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Hyperion (horse)
Encyclopedia
Hyperion was a British bred Thoroughbred
, a dual classic winner and an outstanding sire. Owned by Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby
, Hyperion won £29,509 during his career - a considerable sum at the time. His victories included the Epsom Derby
and St. Leger Stakes
.
Hyperion was by the wartime Triple Crown
winner and good sire Gainsborough
and his grandsire was Bayardo
. His dam, Selene, was by Chaucer, a talented son of the undefeated St. Simon
. Selene was also dam of such good sires as Sickle (sire-line ancestor of Native Dancer and Sea Bird II) Pharamond (US), and Hunter's Moon (Argentina
). He was inbred in the third and fourth generation to St. Simon. Hyperion was trained at Newmarket to win his classics by George Lambton.
He was one of the smallest horses to ever win a British Classic but had a good action and beautiful temperament. He stood just 15 hands 1½ inches, with a girth of 68 inches, and measured 7¾ inches below the knee.
plus a dead-heat in the Prince of Wales Stakes from five starts, earning him eighth place in the Free Handicap.
, he was third to Felicitation and Thor. The two and a half miles indicated that he was not a true stayer. In the Dullingham Stakes at Newmarket, only two horses started with three-year-old Caithness carrying 8 st. 1 lb. defeated 10 st. 2 lb. by a short head.
An important stallion, he sired the winners of 752 races, including 53 stakeswinners that had 84 stakeswins, and was the leading sire in Great Britain & Ireland
six times, counting amongst his progeny:
Hyperion's daughters foaled the winners of 1,196 races and £1,131,346. He was also the damsire of Nearctic
, who in turn sired Northern Dancer
, the 20th Century's greatest sire.
In Australia and New Zealand, Hyperion's descendants have exerted a profound influence on the racing and breeding industry. This influence was introduced via Hyperion's foreign based sons and also by his imported sons, Empyrean, Helios, High Peak, Red Mars, and Ruthless, as well as paternal grandsons such as Star King later known as the outstanding sire, Star Kingdom
.
Lord Derby commissioned equine artist
Martin Stainforth
to paint a portrait of Hyperion.
A lifesize statue modelled by John Skeaping in bronze of Hyperion, stands at the front of the Jockey Club headquarters on Newmarket High Street. From 2009, his skeleton can also be seen in the National Horseracing Museum
(also in Newmarket), lent by the Animal Health Trust to replace the skeleton of Eclipse
(currently undergoing DNA analysis).
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
, a dual classic winner and an outstanding sire. Owned by Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby
Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby
Edward George Villiers Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby KG, GCB, GCVO, TD, PC, KGStJ, JP , known as Lord Stanley from 1893 to 1908, was a British soldier, Conservative politician, diplomat and racehorse owner. He was twice Secretary of State for War and also served as British Ambassador to...
, Hyperion won £29,509 during his career - a considerable sum at the time. His victories included the Epsom Derby
Epsom Derby
The Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
and St. Leger Stakes
St. Leger Stakes
The St. Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 1 mile, 6 furlongs and 132 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in September.Established in 1776, the St. Leger...
.
Hyperion was by the wartime Triple Crown
Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing consists of three races for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses. Winning all three of these Thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplishment of a Thoroughbred racehorse...
winner and good sire Gainsborough
Gainsborough (horse)
Gainsborough was a British bred Thoroughbred racehorse who won the English Triple Crown in 1918 and became a superior sire.-Breeding:...
and his grandsire was Bayardo
Bayardo (horse)
Bayardo was a British bred Thoroughbred racehorse with an impressive record, both on the racecourse and at stud, where he was a leading sire.-Pedigree:...
. His dam, Selene, was by Chaucer, a talented son of the undefeated St. Simon
St. Simon (horse)
St. Simon was an undefeated British Thoroughbred racehorse and one of the most successful sires in the history of the Thoroughbred. In May 1886 The Sporting Times carried out a poll of one hundred experts to create a ranking of the best British racehorses of the 19th Century. St...
. Selene was also dam of such good sires as Sickle (sire-line ancestor of Native Dancer and Sea Bird II) Pharamond (US), and Hunter's Moon (Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
). He was inbred in the third and fourth generation to St. Simon. Hyperion was trained at Newmarket to win his classics by George Lambton.
He was one of the smallest horses to ever win a British Classic but had a good action and beautiful temperament. He stood just 15 hands 1½ inches, with a girth of 68 inches, and measured 7¾ inches below the knee.
At two years
He was a good two-year-old with two good wins in the New Stakes at Ascot and the Dewhurst StakesDewhurst Stakes
The Dewhurst Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 7 furlongs , and it is scheduled to take place each year in October.The event was established in 1875, and it...
plus a dead-heat in the Prince of Wales Stakes from five starts, earning him eighth place in the Free Handicap.
At three years
At three years he was undefeated in four starts, winning the Chester Vase, the Epsom Derby, the Prince of Wales Stakes and the St Leger Stakes.At four years
He raced four times also at four years, winning twice, in the March Stakes and Burwell Stakes both contested at Newmarket. In his main race, the Ascot Gold CupAscot Gold Cup
The Gold Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 2 miles and 4 furlongs , and it is scheduled to take place each year in June....
