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8.
King’s Chapel A Star
For King Of King’s
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01/02/2003 |
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Although
his oldest Australian progeny are only halfway through their three-year old
season the 1998 English 2000 Guineas winner King Of Kings was still searching
for his first southern hemisphere stakes winner. He needed a headline horse and
he may just have it in the undefeated New Zealand-trained two-year old colt
King’s Chapel.
A handsome, well gown chestnut colt, King’s Chapel became the first southern
hemisphere stakes winner for King Of Kings when winning his third successive
race in the Listed $500,000 Mercedes Super Bonus Classique (1200m) at Te Rapa
yesterday.
Although several runners could have been described as unlucky in the race
restricted to two-year olds sold at the New Zealand Bloodstock Premier sale last
year, nothing can be taken away from King’s Chapel who was brave in his all
the way win.
Ridden Opie Bosson for trainer Mark Walker and owned by a syndicate headed by
David Ellis, King’s Chapel defeated a pair of Volkraad filly’s, Shadowfax
Babe and Eftee One, in the richest juvenile race run in New Zealand.
A $35,000 purchase Lower Chapel is the second foal of the imported Sharpo mare
Lower Chapel (GB). Although she never saw a racetrack Lower Chapel (GB) has an
appealing pedigree being a sister to dual Group 3 winner Leap For Joy and a
three-quarter sister to the flying College Chapel winner of 5 races between 6-7
furlongs including the Prix Maurice de Gheest (Gr2), Tetrarch S. (G3),
Greenlands S. (G3) (twice), Cork and Orrery S. (G3) and also second in July Cup
(G1), and third in the Nunthorpe Stakes (G1).
College Chapel stood for four seasons at stud in New Zealand as well as spending
time in Ireland, Italy and England.
Although King’s Chapel is the first southern hemisphere stakes winner for King
Of Kings he is not the first stakes winner for the son of Sadler’s Wells. That
honour belongs to his first northern hemisphere crop two-year old filly
Geminiani (King Of Kings-Tadkiyra by Darshaan), which scored a 1 ¼-lengths win
in the Group 3 Prestige Stakes at Goodwood last year.
Coincidently, Geminiani defeated Mail The Desert who went on to become the first
northern hemisphere Group 1 winner for Woodlands Stud’s Desert Prince, which
also sired his first southern hemisphere stakes winner when Syrinx took out the
Group 2 Breeders’ Stakes at Morphetville yesterday.
By: Mark Smith
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