Rip Van Winkle: sire of elite winners in both hemispheres at stud

Australasian turf stars Te Akau Shark and Jennifer Eccles had propelled their sire Rip Van Winkle into the limelight at Windsor Park Stud in New Zealand, where he stood up until his death at the age of 14 this weekend.

Rip Van Winkle, the second highest-rated son of Galileo, earned a place alongside his sire at Coolmore Stud following wins in the Sussex Stakes, QE II and Juddmonte International, and was quickly snapped up for shuttling duties by Windsor Park, where he was permanently transferred in 2016.

He made waves with his first crop of runners bred in the northern hemisphere which included the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes scorer Dick Whittington and the Group 2 Ridgewood Pearl Stakes winner Creggs Pipes.

Rip Van Winkle ranked seventh among the first-crop sires in Europe in 2014 based on prize-money, with the likes of Lope De Vega, Showcasing and Siyouni having entered stud the same year.

The attractive bay made breeders in Australasia sit up and take notice after his first crop there included the fillies Capella and Lasarla, both winners in Group 2 company.

Among his more recent high-profile winners are last year's Italian Derby scorer Keep On Fly, who was later gelded and sent to Hong Kong under the name Generous Charity.

Another gelded son Te Akau Shark struck in the Waikato Sprint at Te Rapa in February before crossing the Tasman and landing the Chipping Norton Stakes at Randwick the same month.

He sired another Classic winner when Jennifer Eccles captured the New Zealand Oaks at Trentham in March to see her crowned New Zealand Bloodstock Filly of the Year.

Rip Van Winkle - the sire of 31 stakes scorers worldwide - was bred by Roberto Brogi out of the Stravinsky mare Looking Back, making him a half-brother to the Italian Group 3 winner and sire Le Vie Infinite and A Star Is Born, dam of the Middle Park Stakes runner-up Fleet Review.

Rodney Schick, Windsor Park's stud manager, said: "Rip Van Winkle was an unbelievable racehorse and one of the best sons of Galileo. It's a very sad day for everyone.

"We've had pretty good success with shuttling horses from Coolmore and he stayed down here. He's had a really good year down here with Te Akau Shark. He was a great character, ultimate professional and just a lovely horse to deal with. He's just a very cool horse."

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