, he was third to Felicitation and Thor. The two and a half miles indicated that he was not a true stayer. In the Dullingham Stakes at Newmarket, only two horses started with three-year-old Caithness carrying 8 st. 1 lb. defeated 10 st. 2 lb. by a short head.
Stud record
He was retired to stud when he was five years old and became a phenomenal success.An important stallion, he sired the winners of 752 races, including 53 stakeswinners that had 84 stakeswins, and was the leading sire in Great Britain & Ireland
Leading sire in Great Britain & Ireland
The list below shows the leading sire of racehorses in Great Britain and Ireland for each year since 1751. This is determined by the amount of prize money won by the sire's progeny during the season.----- References :* -See also:...
six times, counting amongst his progeny:
- Aureole (won Coronation CupCoronation CupThe Coronation Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 10 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in June....
, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes etc.), - Gulf Stream (Gimcrack StakesGimcrack StakesThe Gimcrack Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and geldings. It is run at York over a distance of 6 furlongs , and it is scheduled to take place each year in August....
, Eclipse StakesEclipse StakesThe Eclipse Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Sandown Park over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 7 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in early July.-History:The event is named after Eclipse, a...
) - Hypericum (1,000 Guineas Stakes, Dewhurst StakesDewhurst StakesThe Dewhurst Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 7 furlongs , and it is scheduled to take place each year in October.The event was established in 1875, and it...
) - Owen Tudor (Epsom Derby Stakes, Ascot Gold Cup)
- PensivePensivePensive was a bright chestnut thoroughbred racehorse who in 1944 came closer than any other horse at the time to winning the U.S. Triple Crown...
, winner of the 1944 Kentucky DerbyKentucky DerbyThe Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
and Preakness StakesPreakness StakesThe Preakness Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs on dirt. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds ; fillies 121 lb... - Sun ChariotSun Chariot (horse)Sun Chariot was a good Thoroughbred racehorse that won the Fillies Triple Crown series of races.She was bred by the National Stud and raced for King George VI. Sun Chariot was a filly of great talent but very difficult temperament...
(1,000 Guineas, OaksEpsom OaksThe Oaks Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 10 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in early June....
and St. Leger StakesSt. Leger StakesThe St. Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 1 mile, 6 furlongs and 132 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in September.Established in 1776, the St. Leger...
) - Sun Stream (1,000 Guineas Stakes, Epsom OaksEpsom OaksThe Oaks Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 10 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in early June....
Stakes) - HeliopolisHeliopolis (horse)Heliopolis was a British Thoroughbred racehorse and Champion sire bred and raced by Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby. He was raced from age two to four and then exported during World War II to the Coldstream Stud of E. Dale Shaffer in Lexington, Kentucky and arrived at the port of New York on...
, was sold to an American breeder for whom he stood in KentuckyKentuckyThe Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
and was the Leading sire in North AmericaLeading sire in North AmericaThe list below shows the leading sire of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America for each year since 1830. This is determined by the amount of prizemoney won by the sire's progeny during the year...
in 1950 and 1954.
Hyperion's daughters foaled the winners of 1,196 races and £1,131,346. He was also the damsire of Nearctic
Nearctic (horse)
Nearctic was an Canadian-bred Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred by E. P. Taylor, he was out of the Irish mare Lady Angela, a daughter of the British Champion sire Hyperion...
, who in turn sired Northern Dancer
Northern Dancer
Northern Dancer was a Canadian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and the most successful sire of the 20th Century. The National Thoroughbred Racing Association calls him "one of the most influential sires in Thoroughbred history"....
, the 20th Century's greatest sire.
In Australia and New Zealand, Hyperion's descendants have exerted a profound influence on the racing and breeding industry. This influence was introduced via Hyperion's foreign based sons and also by his imported sons, Empyrean, Helios, High Peak, Red Mars, and Ruthless, as well as paternal grandsons such as Star King later known as the outstanding sire, Star Kingdom
Star Kingdom
Star Kingdom was a Thoroughbred race horse bred in Ireland in 1946. Exported to Australia he was an outstanding sire, being the leading sire for five seasons, the leading sire of two-year-olds seven times as well as heading the broodmare sires' list three times.Foaled on 30 April 1946, Star...
.
Lord Derby commissioned equine artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
Martin Stainforth
Martin Stainforth
Martin Frank Stainforth was a British-born artist best known for his portraits of Thoroughbred racehorses he painted in England and while living in Australia and the United States....
to paint a portrait of Hyperion.
A lifesize statue modelled by John Skeaping in bronze of Hyperion, stands at the front of the Jockey Club headquarters on Newmarket High Street. From 2009, his skeleton can also be seen in the National Horseracing Museum
National Horseracing Museum
The National Horseracing Museum of the United Kingdom is located at 99 High Street in Newmarket. Open to the public, it contains collections and records of people and horses involved in the sport of horse racing from its Royal origins to modern heroes...
(also in Newmarket), lent by the Animal Health Trust to replace the skeleton of Eclipse
Eclipse
An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object is temporarily obscured, either by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer...
(currently undergoing DNA analysis).