Bold Eagle secures rare French Triple Crown
Trotting sensation Bold Eagle completed the French triple crown on Sunday to become only the fourth horse in history to achieve the feat and the first in more than four decades. With regular driver Franck Nivard in the sulky the six-year-old cemented his standing as the king of his discipline by landing the Grand Prix de Paris. He was adding the third leg of the Triple Crown to wins in the Prix d'Amerique and Prix de France. The last horse to secure the coveted treble was Bellino II in 1976, Gelinotte, the 1956 and 1957 heroine, with Jamin (1959) completing the select club of four. Sunday's 12th Group I triumph took Bold Eagle's prize money earnings over the three million euros mark. "He's the 'crack of cracks', a superstar," declared Nivard. "He's the Bellino II of the modern era," added the 37-year-old driver who had steered Bold Eagle's sire Ready Cash to victory in the 2013 Grand Prix de Paris. The crowd at Vincennes accorded Bold Eagle a reception worthy of equine royalty. Bold Eagle is trained by Sebastien Guarato who said: "He's an intelligent horse. I told Franck to track Briac Dark (the runner-up) and all went perfectly." The odds-on favourite earned his co-owners Pierre Pilarski, Thomas Bernereau and Jean-Philippe Dubois half a million euros in prize money and bonuses, and an additional 300,000 euros for the Triple Crown. "This 300,000 will help us buy young Bold Eagles at the upcoming sales," said a tearful Pilarski after watching his pride and joy rattle down the straight to pick off his rivals one by one to lead at the post. Bold Eagle, who had narrowly failed to win the Triple Crown last year when finishing second in Sunday's final leg, will next appear in Sweden's 'Elitloppet (Swedish for 'the Elite race') at Solvalla hippodrome in May.
