It sounds like Sea the Stars and his connections would not leave the front page alone this year ! In an extremely busy and successful first day at the Arqana Deauville Breeding sale, French agent Nicolas de Watrigant (Mandore International) made the top lot for the champion’s owner Ling Tsui as he went to €520,000 for lot 101, the Wildensteins’ Aquarelle Bleue (Sadler’s Wells) to beat the Japanese stud Shadai Farm’s representatives. The 5yo placed mare was consigned by the Haras du Mezeray (Charles-Henri de Moussac) in foal to Cape Cross and will be boarded to Sea the Stars next season, just like Mandore’s other purchase for the Tsuis,! lot 92, the unraced 5yo Alizaya (Highest Honor), a sister to Irish Leger winner Alandi (Galileo) sold €140,000 in foal to Oratorio. “Mrs Tsui wanted these two pedigrees,” said Watrigant, who quoted the owner after calling her up on the phone as saying that she was very happy to invest again in France and that she picked up Watrigant because she’d worked before with his family.

Only once did the bidding exceed the top mark, when lot 224, the 2009 German Oaks winner Night Magic (Sholokhov) was bought back by the Haras des Capucines on behalf of Stall Salzburg (Hans-Gerd Wernicke). Australian interests represented by Damon Gabbedy had been to €750,000 however and an amicable sale was everything but ruled out at the closure of the sale. Consigned by the Haras du Mezeray, lot 177, Isla Canela (Gone West), a 3yo winner in France whose dam is Islington (Sadler’s Wells), was also bought back at €500,000.

As far as weanlings are concerned, 25 of the 32 lots presented on Saturday were sold (78%) at an average €37,540 (+16%). The top lot is lot 76, an Oasis Dream colt out of Whisper to Dream, whose dam is the champion Hatoof. Maggy O’Toole got the colt for €160,000 on behalf of Coolmore.

At the end of the day, the results were notably superior to those of the corresponding sale in 2008. The turnover is up 50% at almost €9m with over 78% of the presented lots sold at €51,442 average (up 35%) while the median is almost doubled at 30.000€ vs. €16,000 last year. It has to be said though that the first day’s catalogue was by far the strongest of the whole sale and that last year, the top lot Alpine Rose had been sold €550,000 on Sunday. Arqana CEO Eric Hoyeau was very happy with this hot start : “Even though most of the potential top lots were concentrated on that first day, the proportion of sold lots is much better this term (from 71 to 78%). Buyers from all parts of the World came by and the weanlings market was good too.” - Frogsracing