obituary

Racing has lost another dedicated owner-breeder with the sad news that Dr. Catherine Wills has died aged 71 after a long battle with cancer. Enjoying success as a breeder in notable races across Britain, Ireland, France and the States, her runners carried the blue-and-white cross-belted colours of her famous philanthropist father Sir David Wills whose broodmares she inherited upon his death in 1999. Among them were the James Fanshawe-trained Flamboyance (Zilzal), whose visit to Dynaformer in the millennium year saw the arrival of the Christophe Clement-trained heavyweight Dynever who raced...

by Victor Correa The Brazilian Thoroughbred industry lost one of its most brilliant personalities when Samir Abujamra passed away in Soo Paulo on July 14. Abujamra, who had no family connections to the Brazilian racing industry growing up, was a lawyer by trade. He worked as a handicapper for the Jockey Club of Sao Paulo beginning in the 1960's. Later on, he became the editor of the magazine Revista Turf & Fomento. The publication became the most important magazine in horse racing in the country, covering not only Brazil, but...

Matthieu Vincent, Director of Racecourses and Training Centres at France Galop, passed away on Friday morning, the organisation announced. He was 56. "It is with deep emotion that we learned of the death of Matthieu Vincent, Director of the Racetracks and Training Centres of France Galop, who died this morning at the age of 56," France Galop announced via Twitter. "We extend our sincere condolences to his wife, children, friends and colleagues." Previously the Clerk of the Course at Lyon's training centre and racecourse for 10 years, Vincent joined France...

There's plenty going on in the world at present, including in Great Britain with the daily-changing tragi-comic farce which masquerades as domestic politics.  We're definitely not in the 'silly season' in which news editors have to look far and wide, including to the back pages, to find the front-page leads.  Within the sports' pages racing no longer holds its prime position of yesteryear, and when the Cazoo Derby is run at Epsom this Saturday, it will have to fight for its few column inches in the national press. Under the...

Juddmonte homebred Rail Link (GB) (Dansili {GB}--Docklands, by Theatrical {Ire}), who won the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in 2006, sustained a heart attack on Friday and died at Haras de Vains. He was 19. "Rail Link died on Friday [of] a heart attack," Adrien Delaroque of Haras de Vains told Jour de Gallop. "I bought him from Haras de Cercy two years ago. I was delighted to have him with me. He was an authentic champion." Raced exclusively at three, the Andre Fabre trainee broke his maiden in...

Two-time Group 1 winner Billesdon Brook (GB) (Champs Elysees {GB}-Coplow {GB}, by Manduro {Ger}) has died at the age of seven, according to published reports. The daughter of the placed Coplow is a half-sister to the listed winner Billesdon Bess (GB) (Dick Turpin {Ire}) and won the G1 QIPCO 1000 Guineas in 2018. Bred by Stowell Hill Partners and raced by Jeanette McCreery, the Richard Hannon trainee won the G3 Prestige S. at two and shocked Newmarket with a 1 3/4-length win in the Guineas at 66-1. Kept in training...

Daniel M. Smithwick, Jr., better known as "Speedy," passed away Apr. 23 in Middleburg, Va. He was 62. A former amateur steeplechase jockey, Smithwick was the son of Hall of Fame steeplechase trainer D.M. 'Mikey' Smithwick and his wife, fellow steeplechase trainer Dorothy 'Dot' Fred Smithwick. After a successful steeplechasing career of his own in the 1980s, Smithwick deviated from his parents' path and became a flat trainer along with his wife, Eva. Among their most prominent owners was Jack Kent Cooke and among their top graded winners were Ziggy's...

Longtime turf writer Ellen Parker passed away Tuesday at Baptist Health in Lexington, Kentucky. An Ohio native, she developed a love of racing at a young age. Parker was known for her pedigree analysis and also wrote a non-fiction book on the horse Round Table. She served as an editor for publications such as American Turf Monthly, California Thoroughbred, The Northern California Thoroughbred and Washington Thoroughbred. In lieu of flowers, the family has asked for donations to Old Friends or PAWS. There will be no services.

Dance Brightly (Mr. Prospector--Dance Smartly, by Danzig) died at the age of 27 in Chile, Turf Diario reported. The Sam-Son Farm homebred raced for trainer Mark Frostad and ran out a maiden special weight winner at Woodbine in October 1997. The Ontario-bred then ran second in the Listed Coronation Futurity later in his juvenile season, but was ultimately retired due to an injury suffered in a workout in 1998. A son of Canadian Horse of the Year and Canadian Triple Crown heroine Dance Smartly started his stud career at Hill...

Group 1 winner and former sire The Last Lion (Ire) (Choisir {Aus}) sustained a fatal injury in a six-furlong all-weather handicap at Kempton Park on Saturday. A winner of the Brocklesby in 2016, the bay was eight. The Last Lion enjoyed a rigorous campaign in his 2-year-old year, and after winning the Brocklesby in early April, ran second in the G2 Norfolk S. at Royal Ascot, his fourth start of the year. Successful in the Listed Dragon S. later that summer, he then reported home second in the G3 Molecomb...

Former top jockey Jimmy Lindley has died. He was 86. One of the top jockeys in the UK in the 1960s and 70s, Lindley rode three British Classic winners, as well as the 1960 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. winner Aggressor (GB) (Combat {GB}). He suffered from weight issues throughout his career, and periodically rode over National Hunt fences, as well. His best performance over jumps was running third aboard Retour De Falmme in the 1958 Champion Hurdle. In 1974 when 39, Lindley hung up his saddle and...

Harvey Warner, the Manitoba Jockey Club (MJC) Board Chair, passed away recently, according to Assiniboia Downs. He was one of the original founders of the non-profit MJC in 1993 and played a large part in rescuing Assiniboia Downs and the Manitoba racing industry from bankruptcy. He was recognized in 2020 with a special Sovereign Award in honor of his contributions to the sport. A longtime owner, Warner was also a former president of the Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA) of Manitoba. He is survived by his wife, Edie, and...