'It's an honour to be around her' - Zenyatta retired from broodmare duties after producing a filly by War Front

Zenyatta, who made history as the first mare to win the Breeders' Cup Classic in 2009, has entered the next phase of her life after her 13-year stint as a broodmare came to an end.
Known for her gritty running style, the Hall of Famer won 19 of her 20 starts – 12 of them at the top level – in a glittering career which saw her named 2010 Horse of the Year and be crowned a three-time Champion Older Female in the American Eclipse awards.
She took up residence at Lane's End Farm in Kentucky after retiring from the track but the mare, owned by Jerry Moss and Ann Holbrook Moss, has faced difficulties staying in foal over the years while her talent has not translated into her offspring.
From four foals of racing age, only two – Cozmic One and Ziconic – have made it to the racecourse, with the former failing to win in five starts and the latter finishing as runner-up twice but never breaking his maiden.
Lane's End farm manager Todd Claunch said: "She's 19 now, we wouldn't logistically be able to breed her back this year and Ann always likes to give her a year off between foals anyway.
"If we bred her next year she'd be 21 when she had her next foal."

"The risk factors go up the older they get. It's really not worth taking a chance. The foaling part she does really easy, but keeping her in foal is a bit of a challenge. The vets kind of have it down now where they monitored her every couple of weeks to a month and treat her accordingly."
Zenyatta had her last foal, a War Front filly, on Friday and Claunch says both mare and baby are healthy and doing well. After weaning the foal, Zenyatta will stay to live out her days at the Versailles farm.
"[The filly is] leggy, tall, [she's] got almost exactly the same blaze. She's really nice," he said.
"[Zenyatta is] such an ambassador for the sport, maybe people will have a chance to see her now that she's retired. It's an honour to be around her, she's not like any horse I've ever been around. She loves people and really likes being the centre of attention. She's really special."
Trained by John Shirreffs, Zenyatta ended her historic career with her only loss in a runner-up finish behind Blame in the 2010 Breeders' Cup Classic. She also won the Breeders' Cup Distaff (then known as the Ladies' Classic) in 2008 and earned more than £4.7 million in prize-money.
Her other foals include a six-year-old daughter of Medaglia D'Oro named Zellda, and a three-year-old Candy Ride filly, Zilkha.
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