DEATH OF CAESOUR

Caesour (USA)
(Photo : Varsfontein Stud)

CAESOUR
Nureyev (USA) - Don’t Sulk (USA)

Caesour, Varsfontein Stud stalwart stallion, died on Monday. He was 23 years old.

It was a further blow to local sire ranks, who have already lost Casey Tibbs and National Emblem earlier in the year.

Caesour was a son of the outstanding sire Nureyev, responsible for such champions as Theatrical, Miesque (dam of Varsfontein’s promising young sire Judpot), Soviet Star, Peintre Celebre, Zilzal and Spinning World, to name a few. Out of a stakes winning Graustark mare, Caesour was a full brother to Group 1 winner Gracioso (Prix Lupin). Winner of six races including the Group 3 Bay Meadows Handicap, Caesour retired to stud in South Africa in 1996. He spent his entire stud career at Varsfontein, where he sired over 40 stakes winners.

Caesour made history, and South Africa proud, when his daughters Perfect Promise and Dane Julia became the first South African bred horses to win G1 races in Australia and New Zealand respectively. Perfect Promise beat colts when landing the Group 1 C F Orr Stakes, while her paternal half-sister, Dane Julia, took top honours in the Group 1 NZ Thoroughbred Breeders Stakes.

Another daughter of Caesour, Irridescence was yet another international star for her sire. A full sister to Perfect Promise, Irridescence won races in both Dubai and Hong Kong, with her biggest victory coming over the legendary Ouija Board in the 2006 Queen Elizabeth II Cup.

Caesour built a name for himself as a tremendously versatile sire, siring top sprinters Tobe Or Nottobe and O Caesour, as well as Gold Bowl hero The Eiger Sanction.

He has also done well as a broodmare sire, with his daughters producing the likes of Emerald Cove (Grade 1 Paddock Stakes), Dancewiththedevil (Champion) and Royal Bencher (Grade 1 SA Derby).

Our condolences go out to Carl and Amanda de Vos and the Kalmanson Family.

ST PETERSBURG CONTINUES GROUP 1 SUCCESS DOWN UNDER

St Petersburg
(Photo : Summerhill Stud)

ST PETERSBURG (AUS)
Nureyev (USA) - Miss Bold Appeal (USA)

St Petersburg continued his Group 1 success in Australia this past weekend when his son Solzhenitsyn ran third in the Group 1 Canterbury Stakes in Rosehill over 1300m for trainer Rob Heathcote.

Running on good going on turf, Solzhenitsyn was just a length short of the Gai Waterhouse-trained winner, Pierro (Aus) (Lonhro), who made it 10 in a row with this win. More Joyous (NZ) (More Than Ready) squezed home for second.

Already a Group winner, Solzhenitsyn hit the headlines last year after winning the Group 1 Toorak Handicap, the Listed Strawberry Road Handicap and Group 3 Lord Mayors Cup. He has also placed in a Group 1 and Group 2.

St Petersburg, a son of Nureyev, stands at Summerhill Stud.

Enquiries :
Linda Norval +27 (0) 33 263 1081
or email linda@summerhill.co.za
www.summerhill.co.za

UNHERALDED, UNSUNG AND UNDISCOVERED

Click above to enlarge…

ST PETERSBURG (AUS)
Nureyev (USA) - Miss Bold Appeal (USA)

REDOUTE'S CHOICE TO SHUTTLE TO HARAS DE BONNEVAL

Click above to watch an insert on Redoute’s Choice (2010)
(Photo : Arrowfield Stud : Footage - GG Trader)

REDOUTE’S CHOICE (AUS)
Danehill (USA) - Shantha’s Choice (AUS)

The Aga Khan Studs announced yesterday that twice Australian Champion Sire Redoute’s Choice (Danehill) will shuttle to Haras de Bonneval in France for the 2013 Northern Hemisphere season and will stand for a fee of €70,000.

Aged 16, Redoute’s Choice has stood at Arrowfield since his retirement to stud in 2000 where his fee this season is AUS$137,500.

Georges Rimaud, manager of the Aga Khan Studs in France said, “We are very excited to have Redoute’s Choice on our stallion roster for 2013 and we will be sending at least 15 of our own mares to him. In recent years Royal Ascot has proven that the Australian sprinting thoroughbred is comparable with the best in the world. Redoute’s Choice is the dominant stallion in Australia and he has already, from limited exposure, sired major winners from mares by European stallions such as Kingmambo, Caerleon, Last Tycoon, Rainbow Quest and Nureyev. This is a wonderful opportunity to send Northern Hemisphere mares to one of the best stallions in the world today, and he will undoubtedly have a strong and lasting impact on the European bloodstock industry.”

Arrowfield’s John Messara, (who is a part owner of Way West here at Summerhill), stated, “We are particularly delighted with this arrangement not only because His Highness the Aga Khan and some of the world’s most influential breeders will support Redoute’s Choice, but also because we already have the comfort of a strong working relationship with the Aga Khan Studs through our mare ventures.”

Redoute’s Choice’s best international performer to date has been his globetrotting Group One winning juvenile son Musir, who has won at Group One level in South Africa, Group Two level in Turkey and Dubai and finished third to Excelebration (Exceed And Excel) in the Hungerford Stakes (Gr 2, 7f) at Newbury last year. Redoute’s Choice will join Sea The Stars (Cape Cross), Dalakhani (Darshaan), Azamour (Night Shift), Sinndar (Grand Lodge) and Siyouni (Pivotal) on the 2013 Aga Khan Studs stallion roster.

Extract from ANZ Bloodstock News

FIRST KENYAN RUSSIAN REVIVAL WINS BY 8 LENGTHS ON DEBUT

Russian Revival
(Photo : Summerhill Stud)

“RUSSIAN’S REVIVAL”

Some years ago, in an attempt to uplift the flagging fortunes of Kenyan racing and breeding, Mick Goss took a delegation of our racing operators to Kenya. The outcome was an arrangement which saw the donation of tote equipment, on course cameras, a flighting of the Kenyan racing signal through Tellytrack, a reorganisation of their business model, and the placement of several stallions with Jo and Janet Mills’ Rawhide Stud.

One of the most recent of these was the highly performed Nureyev racehorse, Russian Revival (Timeform’s Champion Handicapper of his year), and sire of last year’s Dubai Carnival victor ludorum, Imbongi. Last weekend, the first of the Kenyan “Russians”, Viola, made her racecourse debut, and by all accounts, it was some performance. It is early days yet, but an easing-down margin of eight lengths tells its own story.

Imagine what a single Imbongi could do for the international image of Kenyan racing. There might be another reason to visit besides the Masai Mara.