In 2009, Sea The Stars (Cape Cross) won the Gr1 Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in impressive fashion.
Despite racing keen early on and appearing boxed in, the bay surged to his sixth Group One win when landing the 2009 Arc by two lengths.
This Sunday, Sea The Stars, this time as a sire and grandsire, will once again look to make his mark on the Prix de l’ Arc de Triomphe.
The once beaten champion, whose legendary dam Urban Sea (Miswaki) won the Arc in 1993, has enjoyed plenty of success as a sire, with Sea The Stars having produced more than 130 stakes winners thus far, of which 22 are Grade/Group One winners.
However, Sea The Stars is yet to produce an Arc winner – his half-brother Galileo having already supplied two Arc winners namely Found and Waldgeist.
Sea The Stars’ daughter Sea Of Class appeared an unlucky loser of the 2018 Arc when storming home to finish a close second to Enable (Nathaniel), while Sea The Stars’ son Cloth Of Stars ran second to Enable in the 2017 Arc before finishing third, behind Enable and Sea Of Class, the following year.
Sea The Stars could well make his presence felt in Sunday’s renewal. His top-class three-year-old son Sosie ranks as a leading contender for the Arc, having won both the Gr1 Grand Prix De Paris and Gr2 Prix Niel this season.
Other potential Arc runners for Sea The Stars this year include Emily Upjohn, Internaute, and Aventure.
Sea The Stars could also make his mark through his sire son Sea The Moon, with the once beaten Gr1 Deutsches Derby winner sire of 2024 Arc hopeful Fantastic Moon. Winner of the 2023 Gr1 Deutsches Derby and Gr2 Prix Niel, Fantastic Moon captured the Gr1 Grosser Preis Von Baden last time out to take his tally of wins to seven.
Sea The Stars’ half-brother Galileo could add further prestige to their dam Urban Sea’s remarkable record on Sunday, with the late Coolmore legend grandsire or broodmare sire of probable Arc contenders Al Riffa (out of the Galileo mare Love On My Mind), Shin Emperor (out of the Galileo mare Starlet’s Sister), Delius (by Galileo’s son Frankel), and Continuous (out of the Galileo mare Fluff).
Sunday could be another memorable day for Sea The Stars, with the champion son of Cape Cross represented in a number of Group One races at ParisLongchamp on the day.
It has been another wonderful year for Sea The Stars in 2024, whose flagbearers this year include the aforementioned Sosie, as well as such group/graded stakes winners as Al Aasy (Gr3 Coral Glorious Stakes, Gr3 BetVictor Geoffrey Freer Stakes), Aventure (Gr2 Prix de Pomone, Gr3 Prix de Royaumont), Bellum Justum (Gr3 DK Horse Nashville Derby Invitational Stakes), Hanalia (Gr2 Moyglare “Jewels” Blandford Stakes), See The Fire (Gr3 Sky Bet Strensall Stakes), Sweet William (Gr2 Betfred Howard Wright Doncaster Cup Stakes, Gr3 Chasemore Farm Henry II Stakes).
Sea The Stars is also the sire of unbeaten two-year-old The Lion In Winter, who currently rates as the favourite for next year’s 2000 Guineas and Betfred Derby. Unbeaten in two starts, The Lion In Winter broke the two-year-old course record at York when victorious in the Gr3 Tattersalls Acomb Stakes earlier this year.
Acomb runner up Wimbledon Hawkeye (Kameko), who is out of the Sea The Stars mare Eva Maria, franked the form when he won the Gr2 Juddmonte Royal Lodge Stakes on Saturday.
The Lion In Winter and Sweet William provide further proof of Sea The Stars’ versatility as a stallion, with The Lion In Winter’s Acomb Stakes win coming over seven furlongs and Sweet William landing the Doncaster Cup over two miles and two furlongs.
