Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris celebrates its 150th anniversary!

 

The jumping of 23 fences over a distance of 6000 metres - covered in around seven minutes – ensures that the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris is THE superlative race. Since its inception in May 1874, this race has crowned great champions at Auteuil racecourse - the temple of French jump racing. It’s one of the few races which requires the ‘Rivière des Tribunes’ (the water jump) to be negotiated twice: a formidable obstacle with its emphasis on length rather than height– some 8 metres to be precise. Another legendary obstacle is the Rail Ditch and Fence, also known locally as the ‘Juge de Paix’ (Justice of the Peace), because it’s often at this fence, of record dimensions, that the battle is either won or lost. To be effective in this Group 1 race (the pinnacle of excellence in horse racing), an exceptional partnership between horse and rider is called for, and the affinity between the pair must be perfect. As without this blend there can be no victory!

The Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris is the final leg of the Grand Steeple-Chase Masters Series, which is now in its third season. It’s under this banner that France Galop has showcased the four main prep races - the Prix Robert de Clermont-Tonnerre (run on 24/02), the Prix Troytown (17/03), the Prix Murat (06/04) and the Prix Ingré (27/04) – which are all stepping stones to Sunday's mythical race at Auteuil. The Grand Steeple-Chase Masters Series affords owners the possibility of securing an exceptional bonus of €150,000, offered by France Galop, if a horse wins two of the above prep races plus this year’s Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris. As the four prep races produced as many different winners, the connections of this year’s Grand Steeple Chase de Paris winner are ineligible for this lucrative bonus. 

Heading towards ground which is forecast to ride from very soft to sticky

The penetrometer scale at Auteuil track measured 4.3 (sticky ground) on Wednesday. Thirteen millimetres of rain fell on Tuesday, and two further millimetres are forecast overnight on Wednesday night/in the early hours of Thursday morning. As things stand, the forecast is for less rain this weekend. The ground should rate between very soft and sticky.

A race in which women tend to do very well

Four of the last five trainers to have saddled the winner of the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris have been women! Isabelle Pacault (who set the ball rolling in 2019), Louisa Carberry (2020 and 2021) and Daniela Mele (2023), have all added their names to the roll of honour in this epic race. This year, four members of the fairer sex are afforded the opportunity of saddling the winner. Both Louisa Carberry (Gran Diose) and Daniela Mele (Youtwo Glass) will be looking to secure further success in this race. In partnership with Noel George, Amanda Zetterholm is double handed via Général en Chef and Gallipoli, whereas the daughter and father team, Camille and Philippe Peltier, will rely on Grand Oncle. The latter 

mentioned duo may be even be in with a chance of winning the race for the first time.

 

Daniela Mele after her success in the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris 2023

 

Chantilly runners out in force (Oise – 60)

Chantilly is France's largest training centre for horse racing. Managed by France Galop, it is already renowned for its flat race champions. The scenic background also features extensive facilities designed explicitly for jump horse training, located in Lamorlaye, Coye-la-Forêt, and Avilly-Saint-Léonard (pictures below). Over 400 jumpers are trained daily at the Chantilly Centre, which is growing in numbers.

 

Chantilly-trained horses will be particularly prominent at this edition of the Grand Steeple with five starters on the line: Hugo Mérienne will saddle In Love, Général en Chef and Gallipoli represent the duo formed by Noel George & Amanda Zetterholm, while David Cottin sends Jojo Lapin and Juntos Ganamos, the latter being the favourite for the race.

 

 

Gabriel Leenders eyes his first Grand Steeple ten years after setting up shop  (Jarzé – 49)

Gabriel Leenders will be having his first runners in the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris. The young trainer, based at Jarzé, in the Maine-et-Loire region, will be saddling Gold Tweet and Amy du Kiff. Born in 1987, Gabriel has followed a career pathway previously trodden by his father. As his father, Étienne, trains horses since over 50 years. Gabriel started out in racing as a gentleman rider (or amateur rider), before becoming a jump jockey, but being rather tall (1m98) meant that he wasn’t destined to pursue that vocation for very long. So he set up as a trainer almost ten years ago to the day, having learned his craft at the stables of the grand masters of the training profession such as Alain de Royer-Dupré and David Pipe. Gabriel Leenders exercises his profession on the family estate - a veritable oasis of peace and calm - spanning more than 120 hectares. He trains around 100 horses, and after just five years in the job, he had already established himself as one of the top five jumping trainers!

