'Shantou was as commercial by the end of his life as he was during it'

Sadly, we have had to say goodbye to Shantou due to the infirmities of his old age.

He arrived at Burgage in November 2004 from Paolo Crespi’s Societa Agricola di Besnate stud near Milan.

Shantou stood there for his first five seasons where, according to Weatherbys, he sired 30 live foals on average each year. From this relatively small number of foals, he sired five Group 1 performers including Sweet Stream, who won the 2004 Prix Vermeille and the Park Hill Stakes.

De Valira, conceived in Italy but foaled in Ireland, was a top-class novice hurdler for Michael O’Brien in 2006-07 before injuries interrupted his career. He had beaten Sizing Europe by five lengths on their debut in a four-year-old Leopardstown bumper.

His first Irish-bred runners quickly made an impression with 11 winners from 21 runners from his first five-year-old crop – 52 per cent winners to runners. His stock proved willing and tough, trainers liked them, and the best of his progeny had that touch of class so necessary to compete successfully at Grade 1 level.

As a result, he became increasingly commercial in the sales ring. As the success of his stud career never faltered, he was as commercial by the end of his life as he was during it. This is confirmed by the sale of his gelding out of Screaming Witness who topped the 2021 Goffs Land Rover Sale at €230,000.

The fact that he was not asked to cover very large books of mares helped to create a premium for his stock. There were only a certain number available for sale each year.

Apart from being a successful sire, we will fondly remember Shantou for his determined personality and how single-minded he could be. His unique character has been well documented by his trainer John Gosden as he explained how he had to be trained on his own and away from the string. His jockey Frankie Dettori amusingly used unparliamentary language in his autobiographies to describe Shantou on his "off" days while commending him for his courage.

Shantou was not a big horse but made up for this with his bulk - he was like a little bull. He was a very confident horse, almost cocksure of himself. He could be a tough horse but in a good way. It appears that he passed on this competitive streak to his progeny.

It is always sad to lose a good friend, either human or animal. His empty stable will take some time to get used to. However, rather than being sad at his departure, we feel very fortunate that he came to Burgage, as well as for him being healthy and fertile for so long.

We would like to thank all the breeders who supported him in his 15 stud seasons in Ireland and to all those who raced his stock. Collectively they helped establish his impressive record. Shantou gave so many people memorable days on the racetrack and in the sales ring.

He had an impressive record at Cheltenham. The 2020 Cheltenham Festival Stallion Guide compiled by James Iddiols summarised his record by asking: "How can one not be a fan of this sire, whose offspring have achieved a profitable return at every meeting between 2013 and 2019?"

His lifetime winners to runners ratio is 55 per cent, which has been impressively constant in recent years.

Finally, a few years ago Paolo Crespi sent me a lovely email which summed up Shantou perfectly.

He wrote: “When I went to see him in Newmarket after he had retired, I had this appointment in Mr Gosden’s stable. I am Italian, so I got there five minutes late. There was the stable’s head groom waiting for me in the parking area and he said to me sharply, 'Are you the Italian vet for the horse?' I said, 'Of course'. He said, 'So hurry up, I have no time to lose'. I replied, 'No, sorry, I need the time to check the horse properly, he is the most expensive thoroughbred that I have purchased in my life'. He answered, 'No time is needed, I can tell you already; he is a small horse, but with a very, very big heart'.

Our news story on Shantou's life and times

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