Ireland’s National Treasure
Ireland’s National Treasure…
by Kelsey Riley
As much as Goffs is synonymous with Irish heritage and the horse racing industry, so too is the Irish National Stud, which has graced County Kildare–a short jaunt down the highway from Goffs–since the early 1900s. The Irish National Stud, in addition to being a tourist attraction that sees more than 115,000 visitors each year, is a full service Thoroughbred nursery and stallion station, and has a long history of selling outstanding racehorses at Goffs.
In 1946–the same year it was formally established by incorporation under the National Stud Act–the Irish National Stud, which is owned by the Irish Government, acquired its first stallion for £52,000. His name was Royal Charger, and although he was sold to stand in America just eight years later, he would lay the foundation for the Irish National Stud as a developer of top-class sires. Royal Charger’s influence lives on today largely through the exploits of his great grandson Roberto, the sire of Kris S. and Dynaformer, amongst others.
“The first bet was a winning bet,” said John Osborne, chief executive of the Irish National Stud, on the stud’s acquirement of Royal Charger. The stud would hit another home run in the 1980s when acquiring Ahonoora, described by Osborne as “a sprinter with not much pedigree.” Despite that profile, Ahonoora proved a sire of great diversity, producing the likes of G1 Epsom Derby winner Dr Devious (Ire); G1 2000 Guineas winner Don’t Forget Me (Ire); G2 King’s Stand S. winner Indian Ridge (GB); successful sire Inchinor (GB) and Group 1 winners Park Appeal (GB) and Park Express (GB), the dams of New Approach (Ire) and Cape Cross (Ire). Ahonoora is also the broodmare sire of American champions Azeri and Animal Kingdom. Ahonoora entered stud duties at a fee of £IR 2,250, and was sold to Coolmore seven years later for £IR 7 million.
The Irish National Stud was able to enjoy the same upward trajectory with Ahonoora’s son Indian Ridge, who joined the farm’s roster in 1994.
“He started at a fee of £IR 5,000, and went up to as high as €85,000,” Osborne explained. Indian Ridge is best known as the sire of GI Breeders’ Cup Mile winners Ridgewood Pearl (GB) and Domedriver (Ire); British champion and sire Compton Place (GB); G1 Prix de l’Abbaye winner Namid (GB) and five-time Grade I winner Relaxed Gesture (Ire).
It is possible, however, that the Irish National Stud’s greatest stallion success story is currently in the making. The year that Indian Ridge’s first 2-year-olds were hitting the track, a strapping bay son of Green Desert named Invincible Spirit (Ire) was born. Trained by John Dunlop for Prince Faisal, Invincible Spirit performed with consistency in Europe’s sprinting division, capping his career with a victory in Haydock’s G1 Sprint Cup in 2002 before retiring to the Irish National Stud the following year for a fee of €10,000. It didn’t take long for Invincible Spirit to begin making his mark. In 2006 he had 35 first-crop 2-year-old winners–a record for a freshman sire–and in 2007 his fee went up to €35,000. That first crop included G1 French Derby and G1 Prix Jean Prat winner Lawman (Fr) as well as group winners Conquest (Ire) and Captain Marvelous (Ire).
“He was well supported at a modest fee, and our loyal clients really helped make him,” Osborne noted.
