A 4-year-old English mare is the new world gallop champion

The 4-year-old English mare Bluestocking ridden by Rossa Ryan easily won the 103rd Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at ParisLongchamp, becoming the new world galloping champion. The sixteen best thoroughbreds on the planet, nine French, three Irish, two English, one German and one Japanese, set off on the softest ground for a 2,400 meter race in front of a crowd of spectators, including Prince Albert of Monaco.

The race was animated by Ryan Moore’s Irish Los Angeles with the future winner wedged behind him in a waiting position and accompanied by the French outsider Haya Zark. The French favorite Sosie, ridden by Maxime Guyon, galloped free just behind.

Still leading heading into the final straight, Los Angeles was sharply attacked by Bluestocking and Sosie. With 300 meters to go, Bluestocking took the lead and pulled away irresistibly in the final 100 meters to cruise ahead to an easy victory.

“Bluestocking was always at the top. I want to say thanks to everyone who had faith in me, to her trainer Ralph Beckett and thanks also to the mare. It was incredible to do this performance at the end of the year,” he told Equidia Rossa Ryan, a 24 year old Irish jockey, at the stable.

“Thank God, it’s amazing!” he said. “I was pretty confident with my mare, I prayed for the post to come in the last 150 metres.”

Second place went to Stéphane Pasquier’s French company Aventure. English jockey Ryan Moore on the Irish thoroughbred Los Angeles finished third.

“Aventure is a light filly, the winner is better than us,” admitted Christophe Ferland, her trainer, with fair play. “We are beaten by a great, exceptional mare.”

New Japanese defeat

Bluestocking, an easy winner of a preparatory race, the Prix Vermeille in September at the same racecourse, was entered late on the starting line at the Arco. His entourage had to pay 120,000 euros for his participation.

The new world queen of galloping, wearing the bay (brown) dress, offered her entourage the 2,857,000 euros promised to the winner out of the 5 million total prize money thanks to the sponsorship of Qatar.

For the rest of the mare’s career, manager Barry Mahon of the Juddmonte stable, owned by the Saudi Abdullah family, did not immediately comment during a press conference on the race course. “I don’t know if Bluestocking will race next year. We will decide with the owners,” he said.

In addition to her race victories, the daughter of Camelot and Emulous already has a place reserved at stud for a career as a broodmare.

The favorite Sosie arrived at the foot of the podium. The other French favorite Look de Vega, winner of the Prix du Jockey-Club sanctioned by a European champion title, was unable to finish 13th behind the Japanese thoroughbred Shin Emperor driven by Ryusei Sakai.

“Look de Vega wasn’t breathing well, he contracted his soft palate. We’ll do better next year”, commented Yann Lerner, Look de Vega’s coach to justify his failure.

We will remember from this edition that the French cavalryman Haya Zark fell just before the last bend.