ENGLISH TEXTS appreciated ...
Having already won the La Barka Hurdle ( Gr2 ) at Auteuil in late spring , Jeu de Thaix struck again , this time in the Carmarthen Hurdle ( Gr3 ), and is expected to be seen in the Grand Prix d ’ Automne Hurdle ( Gr1 ) on the Butte Mortemart .
The son of Authorized , who runs in the colours of the Papot family , was bred by Michel Bourgneuf , the creator of the “ Thaix “ line , which has produced champions such as Baraka , Alaska and Dica de Thaix .
Born in Paris , Michel Bourgneuf nonetheless spent his childhood at the races . He studied agriculture in the capital before settling in the Loiret region and then , in 1969 , in the Nièvre region , not far from Cercy-la-Tour , on the former 350-hectare family estate . Quickly caught up in the AQPS fever , endemic in the region , he rose to third place in the breeders ’ rankings a few years after his first foals were born in 1992 , notably thanks to Old River ’ s Ferdinand Dufaure 4yo Chase ( Gr1 ) victory for Claude Cohen . President of the Nièvre AQPS syndicate for 19 years until 2019 , Michel Bourgneuf , with his tall stature and the proverbial softness he never loses , is one of the most important and popular figures in AQPS breeding in France .
The latest gem from his breeding operation , Jeu de Thaix , did not get off to a particularly thunderous start : “ Jeu de Thaix is out of Victoire de Thaix , a Voix du Nord mare who was trained by Laurent Viel ,“ recalls his breeder . “ She only raced over the Flat because she had an accident and we had to have screws put in her . She had the aptitude for jumping but we preferred to preserve her health . Her dam , Glorieuse de Thaix , was trained by Alphonse Kleindienst in the East and she didn ’ t have a great racing career . As a foal , Jeu de Thaix himself didn ’ t stand out from the crowd , as he wasn ’ t a big colt . His dam has now produced a colt by Nirvana du Berlais and is in foal to Karaktar .“
The breeding operation has stabilised over time with around twenty broodmares , a number that has remained fairly constant over the seasons . Only the orientation of the progeny has evolved : “ I used to sell all my male foals ,“ explains Michel Bourgneuf , “ but that has changed since Hupeca , of whom I kept 50 %. As for Jeu de Thaix , I didn ’ t intervene in the sale , his trainer Daniela Mele dealt directly with the Papot family .“
The breeder is also counting on Jonca de Thaix and Kouca de Thaix ... “ Jonca was Group-placed last year ( 2 nd in the Amadou 4yo Hurdle-Gr2 in April after two consecutive victories at Angers and then Auteuil , editor ’ s note ) but she had a health problem after her last race and should be back in competition in a few weeks . We also think very highly of Kouca de Thaix , a 5-year-old daughter of Tunis who has already won at Auteuil , and who the Peltier family have given a bit of a rest . Things aren ’ t going too badly for us this year . We are 13 th in the breeders ’ rankings , and that with a small number of runners .“
Page 87 Jeu de Thaix is now one of the very best hurdlers at Auteuil .
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ARA- BIANS
� PAGE 88 by Cécile Adonias
YAS HORSE RACING MANAGEMENT : SHEIKH MANSOUR AL NAHYAN ’ S LUCKY STAR
The Qatar Arc weekend highlighted the success of the Yas Management silks , the racing operation of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi , UAE . The Gr1 PA victories of Mutaz and Are ’ ej are part of reorganising the red , green and white silks ’ team .
The Yas Management silks were everywhere during the Qatar Prix de l ’ Arc de Triomphe weekend . The ball was opened on Friday by Mutaz , a 3-year-old colt by Munjiz , who won his third consecutive race in the Qatar Arabian Trophy des Poulains ( Gr1 PA ) at Saint-Cloud , trained by Xavier Thomas-Demeaulte and ridden by Guillaume Guedj-Gay . This was followed by Are ’ ej ’ s victory in the Qatar Arabian Trophy des Juments ( Gr1 PA ) at ParisLongchamp , again for trainer Xavier Thomas-Demeaulte , with Alexis Pouchin in the saddle and the successful weekend continued with two more victories at Toulouse the following Tuesday .
Like many racehorse owners , Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan , founder of Yas , inherited his passion for racing from his father , Sheikh
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