Belle Geste Thoroughbred

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BELLE GESTE

b. F, THOROUGHBRED, 1968

Color: b

41-14-8-2

NCR WO 12.00f 2:28:0, NCR WO 10.00f 2:01:2.There wasn't a better grass horse - male or female - in Canada in the early 1970s than Belle Geste. Inducted in to the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 1990, the long-striding filling absolutely dominated turf racing at Woodbine. Owned by Beatrice and Bill Latimer of Toronto and trained by Carl Chapman, the daughter of The Scoundrel-French Safari, by *Big Game, was bred by Jim Boylen and was purchased at the 1969 CTHS yearling sales for $7,000. She retired following the '72 season with earnings of $201, 478 (fourth leading money filly at the time) and a career record of 22 wins, 11 seconds and 2 third-place finishes from 41 starts. Eight of her wins came in stakes races. Affectionately nicknamed "Lana Turner" by her effervescent trainer "Chappie", the grass-loving filly excelled in stakes races against the males. They brought out the best in her as she ran long and extremely fast as evidenced by her track records in the Marshall Turf Course in the 1971 Breeders' Stakes and the 1972 Canadian Maturity. Her win in the Maturity was certainly one of the greatest duels ever witnessed at Woodbine. The buxom filly and Queen's Plate winner Kennedy Road hooked up coming out of the gate in the 1 Ľ-mile event and it was basically a match-race between them as they ran in tandem for 10 furlongs. At the wire it was Belle Geste and jockey Noel Turcotte by a neck. Her record clocking of 2:01 2/5 stood until Mill Native broke it in the Arlington Million in 1988. In 1971, Belle Geste set the Woodbine 1 ˝-mile record with her victory over the boys in the Breeders' Stakes, a mark that stood for 20 years. She also whipped the boys in the Niagara Stakes H. at Fort Erie. Her other stakes wins came in the prestigious Nettie (now called the E.P. Taylor), Canadian S., International H., and back-to-back runnings of the Nassau Stakes, upsetting Horse of the Year Laurie's Dancer in '72. At the age of two her finest outing was a narrow loss to Queen Louie in the Princess Elizabeth Stakes. One of her greatest races, however, came in defeat when she lost by a neck to North American grass champion Droll Role in the Canadian International. After the race Droll Role's owner, John Schiff, sought out Mrs. Latimer and said, "…you have a great, great filly. I would be honoured if you would consider breeding Belle Geste and Droll Role." A few weeks later the two horses met again in the rich Washington, D.C. International at Laurel, MD. Belle Geste refused to relax and broke out badly in the saddling and ran rank. She and Kentucky Derby winner Riva Ridge set a suicidal pace, "cooking" their chances. Belle finished fifth, but ahead of Riva Ridge. In the year-end poll, Belle Geste was voted the best older filly or mare in Canada.

(CLOSE)

BELLE GESTE*
b 1968
THOROUGHBRED

41-14-8-2

THE SCOUNDREL
ch 1961
THOROUGHBRED

(USA)

TOULOUSE LAUTREC*
ch 1950
THOROUGHBRED

(ITY)

DANTE*
br 16.1 1942
THOROUGHBRED

(GB)

NEARCO*
br 1935

PHAROS*

br 1920

NOGARA*