Joie de vivre

By Stephen Dwyer

The 2011 Epsom Derby will live long in the memory for two reasons. Undoubtedly, the sight of 19-year-old jockey Mickael Barzalona standing up mightily tall on Pour Moi yards before he crossed the line in front raised many seasoned eyebrows.

Celebrating victory in the Derby before you even finish it is one thing. Celebrating it early by flapping your whip, saluting the crowd and pulling sharply on your mount’s reins is another matter entirely. Barzalona’s premature flourish is unlikely to prove as popular as Frankie Dettori’s flying dismount in years to come.

Despite his bold celebration, Mickael Barzalona steered Pour Moi, a son of Montjeu, to a first Derby win for the French in thirty years. This could be the start of a meteoric rise for the Lyon-born Frenchman who became the youngest rider to win the Derby since Walter Swinburn aboard the mighty Shergar. The only jockey to have ridden a Derby winner at a younger age was an 18-year-old Lester Piggot. The stewards had a quiet word with Barzalona afterwards, but it is doubtful this was enough to dampen his unbottled joy.

Apart from Barzalona’s exuberant display of Gallic flair, the scene of The Queen’s Carlton House finishing a fast third was also memorable, albeit for different reasons. For Michael Stoute, jockey Ryan Moore and of course the owner, third was a telling disappointment. For the bookmakers, it was a welcome spectacle. Reports stated £20 million would have been lost by the layers had Carlton House managed to win, but it was not to be. For Her Majesty The Queen, the Derby drought continues.

Success in the Derby does not come easy. Despite its reputation in the sport of kings, no ruling Monarch has won a Derby since 1909. The last time The Queen ran a horse in the Derby, Prince William had not even been born. The last royal runner in the race, Church Parade, was a remote fifth to Shergar in the 1981 renewal. It was a remote mainly because Shergar had won by ten lengths.

Were it not for a gelding called Highland Glen and a thoughtful gesture by The Queen, another year would have passed without a runner in the race. Carlton House was a reciprocal gift from the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed Al-Maktoum. The gift was in response to The Queen presenting Sheikh Mohammed with Highland Glen, a gelding by Montjeu out of a Daylami mare.

There is a Chinese proverb for this; A bit of fragrance always clings to the hand that gives roses.

Despite a late injury scare, Carlton House was the heavily backed 5-2 favourite on the back of a good showing in the Dante. He entered the race with a live chance but good fortune conspired against him. Carlton House sweated up badly beforehand, fractionally missed the start and was bumped by a couple of outsiders who hindered his run. As Ryan Moore was winding up the gelding for his final challenge, just like Cinderella, Carlton House lost a shoe. He finished a length down in third.

Just after the Derby, a course steward collected a stricken front horseshoe which had separated from Carlton House a mere 200 yards from the finish. It was a crucial time in the race for such bad luck. It may not have been the difference between winning and losing, but fractions are priceless in a Derby.

Take nothing away from Pour Moi. An Irish-owned, Irish-bred French horse, he gate-crashed the royal party in some style. An impressive winner of the Prix Greffulhe at Saint Cloud last time out, Pour Moi showed a devastating turn of foot which nothing in the field could live with. Trainer Andre Fabre stuck to the game plan and won his first English Derby.

Connections of Carlton House will not dismay. He will win a Group 1 race before the season ends. There is the very real possibility that Carlton House will run against Pour Moi in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp in October. Different day, different luck.

Maybe then the Queen will experience unbridled delight that the French call Joie de vivre after all.

By Stephen Dwyer