Five horses who made French fans smile amid foreign domination in Deauville

There have been long stretches of the last month when the French racing press have huddled in the far corner of Deauville's compact winner's enclosure, wondering when they would next need to employ their native tongue to greet the victors of a Group or Listed race.

Among 14 French-trained horses to contest the five Group 1s at the meeting (let's put Australian import Verry Elleegant to one side), Erevann, Sibila Spain and Accakaba held the joint-highest rating heading into their respective races at 111.

Put simply, the French squad deployed to Deauville lacked quality and depth, and the results are no more than a reflection of that. this Normandy summer. But that is very different to saying there weren't some French-trained horses who enhanced their reputations