Cezanne (26 April 1989 – after 2001) was a British-bredThoroughbred racehorse. Unraced as a two-year-old he showed modest form in 1992 and 1993, winning two minor races in England. After being transferred to race in Dubai he emerged as a top-class middle-distance performer as a five-year-old, taking thesecond andthird rounds of the Al Maktoum Challenge before returning to Europe to win theMagnet Cup,Spreti-Rennen andIrish Champion Stakes. Following an unsuccessful campaign in 1996 he was retired to stud but proved to be infertile. After beinggelded he competed inNational Hunt races and won one minor race before being retired in 2001.

Cezzanne was a bay horse bred in England by theHampshire-basedMeon Valley Stud. As ayearling he was acquired bySheikh Mohammed and was sent into training withMichael Stoute atFreemason Lodge inNewmarket, Suffolk.

Cezanne was one of only 35 foals sired byAjdal, an outstanding sprinter who died at the age of four in 1988 after his first season at stud.^[2] His dam Reprocolor won theLancashire Oaks and became one of Meon Valley's foundation mares: her other descendants have includedColorspin,Izzi Top,Kayf Tara andOpera House.^[3]

On his racecourse debut, Cezanne finished fourth in amaiden race over ten furlongs atWindsor Racecourse on 11 May. Fifteen days later, in a similar event atSandown Park he recorded his first success, winning by half alength from Scrutineer.^[4] In his two subsequent races that season he finished second in a minor race atLeicester in June and then ran unplaced in ahandicap race atYork in August.

Cezanne began his second season finishing ninth in a handicap atNewbury in May and was then off the course until the autumn. In September he returned to finish sixth atDoncaster and then won a handicap atPontefract Racecourse, beating the favourite Bold Stroke by one and a half lengths.^[5] Five days later he finished second in a similar event atHaydock Park.

At the end of the year he was sent to joinSheikh Mohammed's newly establishedGodolphin racing stable in Dubai where he was trained by Hilal Ibrahim. He made a successful start to his career in Dubai, winning a minor handicap atNad Al Sheba Racecourse on 26 December.

In January 1994 continued his good form in Dubai, winning races over 2400 metres and 1800 metres. On 13 February he contested the inaugural running of the second round of the Al Maktoum Challenge over 2000 metres at Nad Al Sheba. Ridden by Gary Hind he won by a short head from his stablemate Red Bishop.^[6] In the third round of the challenge over 2400 metres twelve days later, with Hind again in the saddle, he recorded another narrow victory with Red Bishop again taking second place.^[7]

On his returen to Europe Cezanne finished fourth in a handicap at Sandown on 1 July. Eight days later at York he was assigned top weight of 138 pounds and started at odds of9/2 for the John Smith's Magnet Cup. After being restrained by Hind in the early stages he took the lead in the final furlong and won "readily" by a neck from the three-year-old Midnight Legend (winner of theKing George V Stakes).^[8] In August the horse finished second to Urgent Request when favourite for theRose of Lancaster Stakes and was then sent to Germany to contest theGroup 3 Spreti-Rennen over 2000 metres atBaden-Baden. After turning into the straight in sith place he took the lead in the closing stages and won by two lengths from Vincenzo.^[9]

Mick Kinane took over from Hind when Cezanne was stepped up in class for the Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes over ten furlongs atLeopardstown Racecourse on 10 September. He was made the 7/2 third choice in the betting behind the joint-favouritesMuhtarram and Del Deya (Pretty Polly Stakes) whilst the other five runners wereGrand Lodge,Environment Friend, Scribe (Gordon Richards Stakes), Garden of Heaven (Prix du Conseil de Paris) and Perfect Imposter (Tattersalls Gold Cup). Cezanne raced close behind the leaders and moved into second place behind Del Deya half a mile from the finish. He took the lead inside the final furlong and prevailed in a "blanket finish", winning by a neck, a short head and a neck from Del Deya, Grand Lodge and Muhtarram.^[10]

For his final run of the season Cezanne was sent to the United States for theBreeders' Cup Classic on the dirt track atChurchill Downs on 5 November and finished ninth of the fourteen runners behindConcern.

After missing the whole of the 1995 season Ceanne returned as a seven-year-old in 1996 when he was trained bySaeed bin Suroor. Racing in Dubai he contested the Al Maktoum Challenge, finishing fourth to Tamayaz in the first round on 11 February and second to the same horse in the third round on 10 March. In theDubai Duty Free (then run on dirt) seventeen days later he proved no match for the American challenger Key of Luck but came home second of the fourteen runners.^[11] On returning to Europe he ran consistently without ever looking likely to recover his 1994 form. He finished sixth in thePremio Presidente della Repubblica at Milan in May, fifth in thePrince of Wales's Stakes atRoyal Ascot in June and fourth in theSeptember Stakes atKempton in September.

Cezanne was retired from racing and the end of the 1996 season and became a breeding stallion in Ireland. Standing at the Coolagown Stud inCounty Cork he proved to be infertile and produced no recorded foals. He was gelded in September 1998.

In the late autumn of 1998 Cezanne joined the stable of Michael Roberts inSussex and embarked on a new career as aNational Hunt horse. After being beaten in his first two starts over obstacles he won aNovicehurdle race atHuntingdon Racecourse on 12 May 1999.^[12] He continued to compete in hurdle races for the next three seasons but never won again and ended his career by finishing unplaced in a handicap hurdle atWincanton in November 2001.

• Through his sire Ajdal, Cezanne wasinbred 4 × 4 to Native Dancer, mening that this stallion appears twice i the fourth generation of his pedigree.

• 1989 racehorse births
• Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom
• Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom
• Racehorses trained in the United Arab Emirates
• Thoroughbred family 13-e

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata