Torgau (horse)

Torgau (foaled 1997) was an Irish-bred, British-trained champion

Torgau was sired by the Middle Park Stakes winner Zieten out of the mare Snoozy Time. Zieten was not a notable success as a stallion although he had an excellent first season^[1] and has been described as "a good source of fast two-year-olds".^[2] Snoozy Time, a daughter of The Derby runner-up Cavo Doro, won a minor race and was a half-sister to the successful sprinter Grey Desire (Duke of York Stakes). Apart from Torgau, her most notable performer was Fujiyama Crest,^[3] who provided Frankie Dettori with the last of his seven winners on Champions' Day at Ascot in 1996.^[4] Torgau is inbred 4x4 to Sir Gaylord (see below).

Torgau was sent to the sales as a foal in November 1997, when she was sold for 13,000 guineas to the bloodstock agent Paul Thorman. A year later Thorman sold her for the same price at the Tattersalls October sales.^[3][5] She was sent into training with Giles Bravery at his Revida Place stable at Newmarket, Suffolk.

Torgau began her career at

Torgau was then moved up to the highest level when she was sent to Ireland for the Group One Moyglare Stud Stakes at the Curragh. Her rivals included Littlefeather, who had won all three of her starts since the Catterick race, the unbeaten Preseli and the Aidan O'Brien-trained Amethyst. Torgau disputed the lead in the early stages and went into a clear lead a furlong from the finish but was caught close home and beaten three quarters of a length by Preseli.^[11] Torgau's final start of the season came in the Cheveley Park Stakes at Newmarket, one of the two Group One races for two-year-old fillies in England. Once again, Torgau was sent into the lead from the start by her jockey Michael Hills. In the final furlong she was overtaken by the Mick Channon-trained Seazun, and although she ran on under pressure, she was beaten by a head.^[12]

Before her run at Newmarket, Torgau had been sold to American interests, with the intention of racing her in the United States, but in fact she stayed at Newmarket to be prepared for the following year's 1000 Guineas.^[13]

On her three-year-old debut, Torgau was sent straight for the

She was retired soon afterwards and sent to Keeneland where she was sold for a reported $900,000.^[17]

In the International Classification for two-year-old fillies, Torgau was rated on 111, making her the eighth-best filly of her generation in Europe, two pounds below the top-weights Goldamix, Lady of Chad and Preseli. The senior handicapper, Geoffrey Gibbs described the fillies of 1999 as a "particularly disappointing" group.^[18]

Torgau was named

Several of Torgau's foals have reached the racecourse and at least two of them, Knapton Hill and Timur Danon have won, but none of her offspring have been top class. In November 2006 she was sold at Tattersalls for 58,000 gns to David Redvers Bloodstock.^[3]

• Torgau is inbred 4x4 to Sir Gaylord. This means that the stallion appears twice in the fourth generation of her pedigree.