July 12, 2018 - Leopardstown, Race 1, Msw, EUR €17,500, 7.0F
1st Dam: Cherry Hinton (GB)
2st Dam: Urban Sea
2st Dam: Allegretta (GB)
Owner: Susan Magnier & John G Sikura
Breeder: Orpendale & Chelston (KY)
Trainer: Aidan O'Brien
Desperately unlucky when ninth on her racecourse bow at The Curragh June 29, Goddess who is part-owned by Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms founder John G. Sikura was sent straight to the front by Seamie Heffernan to avoid a repeat of her unfortunate debut. Opening up in impressive style straightening for home, the 1-2 favourite galloped out strongly despite running green to score by 10 lengths from Munees Gemini (Ire) (Australia {GB}). Seamie Heffernan was notably full of praise afterwards. “She should have won at the Curragh,†he said. “It was a typical Irish race, they were all boxed watching one another. I just let her jump and stride along today. I’m not sure how good a race it was, but she’s way better than average. I’d say she’s better than September (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}).â€
Goddess looks to have a bright future with normal development, as her full-sister Athena (Ire) had not run at this stage last year and took seven outings to break her maiden. Now that she is in full stride, she has finished third in the G1 Pretty Polly S. before shipping to the States to land the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational with authority in the space of a week. Alongside Athena (Ire), GISW-US, G1SP-Ire & SP-Eng, $608,749, Goddess counts among her other siblings the stable’s 2014 G1 Irish Oaks and G2 Ribblesdale S. heroine Bracelet (Ire), G1SW-Ire & GSW-Eng, $549,707 and the G2 Rockfel S. winner Wading (Ire), both by Camelot’s sire Montjeu (Ire). The latter is now responsible for fellow TDN Rising Star and stablemate Just Wonderful (Dansili {GB}), who too looks up to playing a hand in next year’s Classics on the limited evidence so far. Cherry Hinton, a daughter of Urban Sea (Miswaki), was runner-up in the 2007 G3 Blue Wind S. before running fifth in the G1 Epsom Oaks. She was just one of Ballydoyle’s clutch of notable progeny out of that legendary matriarch with Galileo (Ire), Black Sam Bellamy (Ire) and All Too Beautiful (Ire) a trio by Sadler’s Wells who made their mark with varying gravity. This is also the family of this year’s G1 Epsom Derby hero Masar (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}), with Cherry Hinton’s Oaks-placed half-sister Melikah (Ire) (Lammtarra) the third dam of Godolphin’s new sensation. Cherry Hinton also has a filly foal by American Pharoah.
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