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| |  Thursday, 30 May, 2002, 11:17 GMT 12:17 UK Galileo: One year on Winning run: Galileo goes clear of the 2001 Derby field
Twelve months ago, he was being hailed as racing's new superstar. Now, a year after his convincing victory in the Epsom Derby, Galileo is enjoying a retirement, of sorts. The colt, now aged four, has embarked on what is already a successful stud career. In layman's terms, owners are asked to spend 63,000 Euros (�39,000) a time for their mares to have sex with him.
In truth, sex is rarely mentioned in the carefully-crafted wording of the breeding world. Instead, female horses are said to have been "covered" after "visiting" stallions who "stand" at stud. The hope is their offspring will provide the champions of the future. Whatever way you word it, Galileo looks set to prove a star in "retirement." Galileo stands at the Coolmore Stud in County Tipperary in the Republic of Ireland. And a Coolmore spokesman told BBC Sport Online: "He's been very successful, and he's a very fertile horse." Such news is welcome for the stud, who lost champion sprinter Mozart in May 2002. The four-year-old July Cup winner, who was standing his first season, died from a non-responsive acute colitis. Galileo began his new career in February and in his five-month stint in Ireland, is expected to have been visited by more than 125 mares.
He is then due to be sent to Coolmore's Australian operation in September for three months of duties Down Under. After a Christmas break, and all being well, Galileo will be back at work in Ireland next February. Health permitting, this could continue for several years, as with his sire Sadlers Wells. "He gets exercise every morning, and there's no real hassle or stress," said the spokesman. Galileo was born out of a partnership between leading stallion Sadlers Wells and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner Urban Sea. Although Sadlers Wells has now broken all records by producing more than 50 Group One winners, Galileo was his first Epsom Derby hero.
After Epsom, the colt went on to win the Irish Derby and the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes at Ascot. In the Ascot race, he saw off the challenge of older rival Fantastic Light in a thrilling finish. Galileo narrowly lost a rematch against Fantastic Light in Ireland, and was retired after finishing down the field in the Breeders' Cup Classic in America in October. The sand surface was blamed for that defeat in New York, and owners do not appear to have been put off by the loss. "They took on everybody with Galileo and didn't hide in any corner," said the Cooolmore spokesman. "He gave his all, and that's the key to these horses - that's why breeders want them." | |
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