Van Beethoven Recruited to Haras de Grandcamp

GAIN Railway Stakes (G2) winner and Secretariat Stakes (G1T) runner-up Van Beethoven has been retired from racing and will join the stallion roster at Haras de Grandcamp.

The 4-year-old son of the late Scat Daddy shed his maiden tag on his second start at 2 before backing up a respectable Windsor Castle fourth with success in the Railway Stakes at the Curragh, defeating Marie's Diamond by half a length. 

Having raced eight times at 2, the Canadian-bred Van Beethoven competed seven times at 3, with his Secretariat Stakes second the best of those efforts. 

All of his 15 starts came for Aidan O'Brien, and while it was recorded that he had switched to Chad Brown's yard last autumn, his midfield placing in the Shadwell Turf Mile Stakes (G1T) in October 2019 proved to be his final outing. 

Samuel Blanchard, who oversaw the arrival of Van Beethoven to the stud, told Jour de Galop: "He comes from a classic American line and won the Railway Stakes at the Curragh in June of his 2-year-old career, running no less than eight times between April and September.

"This is a real guarantee of precocity, at a time when France Galop is upgrading the juvenile category. At 3, he finished second in the Secretariat Stakes over a mile at Arlington. He is a horse that traveled a lot, having raced in Ireland, but also in England, France, Dubai, and the United States."

Hailing from the red-hot Scat Daddy line, he will now join a roster which includes proven group 1 sires Dream Ahead, Lawman, and Lethal Force, while Coolmore have retained an interest. 

Blanchard added: "Van Beethoven didn't win a group 1, but was a top 2-year-old. Among the five best sires of juveniles in France this year, four had not won a group 1 (Kendargent, Galiway, Goken, and Kodiac). This is also the case with Mehmas, the leading first-season sire in Europe.

"Coolmore has (retained) a significant interest in him, while 15 shares will be on the market. Van Beethoven is an exceptional model: a good size but not too big. Like his father, we can expect him to bring precocity and quality."