22 March 2020
Photos scoopdyga.com
Every week, in a series of articles entitled "Back in 2019", while we wait for the resumption of racing in France, we invite you to look again at last season's main events, updated with what happened next ... Every Thursday, we will also remind you of the best maiden winners from last year.
The favourite in the Prix Hypothèse Hurdle Race (Gr3), Sunday, March 24th, 2019 at Auteuil, despite 308 days of absence, the champion hurdling mare De Bon Coeur (Vision d’État) prevailed again at the end of a sprint. Bred and owned by Jacques Détré and Nicolas de Lageneste’s Haras de Saint-Voir, the 6yo mare followed the front-running Galop Marin (Black Sam Bellamy), king of the autumn on Auteuil’s hurdles while the mare was taking some rest. As Galop Marin could not accelerate going out of the bend on a 3 900 metres trip probably a bit shorter than ideal, De Bon Coeur went to the outer rail in the final straight and she sprinted away, leaving her rivals at three lengths, the returning Crystal Beach (Network) finishing well in second, beating Galop Marin by two and a half lengths while Alex de Larredya (Crillon), who also proved unable to sprint for his return, finished 4th.
The return to the forefront of De Bon Coeur has delighted the Auteuil fans, who now expect to see her regain her crown in the Grande Course de Haies d'Auteuil, the championship she won last time out in June 2018.
Winner of the Prix Agitato Chase last time out, Kapdam (Kapgarde) dominated Thrilling (Network) in the Prix Le Touquet Chase, taking a neck on her rival after a long and uncertain duel. Thrilling did not jump the River that well on the 3,500-metres-long chase led by Campinas (Pastorius) at a good speed. In the final phase, however, she joined Kapdam and the two 4-year-olds passed the winning post with 12 lengths to spare on 3rd-placed Campinas.
Thrilling finished fourth in the Prix Duc d'Anjou 4yo Chase (Gr3) last time out, beaten by the three best males of the generation, with the exception of Polirico, who had unseated his rider at … the River!
Trained at Royan by Arnaud Chaille-Chaille, Kapdam was racing for the 4th time only, the 3rd time over the biggest obstacles. He’s owned by his breeder Richard Corveller, associated with Arnaud Chaillé-Chaillé and Jacques Bruneau. His dam Rainbowline (Martaline), also bred by the Meslay veterinarian, won six races under the training of Arnaud Chaillé-Chaillé before entering stud, where this sister to champion chaser and Willie Mullins old timer Djakadam (Saint of Saints) first gave Kapdam and then three fillies by Saint des Saints! The oldest, who is now 3 years old, is in training with Arnaud Chaillé-Chaillé.
The last race of the day, the Prix Mitsouko III AQPS Chase, was also restricted to 4-year-olds, but only halfbred AQPS. The favourite Fandango (Poliglote) almost ran out at the second jump. Immediately back in the race, he fell at the oxer, two jumps late. Flying Startandco (Cokoriko) and Furax (Martaline) shared the lead and after a tight finish, the former prevailed by a neck. A good finisher despite a messy last jump, Forland (Network) made a good impression in third place.
Flyingstartandco won the Prix Finot Beginners' Hurdle race back in September. He was bred in Nièvre by Jacques and Andrée Cyprès and their three children. The family is associated with Patrick Vandemoortele on the gelding's ownership, and he's partly leased to the trainer François Nicolle. The sire Cokoriko is a smashing recruit for the Haras de Cercy, created from the former National Stud local station at Cercy-la-Tour by Jacques Cyprès.
Flyingstartandco's dam Brownie and Co (Dom Alco) did not run but she's out of Expoville (Vidéo Rock), a winner at Auteuil and the dam, amongst others, of British Gr2 winner Vaniteux (Voix du Nord). It is a really good AQPS family from the Cypres bloodlines from which one can find Vieux Morvan (Voix du Nord) and Bilbao V (Bad Conduct). After Flying Startandco, Brownie and Co gave a Rail Link filly born in 2016.
The aftermath ...
De Bon Coeur confirmed this by winning the Prix Léon Rambaud Hurdle (Gr2) four weeks later, also at Auteuil. In the Grande Course de Haies d'Auteuil (Gr1), on the other hand, she was unable to hold Bénie des Dieux, a French-bred mare trained by Willie Mullins in Ireland. Injured again, the French wonder mare left racing with a smashing record of 13 victories in sixteen outings, including three Group 1 Hurdle races, and more than one million euros in earnings. This year, she was to be sired by Doctor Dino, while her dam Santa Bamba was bound to go to Ireland to meet Epsom and Irish Derby winner Harzand at the Aga Khan studs.
The 4-year-old Kapdam ran only once again in the spring. In the fall, he did not win again, but he took the second place in the Prix Maurice Gillois 4yo Chase (Gr1) won by Figuero, once again beating Thrilling. He is still in training with Arnaud Chaillé-Chaillé and has just returned in 2020 against the "old guard" with a fourth place in the Robert de Clermont-Tonnerre Chase (Gr3). The oldest of his three sisters Kozadame (Saint des Saints), now 4 years old, has run six times without succeeding in winning at the moment.
Flying StartandCo won a Listed at Compiègne in the fall. Winner on this same Sunday meeting of March 24, 2019 in the first race, a steeplechase for amateur riders, Sainte Saône (Saint des Saints), for her part, won four more times in 2019 and is now part of the elite French chasers.
The day before this Hypothèse Hurdle race, another great mare, the Australian champion Winx, won at Rosehill Gardens, near Sydney, her 32nd consecutive victory, and her 24th Group 1. She was due to run again, and for the last time, on April 13 in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes ...