[QUOTE=Linny;4422324]
Does anyone know if STS is the only Arc winner produced by (not sired by) and Arc winner?[/QUOTE]
Amazingly enough it has happened before. The 1994 winner Carnegie was out of the 1980 winner Detroit. Amazing because as far as I can tell only three sires have managed to win the race and go on to sire winners themselves, and sires get a whole lot more chances to throw up a winner than dams do.
The Guardian (UK) advocates he run in the Breeders’ Cup
There are risks involved with getting any racehorse to the other side of America, even one with an easy-going attitude. There are risks too every time a horse runs at racing speed, surrounded by others doing the same. A switch from the European autumn to the heat of Santa Anita is another fresh obstacle to overcome.
These risks are all relatively slim, but when a horse has won six Group Ones on the trot, why take any chances at all? It is an argument that may well carry the day.
But the answer, as with most things in racing and life in general is that a risk is worth taking if the possible reward is sufficient. And the potential reward in the Classic is almost beyond calculation. It is not merely prize-money, though five million bucks is five million bucks. In terms of Sea The Stars’ value as a stallion, the Classic is a shot to nothing, a race that can only increase his desirability to breeders. They have four weeks to rehearse the reasons why he may be beaten, and perhaps 20 years after that to remind everyone about his crowning moment should he win.
Denied is the claim of insurance derailing any Breeders’ Cup trip:
SportingLife 10-7-09 “Costs No Factor in Sea The Stars Plan”
It had been claimed the rising value of the brilliant Arc winner meant he would not head to Santa Anita because no-one would underwrite the risk of travelling the horse to America and back.
However John Clarke, racing manager to the owners, the Tsui family, told sportinglife.com: "John Oxx will decide if Sea The Stars runs in the Breeders’ Cup Classic after seeing how the horse is and how he comes out of the Arc. The insurance costs aren’t a factor.
“I can say with 100 per cent certainty that one person - and one person alone - will decide if Sea The Stars runs at Santa Anita and that is John.”
“I can say with 100 per cent certainty that one person - and one person alone - will decide if Sea The Stars runs at Santa Anita and that is John.”
Then I’d say he won’t run. Any chance of him going to SA would lie with young Tsui’s enthusiasm and adventure. Oxx is old school.
[QUOTE=Drvmb1ggl3;4421436]
Oxx is in the running for Irish sports personality of the year. Though I think STS might win the award ahead of his trainer![/QUOTE]
Well, it looks like that may happen. Bookmakers, Paddy Power have installed STS as 2nd favourite to win the RTE Sports Personality of the Year award, behind Ireland/Leinster Rugby capt Brian O’Driscoll.
http://www.rte.ie/sport/2009/1006/paddypower_isp_seathestars.html
There’s some question as to whether as a Horse he can actually be in the competition.
Whilst it remains to be seen if competition rules will allow RTÉ to enter the horse for their annual award it would appear that such is the popularity of arguably the greatest horse ever seen that there may be a backlash from its thousands of supporters if they restrict the competition to two legged entrants only.
Jump jockey Ruby Walsh is also in the running after a bumper season with some plum rides at the Cheltenham festival.
The odds.
RTE Irish Sports Personality of the Year
1/4 Brian O’Driscoll
11/4 Sea The Stars
16/1 Brian Cody
20/1 Olive Loughnane
28/1 Ruby Walsh
33/1 Tommy Walsh
33/1 Katie Taylor
50/1 Robbie Keane
80/1 Bar
What is more odd:
a horse becoming Sports Personality of the Year,
or wagering on it?
STS has been retired.
From RTE.
Oxx confirms Stars’ retirement
Tuesday, 13 October 2009 13:31
John Oxx’s multiple Group 1 winner Sea The Stars has been retired to stud.
The brilliant colt will not be afforded the opportunity to shine at next month’s Breeders’ Cup meeting in California after Oxx confirmed this afternoon to RTÉ Sport that the all-conquering colt had run his last race.
The handler had hinted that a trip to Santa Anita for the Breeders’ Cup Classic on 7 November was unlikely after an arduous season.
The son of Cape Cross has proven unbeatable this year over trips ranging from a mile to a mile-and-a-half.
His six-race Group 1 haul kicked off with victory in the Stan James 2000 Guineas at the start of May.
It culminated in an emphatic victory in the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp earlier this month, where Sea The Stars emulated his mother, Urban Sea, in claiming Europe’s most prestigious middle-distance race.
That gave way to an outpouring of public emotion and resulted in scenes rarely witnessed at a Flat meeting.
Along the way, the three-year-old took in the Epsom Derby, the Eclipse, the International and the Irish Champion Stakes to secure his place in the pantheon of racing greats.
The three-year-old lost just one of his nine races during his two years on the track - in which he amassed nearly £4.5million (~$7m) in prize money - and that was his racecourse debut at the Curragh where he finished a close-up fourth.
Whoa. I didn’t see that coming from the other side of the pond.
