18.11.2021

Qatar Arabian Trophy des Pouliches: Image du Croate underscores the purple patch of French breeders

Saint-Cloud (FR), October 1^st, 2021

Gr1 PA - 3 year-olds - Male - 2,000m (10f) - €100,000

Faced with the massive investments made by big international stables, some have opined that French breeders were no longer competitive at the top echelon of PA racing. However, the 2021 season had turned that assertion on its head following the victories of Soko (Nieshan), Hoggar de l'Ardus (Mister Ginoux), Lady Princess (General)... and now Image du Croate (Munjiz). Bred by the Boudet family the latter successfully carried the colours of Sheikha Reem Bint Mohammed Bin Khalifa Al Thani to victory in the Qatar Arabian Trophy des Pouliches (Gr1 PA).

The final dash for the line proves decisive. In a race in which Heelywa (No Risk Al Maury) set the tempo, the future winner bided her time after languishing towards the rear. Down the backstretch, the pace slowed as Image du Croate made progress on the outside. As things hotted up, Heelywa appealed as a potential winner before backtracking following the combined assault of three fillies: Image du Croate, Sahab (Af Alhabar) and Monda (No Risk Al Maury). The trio went toe to toe but it was Image du Croate, well ridden by Maxime Guyon, who was to prevail. Sahab was a close second with Monda breathing down her neck in third. ÉElisabeth Bernard said of Image du Croate: "I’m extremely happy with the victory of Image du Croate! On the other hand, I was very disappointed by the effort of Majoie des Forges (Al Tair), as she didn’t get the rub of the green. The winning filly has really bloomed in terms of condition during the course of the last 48 hours. Due to a sprain, it should also be pointed out that this is my first French Gr1 PA victory wearing trainers. (laughing)!"

The Sahab and Monda teams express their satisfaction. Thomas Fourcy told us: "Sahab ran very well. She ran a bit freely in the early stages but Jérôme Cabre managed to get her to settle. She managed to thread her way through a very narrow a gap which enabled her to take second. Al Wakrah (TM Fred Texas) was a bit disappointing because I thought that she could come and win her race. Racing a bit freely, she lacked her usual zip when it came down to the acid test." Martial Boisseuil, the owner of Monda, was in the company of Jean-Marc Lucas (Haras du Berlais) and Xavier Thomas-Demeaulte when he told us: "I have embraced a different role by enlisting the services of a good trainer who knows how to get his horses ready. Monda was bred at the Haras du Berlais where the quality of the soil is very good. We owe everything to the breeders... I bought the dam. Finishing third in a Gr1 PA race is perfect. There's nothing more to add. The jockey said he would have won on a right-handed track as the filly tends to hang left. If she makes a satisfactory recovery, the 1,600m feature at Toulouse could be on the cards. Failing that, she will be roughed off with a view to having a break at the Haras du Berlais. We’re also open to offers should a buyer be interested in a pure French pedigree page. We have her sister by Munjiz (Kesberoy)."

The family of Djavius des Landes and Nieshan. Bred in the Aveyron region by Jacques and Éliane Davy Boudet, Image du Croate, trained at the time by Éric Dell'Ova, made her debut at Toulouse where she was second. She was subsequently acquired by Paul Basquin (Haras du Saubouas) on behalf of her current owner. He said: "I am very happy for the teams of Sheikh Mohammed and Al Shahania. Furthermore, the second was bred for another client at our stud. We also broke her in and did all the pre-training groundwork before she went into training. The dam is still with us back home. Endowed with a lot of speed, she has benefited from the excellent work of Thomas Fourcy and his team."

The dam, Beanie du Croate (Dahess), won at Agen and was fourth at PA Group level. Image du Croate is her second foal but first winner. She has a foal at foot by No Risk Al Maury (Kesberoy).

The grandam Shamilah du Croate (Dormane) was un-raced, but she has produced three winners, including Falcone du Croate (Munjiz), and the winner of a 3-year-old maiden race in Qatar. The great grandam, D'Jadie de Teoul (Djouras Tu), has produced the smart Djavius des Landes (Octavius): the winner of the Coupe d'Europe des UAE (since upgraded to Gr1 PA status) at Chantilly. Around ten of her descendants have gained black type, and she’s also the granddam of the stallion Nieshan (Akbar), the winner of three editions of the Al Maktoum Challenge Round (Grs1 PA) plus H.H. The President of the UAE Cup (Gr1 PA).

QATAR ARABIAN TROPHY DES POULICHES

Gr1 PA - 3-year-olds - Females - 2,000m - €100,000

1^st         IMAGE DU CROATE (56) F3

                (Munjiz & Béanie du Croate, by Dahess)

Owners: H.H. Sheikha R. Bin Khalifa Al Thani & H.H. Sheikh Moh. Bin Khalifa Al Thani
Breeders: J.-F. & Mrs E. Davy-Boudet

                Trainer: Mrs J.-F. Bernard
                Jockey: M. Guyon

2^nd        SAHAB (56) F3

                (Af Albahar & Manella, by Dormane)

                Owner: M.F. Ah Al Attiyah
                Breeder: MBF

                Trainer: T. Fourcy
                Jockey: J. Cabre

3^rd        MONDA (56) F3

                (No Risk Al Maury & Mhaya, by Njewman)

                Owner: M. Boisseuil & Haras du Berlais
                Breeder: Mrs L. Sawaya

                Trainer: X. Thomas-Demeaulte
                Jockey: M. Barzalona

Other runner(s) in finishing order: Al Wakrah, Majoie des Forges, Heelywa, Love Awam, Terre d'Or & Hooreya.

All ran (9).

(Turf) Soft. 2'22"37. Distances: HEAD - HEAD - NECK.