By Adam Morgan, PA
To have a contender for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe is every Frenchman’s wish – so to have two is a dream.
Now Sosie and Aventure are entrusted with fulfilling that ambition and adding the Wertheimer name to France’s most famous trophy once again.
The family’s blue and white silks are synonymous not only with French racing, but thanks to their legion of stars down the decades – see the great Goldikova – they have also been a familiar sight on a global stage.
The current custodians of the colours, brothers Alain and Gerard Wertheimer, saw their Carlos Laffon-Parias-trained Solemia break Japanese hearts in 2012, and 12 years on have an outstanding chance of again adding their name to the record books with their two-pronged attack, led by Sosie.
Trained by the Arc’s master trainer Andre Fabre, the Prix du Jockey Club runner-up has excelled at ParisLongchamp when claiming the Grand Prix de Paris and then lowering the colours of French Derby conqueror Look De Vega in the Prix Niel.
That sent the son of Sea The Stars right to the top of the bookmakers’ lists for Europe’s richest middle-distance contest and connections hope his experience in the French capital can prove an unbeatable strength on Sunday afternoon.
“Not all horses are used to Longchamp, but he knows the track and it is definitely a plus for him,” said Wertheimer racing manager Pierre-Yves Bureau.
“In my mind he is the best three-year-old French colt at this distance at the moment, so it will be very interesting to see if he can be competitive and be the best on Sunday.
“He’s being called one of the favourites, but in my mind five or six horses could be favourite. It is a very competitive race and yes he has a good chance but I think it is very open.”
If Sosie’s Arc credentials speak for themselves, then it is also easy to see why the Wertheimer and Frere team were keen for Christophe Ferland’s filly Aventure to take her place in Arc line-up.
Winner of the Prix de Royaumont and Prix de Pomone over the Arc trip this season, she was last seen pushing Bluestocking all the way in the Prix Vermeille.
“I think she ran very well in the Vermeille and has won two Group races this year over a mile and a half so she loves the distance,” continued Bureau
“We thought about the l’Opera, but we decided that might be a bit short for her and it was worth taking a chance against the colts in the big race. It is all related to the mile and a half that she needs.”
With one of France’s leading owner-breeding operations and also their names above the door of Paris institution the House Of Chanel, the Wertheimer brothers are at the heart of French culture.
It is therefore somewhat fitting if they rule the roost in the capital this weekend, a victory that would be the result of meticulous work behind the scenes of a racing powerhouse ready to return to the top of the sport.
“It’s a very long and old breeding operation and, being based in France, when you do the matings and everything, it is always about trying to have horses go to the big races like the Arc,” added Bureau.
“To have two runners in the Arc with good chances means a lot for the whole team, but now they have to make their arrival. It is a result of all the hard work of all the organisation so a good result would be important.”