It made our papers too: Sea the Stars out of Breeders’ Cup, retired
from the Thoroughbred Times:
Sea The Stars will not compete in the Breeders’ Cup World Championships, and he has been retired.
Stud plans have not been announced for the three-year-old Cape Cross (Ire) colt, who matched his dam, Urban Sea, by Miswaki, by winning the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (Fr-G1) on October 4.
…“We feel it is unfair to keep him going any further given his unprecedented record of achievement in the last six months,” [trainer John] Oxx said in a statement.
Wonder how much he’s been sold for? And to whom?
Wow. Blind-sided by that!
I’m surprised y’all are surprised. It’s been pretty much a cert since Aug/sep that he wouldn’t race as a 4yo. The only question was whether he would go to the BC, but that was always only an outside chance if he were to win the Arc.
As far as i know he hasn’t been sold. The Tsui’s retaining ownership and standing him at the Irish National Stud seems to be the most likely option right now. But that could change if Shiek Mo offers the sun, the moon and the stars. The dark horse might be Shadai Stallion Station in Japan.
God, I do not want to see this horse go to Shadai. If he doesn’t make it at stud in Japan, he’ll be sushi.
Not all are quite as smitten or at least want to put the raving into perspective. Sounds like things are just the same over there as they are on this side of the pond 
The Guardian Oct 13, 2009 “Sea The Stars: Was he really the greatest racehorse of all-time?”
excerpt
As racing professionals rushed to praise Sea The Stars today, following news of his retirement, a rare note of scepticism was struck by Joe Mercer, a former champion jockey best remembered for his association with Brigadier Gerard in the early 1970s. Mercer said Sea The Stars, though impressive, was still not among the best three racehorses he had seen and cautioned against the effects of being swept up by momentary hype.
“I remember when Galileo won the King George [in 2001], they were raving about him being the best they’d ever seen,” Mercer said. "You can’t have a best horse you’ve ever seen every other year.
"I’ve always said Ribot was the best horse I’ve seen. Sea-Bird would be second and then the horse I rode, Brigadier Gerard. Sea The Stars has won six Group Ones, Brigadier Gerard won 13 and there isn’t a horse that’s got past him yet.
“You can’t fault Sea The Stars – he’s exceptional, he’s got a fantastic temperament and fantastic looks. If he was a film star, he’d be top of the ranks. But half the people who are saying he’s the best they’ve ever seen aren’t old enough to have seen the best horses. I’m going back to the 1950s with Ribot.”
A former chairman of Timeform, McGrath feels that ratings are most useful in identifying an “upper echelon” of horses. "Beyond that, as to which of them is best, it’s a question of personal choice and you believe what you want to believe.
"We know for a fact that if we mix a pot of blue paint with a pot of yellow, we’ll definitely get green. Over a matter like this, it’s different.
“I couldn’t put my hand on my heart and say he’s better than Mill Reef and Brigadier Gerard. He’s set a wonderful standard and he’s a fantastic racehorse but I don’t think he’s quite done enough.”
Must say I didn’t see this one coming.
After weeks of speculation in which Sheik Mo was considered a hot fav, and the Irish National Stud also thought to be likely, it’s just been announced that Sea the Stars will stand at the Aga Khan’s Giltown Stud in Kildare. The Tsui’s will retain full ownership.
Also announced, among STS’s first book will be the Aga Khan’s Zarkava… no pressure on that foal!
Article from the RP…
Stud fee is €85k (~$125k)
AFTER weeks of speculation, the Tsui family have announced that Sea The Stars will stand at the Aga Khan’s Gilltown Stud in County Kildare.
The brilliant son of Cape Cross will stand his first season at a fee of €85,000 and is likely to cover a first book of approximately 120 mares.
Ling Tsui, mother of Christopher Tsui in whose colours the three-year-old colt raced, said: “His Highness was kind enough to let us stand Sea The Stars at Gilltown while keeping ownership of him and we are most grateful. The staff and facilities at Gilltown are top class and Sea The Stars will enjoy his stay there.”
His Highness the Aga Khan, who stands Dalakhani and Azamour at Gilltown, said: "Mrs Tsui and Christopher’s decision to entrust the future career at stud of Sea The Stars to Gilltown Stud farm brings to everyone at the Aga Khan Studs, as well as to me personally, the greatest happiness. Mrs Tsui and Christopher’s decision is certainly one of the most important developments for my operation since I inherited it in 1960.
“This horse could also help develop relations to bring Chinese investment into the European bloodstock market.”
The Aga Khan also announced that last year’s Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe heroine Zarkava would be among Sea The Stars first book of mares, saying: "In keeping with the motto of the Aga Khan Studs ‘success breeds success’ I look forward to the earliest opportunity to send my unbeaten champion Zarkava to Sea The Stars.
“I believe the last two Arc winners were made for each other both in terms of ability, temperament and conformation. The best needs to be bred to the best.”
Yeah, I am very excited about the news that Sea The Stars will be covering Zarkava. Look forward to seeing their offspring!
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