ENGLISH VERSION but it was over jumps that his first major successes came. He went on to win the Grand Prix de Pau three times, first with Jaccoud in 1982 – who beat his father’ s horse, Tiglioni, by a short head, while, as if to even things up, the result would be reversed the following year – then with Lucas in 1984 and with Jemirkhan in 1987. Philippe Boisgontier partnered all three horses, and he and Jean-Claude Rouget formed a formidable team in the south-west throughout those years. Those same years also saw the master trainer steadily grow in strength on the Flat, where his 2-year-olds were particularly effective at regional level and where local Grands Prix and Derbys piled up on his record, culminating in a first Group success in the Grand Prix des Provinces- Prix André Baboin( Gr. 3) at Bordeaux in 1991 with Flanaghan Cocktail. The first of a very long list.
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JEAN-CLAUDE ROUGET
BY EMMANUEL RIVRON
“ I’ M PROUD OF HAV- ING CLIMBED THE LADDER STEP BY STEP”
Three weeks after bringing down the curtain on his exceptional training career,
Jean-Claude Rouget told us how he is feeling now.
GALORAMA. How are you finding the first weeks of your new life?
Jean-Claude Rouget. It’ s going well, I’ m coping rather nicely. I was very touched by all the ceremonies that followed my retirement: from Longchamp to Toulouse, by way of La Teste and others too.
G. What are you proudest of in your training career?
J.-C. R. I’ m proud of having started out with moderate, even very weak horses, and of having climbed the ladder step by step. But it took a long time, believe me! I set up on my own at 24, from a modest background. My father trained at Senonnes but came to Pau every winter, which is why I chose to set up there. That’ s when I started buying my first horses.
G. What do you enjoy most about buying a yearling or a foal?
J.-C. R. I don’ t really know, to be honest( laughs). What I do know is that I wasn’ t sent horses by owners back then, so I didn’ t have much choice. I didn’ t have much money and there wasn’ t much room for error. I bought my first colt at La Teste in 1979 for around 20,000 francs. He was a very good horse called Hot Streets( winner of 23 races, 18 of them when trained by Jean-Claude Rouget, Ed.).
G. What criteria do you take into account when buying?
J.-C. R. Conformation and expression are important criteria at the time of purchase, as is the action, of course. Once the colt or filly joins the string, it’ s very important not to use up all their ammunition at two and to build them up gradually.
G. You used to pore over the race programme to plan that build-up, didn’ t you?
J.-C. R. Back then, the programme didn’ t change every year. Once I had it in my head, it stayed in my head. Today it’ s dreadful. It changes all the time, without taking into account the history and the past of racing.
G. Sport has been a constant throughout your career. What did you do?
J.-C. R. I did a lot of middle-distance running from the age of 15. When I got a bit heavy, I took up cycling. It wasn’ t easy, because cycling is very physical and dangerous when you ride on the road. I remember doing a 136-kilometre ride to get to my friend Mathieu Daguzan’ s stud. It was quite a challenge, with lots of climbs! There were a few similarities between that kind of athletic training and preparing horses.
G. François Nicolle can’ t wait for you to send him some more NH horses, as your purchases have apparently been successful …
J.-C. R. To be honest, I have sent him good horses for NH racing. As far as purchases go, I’ ve been less lucky. A Mi Manera is the only good mare I’ ve bought for him. But
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