| Montjeu | |
|---|---|
 Montjeu at the 1999Japan Cup | |
| Sire | Sadler's Wells |
| Grandsire | Northern Dancer |
| Dam | Floripedes |
| Damsire | Top Ville |
| Sex | Stallion |
| Foaled | 1996 |
| Country | Ireland |
| Colour | Bay |
| Breeder | Sir James Goldsmith |
| Owner | Laure Boulay de la Meurthe Michael Tabor |
| Trainer | John E. Hammond |
| Record | 16: 11-2-0 |
| Earnings | $2,062,822 |
| Major wins | |
| Prix du Jockey Club (1999) Irish Derby (1999) Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (1999) Tattersalls Gold Cup (2000) Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud (2000) K. George VI & Q. Elizabeth Stakes (2000) | |
| Awards | |
| European Champion 3-Yr-Old Colt (1999) #1 – International Classification for 3-Yr-Olds (1999) Timeform rating: 137 Leading sire in France (2005) | |
| Last updated on 12 September 2022 | |
Montjeu (4 April 1996 – 29 March 2012) was an Irish-bred, French-trainedthoroughbred horse racing racehorse andsire. In a racing career which lasted from September 1998 to November 2000, he ran sixteen times and won eleven races, including six at Group 1. After winning twice as a juvenile, he was the outstanding European racehorse of 1999, winning thePrix du Jockey Club, theIrish Derby and thePrix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Four more victories in 2000 included theKing George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. He was then retired to stud where he proved to be an outstanding sire of winners.
He died on 29 March 2012 at age 16 at Coolmore Stud from complications related tosepsis.[1][2]
Montjeu, a bay horse standing 16.1hands high,[3] was bred in Ireland bySir James Goldsmith, who named him after hischateau outsideAutun in France.[4] Goldsmith died in 1997 before the colt began racing, and his ownership went to aholding company (Tsega Ltd) owned by Laure Boulay de la Meurthe, mother of two of Goldsmith's children. Montjeu was sired by the thirteen timesBritish Champion SireSadler's Wells out of thePrix de Lutèce winner Floripedes. The colt was sent into training withJohn E. Hammond at Chantilly.
Montjeu ran twice as a two-year-old in the autumn of 1998. On his racecourse debut he appeared in the Prix de la Maniguette over 1600 m at Chantilly and won "easily" from nine opponents.[5] A month later, he was moved up toListed class and won the Prix Isonomy by three quarters of a length from Spadoun. Montjeu's form was boosted two weeks later when Spadoun won the Group OneCritérium de Saint-Cloud. At the end of the year, a half-share in Montjeu was sold to theCoolmore organization, represented byMichael Tabor and Susan Magnier.[4]
Montjeu began his three-year-old season by starting joint-favourite with the Aga Khan's coltSendawar in the Group TwoPrix Greffulhe over 2100 m atLongchamp in April. Ridden byCash Asmussen, he was restrained in the early stages before finishing strongly to overtake Sendawar 50 m from the finish and win by a length. Sendawar went on to win thePoule d'Essai des Poulains theSt. James's Palace Stakes and thePrix du Moulin de Longchamp before the end of the season. On his next start Montjeu was made 1/10 favourite for thePrix Lupin, but was beaten a length by Gracioso after hanging to the right in the closing stages of a slowly run race.[6]
Despite his defeat, Montjeu was made 7/5 favourite for thePrix du Jockey Club at Chantilly on 6 June. Asmussen held the colt up at the rear of the field before making his challenge in the straight. He took the lead 400 m from the finish and drew away from his opponents to win by four lengths from Nowhere To Exit, with Gracioso finishing nine lengths further back in sixth. Three weeks later, Montjeu was sent to theCurragh for theIrish Derby where his main rivals appeared to be the English-trained colts Daliapour and Beat All who had finished second and third respectively inThe Derby. As at Chantilly, Montjeu was held up in the early running before moving smoothly through to dispute the lead in the straight. He took the lead a furlong from the finish and pulled clear to win by five lengths from Daliapour in "impressive" style.[7] After the race, Asmussen claimed that he had "five kilos in hand".[8]
