French-bred joy as Saint Des Saints earns Grade 1 brace at Aintree

Saint Des Saints was responsible for a quick-fire Grade 1 double on the opening day of Aintree's Randox Grand National meeting and in doing so restored considerable pride for the French breeding industry.

There were only four winners carrying the Fr suffix during the entire Cheltenham Festival - far beneath the recent norm - and that tally was matched as soon as the fourth race with the Saint Des Saints pair Protektorat and Monmiral soon joined by Clan Des Obeaux and Abacadabras on the Grade 1 honours board.

Saint Des Saints, who flies the flag for Haras d' Etreham's National Hunt branch along with Goliath du Berlais, Latrobe and Masked Marvel, is already responsible for Grade 1 winners Fusil Raffles, dual Gold Cup runner-up Djakadam and this season's Dublin Racing Festival novice hurdle scorer Gaillard Du Mesnil.

Protektorat, bred by Guy Cherel and Isabelle Pacault, was second at the start of his career for Cherel in a Listed hurdle at Auteuil. A Listed winner over hurdles for Dan Skelton in January last year, the six-year-old was adding a first Graded success to his name in the SSS Super Alloys Manifesto Novices' Chase. His dam, Protektion, was a dual Listed winner over hurdles in France.

Protektorat: Manifesto Novices' Chase hero another top-level winner for Saint Des SaintsCredit: Alan Crowhurst

Monmiral followed suit just over 40 minutes later with an impressive success in the Doom Bar Anniversary 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle. Bred by S A R L Carion Emm, he is out of Achere, a Mont Basile half-sister to Cathcart Challenge Cup victress La Landiere.

The four-year-old was a ready winner over another future Paul Nicholls inmate in Hell Red in a conditions hurdle at Auteuil last March and has followed that effort up with four easy wins since.

Betway Bowl winner Clan Des Obeaux provided French breeders with yet another reason for celebration when sluicing up in the three-mile chase. The son of Haras de la Hetraie's Kapgarde, a dual winner of Kempton's King George, was bred by Marie Devilder and again struck on his sole start in France.

Last year's Supreme Novices' Hurdle runner-up Abacadabras duly made it four on the day when landing the following Aintree Hurdle. By the little-known sire Davidoff, a decent middle-distance perfomer in Germany, the seven-year-old was bred by Evelyne Van Haaren and cost €14,000 from Bosson to Moanmore Stables at Arqana.

Two more French-bred winners followed with Cousin Pascal's win in the Randox Foxhunters' Open Hunters' Chase and Editeur Du Gite's gritty success in the Close Brothers Red Rum Handicap Chase. Cousin Pascal, a son of Great Pretender, was bred by Pascal Noue and Serge Marniquet, while Editeur Du Gite, by Saddex, was bred by Daniel Gerault.

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