biggest victories to date have been back to back wins on Mecca's Angel in the Group 1 Nunthorpe Stakes in 2015 and 2016. He also won six times on another sprinter Mabs Cross. Both were trained by Michael Dods. In his schooldays, he hoped for a career in Gaelic football, but his careers adviser suggested he was too short and should consider becoming a jockey instead. He started race riding in 2000 and rode out his apprentice claim in 2004. His first big early successes came on the Mick Easterby-trained Gentleman's Deal, on whom he won the Ladybird Stakes, Group 3 Winter Derby and Quebec Stakes in 2007. Other big race victories then came on Dandino in the 2011 Jockey Club Stakes, Melody of Love in the 2012 Firth of Clyde Stakes and Moviesta in the 2013 King George Stakes, before his partnership with Mecca's Angel throughout 2015 and 2016 brought him the Group 2 Sapphire Stakes, Group 3 Prix de Saint-Georges, Group 3 World ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Mecca's Angel
Mecca's Angel (foaled 11 February 2011) is an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. She was a specialist sprinter who excelled over the minimum distance of five furlongs. She showed promise as a two-year-old in 2013, winning two minor contests and twice finishing second in Listed races. In the following year she improved to win four of her five races including the Scarbrough Stakes and World Trophy. As a four-year-old she made only three appearances but was rated the best female sprinter in the world after wins in the Prix de Saint-Georges and the Nunthorpe Stakes. In 2016 she struggled for form in the spring but then won the Sapphire Stakes before becoming the first horse in over thirty years to win a second consecutive Nunthorpe Stakes at York. Background Mecca's Angel is a grey mare bred in Ireland by Yeomanstown Stud & Doc Bloodstock. In October 2012 the yearling filly was sent to the Tattersalls sales and was bought for 16,000 guineas by the trainer Michael ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Aidan O'Brien
Aidan Patrick O'Brien (born 16 October 1969 in County Wexford, Ireland) Aidan O'Brien bio NTRA.com is an Irish horse racing horse trainer, trainer. Since 1996, he has been the private trainer at Ballydoyle Stables near Rosegreen, County Tipperary, Rosegreen in County Tipperary for John Magnier and his Coolmore Stud associates. He is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest horse racing trainers of all time. Early and private life Aidan O'Brien was one of six children of Denis O'Brien (died 1 December 2008) and his wife Stella (née Doyle). Denis was a farmer and small-scale horse trainer in the townland of Killegney, near Poulpeasty, in County Wexford, where Aidan grew up. Aidan O'Brien attended Donard National School, located less than a mile from his parents' home. He subsequently attended seco ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Seamie Heffernan
James Anthony "Seamie" Heffernan (born 17 July 1972) is an Irish flat racing jockey associated for most of his career with the stable of horse racing trainer Aidan O'Brien. From a family with no racing connections, Heffernan was introduced to the sport when he took a summer holiday job with the National Hunt trainer Arthur Moore. He began his racing career as an apprentice jockey for P J Finn and rode his first winner on 10 August 1988 at the age of sixteen. When Finn retired he moved to the yard of Jim Bolger and shared the Irish champion apprentices title in 1994. He was runner-up in the same competition in 1995 and moved to Aidan O'Brien's Ballydoyle stable in 1996 where he was second jockey after Christy Roche. Heffernan remained at Ballydoyle for nearly three decades and rode his first Group One winner on Beckett in the 2000 National Stakes and his first Classic winner on Imagine in the Irish 1,000 Guineas in 2001. He has ridden a further nine Irish Classic winners, includ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Wayne Lordan
Wayne Lordan (born 20 April 1982) is a multiple Classic and Group 1 winning Irish Jockey. Background and early career Lordan grew up in Upton, County Cork. He started pony racing when he was nine years old, following in the footsteps of his father and brother, and was noticed by trainer Thomond O'Mara. Leaving school at fourteen, he worked for O'Mara for six years. His first winner was Ethbaat for trainer Gerry Cully at Killarney on 15 July 1998. After six years with O'Mara, he moved on to the yard of Tommy Stack and then, in 2005, began riding for David Wachman as well as Stack. That year he rode 41 winners. Lordan won his first Group 1 race on the unfancied Sole Power, owned by the Power bookmaking family and trained by Eddie Lynam, in the 2010 Nunthorpe Stakes at York. At 100/1, the horse was the longest-priced winner of a British Group 1 contest for 35 years. Interviewed the following year, he said:Up to last year all I wanted to do was win a Group 1 and now I want ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Slade Power
Slade Power (foaled 2 April 2009) is an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse. A specialist sprinter, Slade Power won one minor race as a two-year-old in 2011 before winning the Sandy Lane Stakes in England and the Belgrave Stakes in Ireland (both Listed races) in 2012. He emerged as a top-class performer as a four-year-old in 2013, winning the Sapphire Stakes, Phoenix Sprint Stakes and British Champions Sprint Stakes. He was even better in 2014, establishing himself as arguably the leading sprinter in Europe by winning the Greenlands Stakes, Diamond Jubilee Stakes and July Cup. Background Slade Power is a bay horse with no white markings bred in Ireland by his owners David and Sabena Power (members of the Power bookmaking family). He was from the first crop of foals sired by Dutch Art a horse who won the Prix Morny and Middle Park Stakes in 2006. Dutch Art's other offspring include Caspar Netscher (Gimcrack Stakes, Mill Reef Stakes), Baccarat (Wokingham Stakes), Producer ( Supreme Sta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Pat Smullen
Patrick Joseph Smullen (22 May 1977 – 15 September 2020), was an Irish jockey who won the Irish flat racing Champion Jockey title nine times. In a career running from 1992 to 2018 he rode 1,845 winners in Ireland and 47 in Britain. Amongst his biggest successes were riding Harzand to victories in the Epsom Derby and Irish Derby in 2016. He was stable jockey to Dermot Weld from 1999 until 2018. Background and apprenticeship Smullen was born in County Offaly and was introduced to riding and racing by his brother Sean, who worked for trainer Joanna Morgan. He was then apprenticed to local trainer Tommy Lacy, who provided him with his first winner, Vicosa, at Dundalk in 1993. Smullen won the Irish apprentice championship in 1995 and 1996. Career Smullen spent two years as a stable jockey to John Oxx, winning his first Group 1 race, the Moyglare Stud Stakes, on Tarascon for trainer Tommy Stack at the Curragh in 1997. In 1999 he became first jockey to trainer Dermot Weld, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