Montjeu was then given a planned break of more than two months before returning in thePrix Niel at Longchamp. Ridden for the first time byMick Kinane, he was last of the four runners entering the straight but moved forward to take the lead in the closing stages and won "cleverly"[9] by a head from Bienamado. In thePrix de l'Arc de Triomphe three weeks later, Montjeu started 6/4 favourite in a field of fourteen runners on unusually heavy ground. Kinane positioned Montjeu much closer to the lead on this occasion and he turned into the straight in fifth place before being switched to the outside. By this time however, the Japanese challengerEl Condor Pasa had opened up a three-length lead, and Montjeu had to be driven out to catch him. Montjeu overtook El Condor Pasa 100 m from the finish and won by half a length, with a further six lengths back toCroco Rouge in third. The unplaced runners includedDaylami andFantastic Light.[10] Immediately after the race, Kinane described Montjeu as "the best mile-and-a-half horse I have ever sat on."[11] On his final start of the season, Montjeu started favourite for theJapan Cup on 28 November, but finished fourth behindSpecial Week,Indigenous andHigh-Rise.
Montjeu stayed in training as a four-year-old and won his first four races. He began his season by moving down in distance to ten furlongs to win theTattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh by one and a half lengths from Greek Dance. On 2 July he won theGrand Prix de Saint-Cloud by five lengths from Daring Miss and the 1998 Arc de Triomphe winner Sagamix. Four weeks later he ran in Great Britain for the first time in his career when he contested theKing George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes atAscot. Montjeu showed signs of temperament in the preliminaries, as he refused to enter the paddock, but was never in danger in the race itself. Starting at odds of 1/3 he "cruised"[12] into the lead in the straight and won very easily by one and three-quarter lengths from Fantastic Light.Brough Scott, of theDaily Telegraph described the performance as "devastating" and compared Montjeu to past champions such asRibot,Nijinsky,Mill Reef andShergar.[13]
Montjeu won thePrix Foy at odds of 1/10 and was then made odds-on favourite to win his second "Arc" in October. He failed to reproduce his best form however, and finished fourth toSinndar. He returned to Britain two weeks later for theChampion Stakes and again started favourite, but was beaten half a length byKalanisi. On his final racecourse appearance three weeks later he finished seventh behind Kalanisi in theBreeders' Cup Turf.
At the end of 1999, Montjeu was voted that year'sCartier Three-Year-Old European Champion Colt andWorld Champion. Montjeu was given an official rating of 135 by the International Classification, making him the highest rated three-year-old of the season, although some, including theRacing Post, felt that the rating underestimated his achievements.[14]Timeform concurred, giving him a mark of 137 in 1999.[15]
Montjeu was known for his idiosyncratic temperament: Kinane explained that the horse had "a few issues", while Hammond called him "an eccentric genius".[16]
In 2001, Montjeu was retired toCoolmore Stud inCounty Tipperary, Ireland. He was one of the top sires in the world and produced several noted champions, including four winners of theEpsom Derby – Motivator, Authorized, Pour Moi, and Camelot.
As of 29 March 2012, he had produced 35 individual Group 1 winners and the winners of over £14m.[17]
| Sire Sadler's Wells b. 1981 | Northern Dancer b. 1961 | Nearctic | Nearco |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lady Angela | |||
| Natalma | Native Dancer | ||
| Almahmoud | |||
| Fairy Bridge b. 1975 | Bold Reason | Hail to Reason | |
| Lalun | |||
| Special | Forli | ||
| Thong | |||
| Dam Floripedes b. 1985 | Top Ville b. 1976 | High Top | Derring-Do |
| Camanae | |||
| Sega Ville | Charlottesville | ||
| La Sega | |||
| Toute Cy b. 1979 | Tennyson | Val de Loir | |
| Tidra | |||
| Adele Toumignon | Zeddaan | ||
| Alvorada (Family 1-u) |