Like Ahonoora and Indian Ridge before him, Invincible Spirit’s progeny continued to train on, and his fee rocketed to €75,000 in 2008. He went on to sire the likes of European champion sprinter Fleeting Spirit (Ire) and GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winner Vale of York (Ire), and his more recent luminaries include six-time Group 1-winning sprinter Moonlight Cloud (GB); this year’s four-time Group 1-winning miler Kingman (GB); this year’s dual Group 1 winner Charm Spirit (Ire); G1 July Cup hero Mayson (GB) and G1 Cheveley Park S. heroine Rosdhu Queen (Ire). Invincible Spirit shuttled to Australia’s Chatswood Stud for three seasons and from less than 300 foals produced triple Group 1 winner Yosei (Aus) and six other stakes winners, most notably I Am Invincible (Aus), Australia’s champion first-season sire of 2013/14. Invincible Spirit is undoubtedly poised to continue this legacy in the Northern Hemisphere as well, with sons already at stud including the Classic sire Lawman; Vale of York, Mayson, Born to Sea (Ire)–the brother to Galileo (Ire) and Sea the Stars (Ire)–and Zebedee (GB), Europe’s current leading first crop sire by number of winners. With Invincible Spirit, the Irish National Stud has come full circle. Invincible Spirit’s sire, Green Desert, is out of a mare by Sir Ivor, a grandson of Royal Charger.
Perhaps the Irish National Stud’s greatest legacy, however, will be its Thoroughbred Breeding course. Launched in 1971 by Michael Osborne, John’s father,
the six-month course is designed to give students practical and theoretical experience in the breeding industry, and includes hands-on work at the stud and evening lectures. John Osborne notes that the course was the first of its kind in the industry.
“There wasn’t much at that time in terms of formal education in the horse business, and [Michael Osborne] liked the idea that you could bring a bit of science to it,” he explained. “Some might consider the student course a masters in mucking out, but we do take the science of it very seriously, and try to up our game all the time. At the same time, the standard of the candidates applying is increasing all the time, so we have to consistently renew the structure of the program accordingly.”
Osborne added that the value of the course is apparent through the support of the industry and the strong network it has built.
“There is so much goodwill towards the students, and the students don’t realize until after they’ve left the program the value of all the industry professionals they get to meet and spend time with,” he said. “But the most important aspect of the course might be the peer network. The students learn so much from their own classmates, as well as all the previous students, and it’s a wonderful support group to step into. It’s wonderful to go around the world and see the success of the graduates. It’s very gratifying–anywhere you are in the world you’re likely to run into someone that has either done the course or knows someone who has.”
With its roots inextricably woven into the heritage of the Irish Thoroughbred, the Irish National Stud also has had a longstanding and successful association with Goffs. Classic winners bred by the stud and consigned at Goffs include Desert King (Ire) (Danehill), who became trainer Aidan O’Brien’s first Classic winner when he took the 1997 G1 Irish 2000 Guineas and G1 Irish Derby, and last year’s G1 Irish St Leger victress Voleuse de Coeurs (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}).
“The Irish National Stud sells basically everything it produces at Goffs,” Osborne noted. “Goffs is our market–it’s been good to us over the years. The association between the Irish National Stud and Goffs goes back a long time.”
The Irish National Stud will this year bring nine to Orby, including lot 442, an Invincible Spirit full-sister to the Sept. 12 G2 May Hill S. third Shagah (Ire), who made €280,000 in the Orby ring last year.
“She’s off the scales physically,” Osborne said of lot 442. “She’s an absolute beauty.”
The stud will also offer lot 10, a daughter of Invincible Spirit’s successful sire son Lawman who is a three-quarter to Cable Bay (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), who was second in last year’s G1 Dewhurst S. Lot 399 is a Galileo (Ire) half to multiple Group 3 winner Yellow Rosebud (Ire) (Jeremy) and stakes winner Seeharn (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}), and lot 118 is a son of the stud’s young sire Lord Shanakill.
“He’s a strong colt by Lord Shanakill,” Osborne noted. “He doesn’t have the strongest page, but I would suggest everyone take a look at him.”
With the recent strong results at Goffs and other auction houses surely an indicator to go by, Osborne expressed optimism about the Thoroughbred industry.
“There’s exciting times ahead in the bloodstock industry,” he said. “Everywhere you look there are people investing or looking to invest. We’ve weathered a lot of storms so hopefully there are more good times ahead.”
One thing that is certain is that the Irish National Stud will continue to grace Kildare, ensuring its legacy lives on through its stallions and the graduates of its breeding course and sales consignments alike.