 Noel George and Amanda Zetterholm: a duo very much on the rise

He's British, she's Swedish, and yet it was at Avilly-Saint-Léonard, near Chantilly, that Noel George and Amanda Zetterholm decided to set up as trainers, by establishing a training partnership. That was in January 2023. The young duo have quickly forged a name for themselves among the jumping discipline's top professionals, thanks, in particular, to the phenomenal talent that is Il Est Français, who beat the British on their home patch during the winter. This horse should had been due to contest this race only to be sidelined for health reasons. Noel George and Amanda Zetterholm have both ridden in amateur races, and they will be represented by a pair of outsiders, Général en Chef and Gallipoli.

 

WHAT CONNECTIONS ARE SAYING

David Cottin – the trainer of Juntos Ganamos and Jojo Lapin – the Chantilly (Oise region) training centre

« Juntos Ganamos is the best horse I have ever trained. In any case, he's the most complete horse. He can either go to the front or get a tow into the race—irrespective of the state of the ground. He can and knows how to adapt to every situation. He doesn't have many faults.

Jojo Lapin worked really well on Tuesday morning. He’s giving all the right vibes. His second place in the Prix William et Alec Head (Gr3) was a creditable effort. Obviously, there are better horses than him in the Grand-Steeple, but if he’s ridden for a place, I don't think he'll be ridiculous. Charlotte Prichard will ride Jojo Lapin. »

Gabriel Leenders – the trainer of Gold Tweet and Amy du Kiff – Jarzé (Maine-et-Loire)

The below quotes emanate from the France Galop press conference

« I'll be having my first two runners in the Grand-Steeple this year. In 2019, I was due to saddle Bob and Co for David Maxwell, who was due to ride him. But the latter got injured in the Prix Maréchal Foch and so Bob and Co became a non-runner. Gold Tweet has had an unconventional career pathway since beginning his career in the provinces, having taken in the Cagnes-sur-Mer Meeting before heading to to Compiègne, where he won his first group race, the Prix Hopper (Gr3). His 4-y-old campaign proved difficult for him as he gave a lot of himself. After returning to action as a 5-y-old, he was very fatigued and his enthusiasm was in short supply. So we gave him a further break lasting from the spring to the autumn. We started out again, this time from scratch over hurdles, with the idea of heading to Cheltenham. The gamble paid off. Even if the Gr1 Stayers’ Hurdle later proved too tough for him. He then had a further break before returning in the autumn, and he proved inch perfect by winning the Prix Georges Courtois (Gr2). Will he stay 6,000m? His profile suggests that he will. Amy du Kiff got off to an average start. He progressed little by little. After opportunities for him dried up over hurdles, he graduated to steeple-chasing. He won his Listed race [over fences] before tackling the Group 1 Prix Maurice Gillois, mainly with the optic of having some fun with him. What Amy du Kiff and Gold Tweet have in common is that they they are both co-owned by groups of friends. The notion of racing for pleasure rather than making money predominates.

I’m in the process of studying the last 20 editions of the Grand Steeple so as to be able to build a firm ‘picture’ of the ‘Grand Steeple’ course in my mind, complete where to go during the race. I have written down on a piece of paper what I am going to ask my jockeys, and will meet up with them at midday on Sunday to remind them of the basic dos and dont’s at Auteuil. Gabin Meunier [editor’s note: the jockey Gold of Tweet] and Léo-Paul Bréchet [editor's note: the rider of Amy du Kiff,] are the two best young jump jockeys at the moment. They are very different in the way they ride and, despite their tender years, they ride without the weight of the world on their shoulders. »

Daniela Mele – The trainer of Youtwo Glass – Gavray (Upper Normandy)

The below quote emanates from the France Galop press conference

« I'm letting myself be tempted by the Grand Steeple because he woń the Prix Murat equipped with blinkers. Youtwo Glass is my own particular baby as I bred him, and as he wears my parents' colours, I'm even more stressed than last year. I've always been certain that Youtwo Glass is a very good horse, and that he would do well in the Grand Steeple. But I didn't really want to believe this as I was afraid that the horse lacked mental fortitude. He likes Pau and does everything easily. He seemed a bit fed up with Auteuil. However, the blinkers have transformed him. The horse has the required stamina and the heart and the engine of a champion. He will obviously wear blinkers in the Grand Steeple. Johnny Charron will ride him as Nicolas [editor's note: Gauffenic,] is required for In Love. Johnny has alreadỳ ridden him once at Pau and he's highly motivated. An instinctive rider, he will ride him ‘with kid gloves’ as was the case with Rosario Baron last season. »

Noel George – co-trainer of Gallipoli and Général en Chef – Chantilly (Oise region)

