News

Starspangledbanner Retired to Stud

28th Oct 2010

Breednet - Coolmore Release - Thursday, 28 October 2010

The Aidan O’Brien trained son of Choisir is set to achieve the rare distinction of being crowned a champion sprinter in both Europe and Australia within a calendar year on the back of an outstanding three year old season which has seen him collect four Group Is.

Coolmore Australia General Manager commented: “Starspangledbanner was a fabulous racehorse – a champion on two continents. He had brilliant speed which he could sustain over a mile at the highest level, as we saw with his win in the Caulfield Guineas, the form of which has transpired to quite outstanding.

"It is however as a sprinter that he claimed his highest accolades and to win three Group I sprint races marks him down as a very rare beast indeed. He is a tremendous physical specimen, a horse of great quality and he heralds from a family that has become synonymous with Group I success in Australia over the years.”

Trainer Aidan O’Brien was wholesome in his praise of the Australian bred: ‘he is an incredible horse – the fastest horse that we have ever had and it was a pleasure to train a horse like him’.

Initially trained in Australia by Leon Corstens, Starspangledbanner scored the first of his Group I wins in the time honoured Caulfield Guineas over a mile in which he defeated the likes of Manhattan Rain, Denman and So You Think, in the process running the fastest final 600m recorded for that race since official sectional timing began.

Dropped back in distance for his Autumn campaign he took out the Group I Oakleigh Plate over 1100m, just like sire sensation Fastnet Rock, defeating amongst others, the top-class three year old Wanted. On the back of these efforts, he was officially recognised as the Champion Sprinter in Australia for the 2009/10 season.

It was however at the height of the British summer, under the tutelage of Aidan O’Brien, when Starspangledbanner blossomed from an Australian champion to an internationally recognised superstar. In winning Royal Ascot’s prestigious Group I Golden Jubilee Stakes over 1200m, described by the Racing Post as ‘arguably the classiest sprint ever run in Britain’, he defeated no fewer than twelve individual Group I winners in stunning fashion, making all the running to annihilate his opposition.

He followed up that win with another electric display in the Group I July Cup over 1200m, defeating a further nine individual Goup I winners, with his subsequent Timeform rating of 128 confirming him as the highest rated sprinter in Europe.

His performances certainly captured the imagination of bloodstock experts around the world, with respected bloodstock analyst Tony Morris summising; ‘the 2010 versions of Britain’s two top sprints were up the highest standards of recent years, and the latest Aussie flying machine lived up to all the accolades bestowed on him by those who watched his work at Ballydoyle’.

Kirwan concluded by saying; “He served as a tremendous ambassador for the Australian thoroughbred overseas and his performances served to reaffirm the belief that that Australian bred horses are capable of being successful at the highest level right around the world. He is certainly an incredibly exciting sire prospect and we looked forward to him returning home for the 2011 Australian breeding sesason”.

Starspangledbanner retires to stud the winner of seven races and $2.6m in prizemoney.

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