The Fellow
| The Fellow | |
|---|---|
| Sire | Italic |
| Dam | L'Oranaise |
| Damsire | Paris Jour |
| Sex | Gelding |
| Foaled | 1985 |
| Country | France |
| Colour | Bay |
| Breeder | J Cypres & L Couetil |
| Owner | Marquesa Soledad de Moratalla |
| Trainer | François Doumen |
| Record | 37: 10-4-11 |
| Earnings | £641,426 |
| Major wins | |
|
Prix La Haye Jousselin (1990) Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris (1991) King George VI Chase (1991, 1992) Cheltenham Gold Cup (1994) |
|
| Honours | |
| French Horse Racing Hall of Fame | |
| Last updated on August 29, 2008 | |
The Fellow (1985–2008) was an AQPS top-class National Hunt racehorse in the early 1990s. He won the 1994 Cheltenham Gold Cup and narrowly lost the 1991 and 1992 renewals. He also won the 1991 and 1992 King George VI Chase and the 1991 Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris. Along with Mandarin, he is one of only two horses to win both the latter race and the Gold Cup. A full brother to French Horse of the Century Al Capone II, The Fellow was trained in France by François Doumen, ridden by the Polish jockey Adam Kondrat, and owned by the Marquesa De Moratalla.
The Fellow first came to prominence in Britain when he ran in the 1990 King George VI Chase as a young five-year-old, although the previous month he had won the Group One Prix La Haye Jousselin at Auteuil Hippodrome in France. He finished third in the King George behind Desert Orchid and Toby Tobias, then ran in a French hurdle race before returning to the UK to run in the Cheltenham Gold Cup. He was still a young horse and went off at 28/1. However, despite his age he was only beaten a short-head into second place by Garrison Savannah and defeated a number of good horses including Desert Orchid, Cool Ground and Celtic Shot. In fact, BBC commentator Sir Peter O'Sullevan (possibly biased through being a friend of the horse's owner) thought that The Fellow was going to just get up to win the race.
During the summer of 1991, The Fellow won the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris as well as two other chases. He returned to the UK for another tilt at the King George VI Chase. In a close finish, he just beat Docklands Express and Remittance Man, with Desert Orchid falling when beaten in his last race before retirement. The Fellow then tried again to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup the following spring. In this race, he lost again by a short head, this time to Cool Ground with Docklands Express in third.
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