Prix Minerve

Group 3 race
Prix Minerve

Location	Deauville Racecourse Deauville, France
Inaugurated	1925
Race type	Flat / Thoroughbred
Website	france-galop.com
Race information
Distance	2,500 metres (1m 4½f)
Track	Turf, right-handed
Qualification	Three-year-old fillies exc. G1 winners this year
Weight	55 kg Penalties 3 kg for Group 2 winners * 2 kg for Group 3 winners * * since January 1
Purse	€80,000 (2011) 1st: €40,000

The Prix Minerve is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 2,500 metres (about 1 mile and 4½ furlongs), and it is scheduled to take place each year in August.

Contents 1 History 2 Records 3 Winners since 1979 4 Earlier winners 5 See also 6 References

History

The event is named after Minerva, the Roman goddess of crafts and wisdom. It was established in 1925, and it was originally called the Prix de Minerve. It was initially staged at Le Tremblay with a distance of 2,000 metres.

The race was abandoned in 1940, and for a period thereafter it was contested over 2,100 metres at Maisons-Laffitte (1941–43) and Auteuil (1944). It returned to Le Tremblay in 1945, and its former distance was restored in 1946. It was held at Longchamp from 1948 to 1950, and on the last two occasions it was run over 2,100 metres.

Le Tremblay closed in 1967, and the Prix de Minerve began a five-year spell at Chantilly the following year. It was transferred to Évry in 1973, and extended to 2,400 metres in 1976. The present version of its title, without the "de", was introduced in 1987.

The Prix Minerve took place at Saint-Cloud in 1993, and for the next three years it continued at Évry. It moved to Deauville in 1997, and at this point it was increased to 2,500 metres. The race was sponsored by Shadwell from 2005 to 2010.

Records

Leading jockey (7 wins):

• Yves Saint-Martin – Red Flame (1963), Flaming Heart (1966), Paulista (1974), Acoma (1976), Rajpoura (1983), Sharaniya (1986), Daralinsha (1987)

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Leading trainer (9 wins):

• André Fabre – Colorado Dancer (1989), Wajd (1990), Bright Moon (1993), Isle de France (1998), Prairie Runner (1999), Oiseau Rare (2005), Synopsis (2007), Kalla (2009), Announce (2010)

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Leading owner (9 wins):

• HH Aga Khan IV – Flaming Heart (1966), Rajpoura (1983), Sharaniya (1986), Daralinsha (1987), Linnga (1992), Sharamana (1994), Kassana (1997), Oiseau Rare (2005), Shareta (2011)

Winners since 1979

Year	Winner	Jockey	Trainer	Owner	Time
1979	Anifa	Henri Samani	Mitri Saliba	Mahmoud Fustok
1980	Great Verdict	Henri Samani	Georges Bridgland	Mrs Paul L. Hexter
1981	Anitra's Dance	Freddy Head	Alec Head	Jacques Wertheimer
1982	Perlee	Alfred Gibert	Mitri Saliba	Mahmoud Fustok
1983	Rajpoura	Yves Saint-Martin	Alain de Royer-Dupré	HH Aga Khan IV	2:32.00
1984	Lady Tamara	Henri Samani	Jean-Marie Béguigné	N. A. Souter	2:33.60
1985	Gamberta	Guy Guignard	Georges Mikhalidès	Ibrahim Moubarak	2:32.60
1986	Sharaniya	Yves Saint-Martin	Alain de Royer-Dupré	HH Aga Khan IV	2:32.90
1987	Daralinsha	Yves Saint-Martin	Alain de Royer-Dupré	HH Aga Khan IV	2:33.43
1988	Mystery Rays	Freddy Head	François Boutin	Stavros Niarchos	2:28.83
1989	Colorado Dancer	Cash Asmussen	André Fabre	Sheikh Mohammed	2:29.95
1990	Wajd	Cash Asmussen	André Fabre	Sheikh Mohammed	2:27.46
1991	Lady Blessington	Dominique Boeuf	J. M. de Choubersky	Jeffrey Siegel	2:32.92
1992	Linnga	Guy Guignard	Alain de Royer-Dupré	HH Aga Khan IV	2:30.72
1993	Bright Moon	Thierry Jarnet	André Fabre	Daniel Wildenstein	2:35.60
1994	Sharamana	Gérald Mossé	Alain de Royer-Dupré	HH Aga Khan IV	2:47.29
1995	Danefair	Guy Guignard	Maurice Zilber	Khalid Abdullah	2:40.73
1996	L'Annee Folle	Thierry Gillet	François Doumen	Michael Somerset-Leeke	2:28.42
1997	Kassana	Gérald Mossé	Alain de Royer-Dupré	HH Aga Khan IV	2:38.90
1998	Isle de France	Alain Junk	André Fabre	Michael Tabor	2:42.90
1999	Prairie Runner	Olivier Peslier	André Fabre	Daniel Wildenstein	2:42.00
2000	Folie Danse	Davy Bonilla	Yves de Nicolay	Christian Thulliez	2:46.50
2001	Lime Gardens	Eddie Ahern	Michael Grassick	Jim Higgins	2:46.40
2002	Tigertail	Thierry Gillet	Rod Collet	Georges Coude	2:42.60
2003	Whortleberry	Thierry Jarnet	François Rohaut	Jacques Berès	2:43.20
2004	Silverskaya	Ioritz Mendizabal	Jean-Claude Rouget	Earl Champ Gignoux	2:55.90
2005	Oiseau Rare	Christophe Soumillon	André Fabre	HH Aga Khan IV	2:50.60
2006	Maroussies Wings	Olivier Peslier	Patrick Haslam	Renata Jacobs	2:50.00
2007	Synopsis	Stéphane Pasquier	André Fabre	Sheikh Mohammed	2:41.40
2008	Dar Re Mi	Olivier Peslier	John Gosden	Lord Lloyd-Webber	2:50.20
2009	Kalla	Maxime Guyon	André Fabre	Karin von Ullmann	2:43.30
2010	Announce	Maxime Guyon	André Fabre	Khalid Abdullah	2:46.80
2011	Shareta	Christophe Lemaire	Alain de Royer-Dupré	HH Aga Khan IV	2:41.73

Earlier winners

* The 1926 and 1932 races were dead-heats and have joint winners.

See also

• List of French flat horse races
• Recurring sporting events established in 1925 – this race is included under its original title, Prix de Minerve.

References

• France Galop / Racing Post:
  • 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988
  • 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998
  • 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
  • 2009, 2010, 2011

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• france-galop.com – A Brief History: Prix Minerve.
• galop.courses-france.com – Prix Minerve – Palmarès depuis 1983.
• galopp-sieger.de – Prix Minerve.
• horseracingintfed.com – International Federation of Horseracing Authorities – Prix Minerve (2011).
• pedigreequery.com – Prix Minerve – Deauville.