The below quote emanates from the France Galop press conference

« Gallipoli and Général en Chef did their final pieces of work (on the flat) on Tuesday morning and, on Wednesday, they schooled over obstacles. Everything went well. I'm very happy with my two runners. Gallipoli is getting better and better. He's still improving. We gave him the necessary time off after his last outing. He's doing very well and I'm very excited to get him back to the races. He's at the top of his game! He may not be the class horse in the race, but he's very consistent. If the others aren’t firing on all cylinders, he'll be thereabouts at the finish! If he doesn't make too much use of himself, he'll go the distance. We're going to park him behind the leading group, and he'll begin his forward move after clearing the water jump in front of the stands for a second time. I don't think Général en Chef will stage a repeat of his antics in the Prix Ingré. We'll ensure that someone will be down at the start with him. In the [Prix] Ingré, he found himself all alone in front in the warm up canter: but we won't do that again! We almost thought that the horse was a bit too well-behaved. We ensured that he was in laid-back mode, perhaps even a bit too much. He'll be with the other [horses] at the pre-race parade and that'll be fine. It was the wrong idea to ride him from the front on his reappearance race. So we decided to race him at one of the minor tracks such as Lignières, and to give him an unhurried ride. It boosted his morale no end. Then he won very easily at Auteuil. We wanted to run the [Prix] Ingré because he was at the top of his game! However, as his co-owner and breeder, Nicolas de Lageneste, reminded us, perhaps it did him good to go to Auteuil but without having a hard time of it! Since returning home, he's the one who tells us when he’s ready for his races. He’s very well and his preparation has gone perfectly. We're very happy with him. Gallipoli will be ridden by Kévin Nabet and Général en Chef will be partnered by Benjamin Gelhay.»

 

Nicolas de Lageneste – Owner-breeder of Grandeur Nature – Royan (Charente Maritime)

« His trainer has been able to do what he wanted with Grandeur Nature, and the horse is very, very well The weather forecast is an added bonus. He's cherry ripe and in top form.»

 

Louisa Carberry – the trainer of Gran Diose – Senonnes Pouancé (Mayenne)

« Gran Diose's preparation has gone very well. We've had six good weeks since his outing in the Prix Murat. The horse looks good. The [forecast] ground will suit him this weekend. It's also true that he'll have had the advantage of having previously raced over 5,500 metres, and namely the Prix La Haye Jousselin (Gr1) in testing conditions when he raced from the front. It won't be the same on Sunday. With age, he has acquired more stamina compared to his 4-y-old and 5-y-old days when he struggled to see out the 4,400 metres over fences at Auteuil. He's more mature and the jockey is also well acquainted with his mount. »

Bertrand Le Métayer – The representative of the owner of Toscana du Berlais – Royan (Charente Maritime)

« Toscana du Berlais had various options. However, he would have had to defy a penalty in the Prix des Drags (Gr2) aso it almost seemed more logical to go for the Grand Steeple.»

 

Hugo Merienne – the trainer of In Love – Chantilly (Oise region)

« The preparation of In Love has gone well. The hard part is over. We're heading to the race with no pressure. He won't be inconvenienced by the distance. Given that there will be an [anticipated] 14 runners, the pace should suit us. It's a quality field and we'll have to reckon with the some of the fancied runners running below par. He'll wear blinkers. He had a break after the [Prix] Clermont-Tonnerre and is in top form. The Grand Steeple only comes around once a year: so let's give it a shot ! »

 

François Nicolle – the trainer of La Manigance – Royan (Charente Maritime)

« La Manigance had her reappearance race over hurdles. She had an unhappy time of it at the finish and could have finished even closer. She’s in good form. She’s familiar with Auteuil. She can take a lot. The mare shouldn't be inconvenienced by the 6,000m trip. I once saddled the favourite for the Grand Steeple – only for the horse to fall at the first fence, so I know a lot can happen in this race! In principle, Angelo Zuliani will be in the plate. »

 

 

The final leg of the Grand Steeple-Chase Masters Series

The Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris is the final leg of the Grand Steeple-Chase Masters Series, which is now in its third season. It’s under this banner that France Galop has showcased the four main prep races - the Prix Robert de Clermont-Tonnerre (run on 24/02), the Prix Troytown (17/03), the Prix Murat (06/04) and the Prix Ingré (27/04) – which are all stepping stones to Sunday's mythical race at Auteuil. The Grand Steeple-Chase Masters Series affords owners the possibility of securing an exceptional bonus of €150,000, offered by France Galop, if a horse wins two of the above prep races plus this year’s Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris. As the four prep races produced as many different winners, the connections of this year’s Grand Steeple Chase de Paris winner are ineligible for this lucrative bonus.