'The opportunity to learn from the best is an opportunity few people get to have'

Our latest Godolphin Flying Start blog comes from Sean Cooper, from County Kildare. A graduate of the Irish National Stud breeding course, he worked at Tattersalls and Klawervlei Stud in South Africa before joining the Flying Start programme. 

It is hard to believe we are coming to the end of the first stage of our Flying Start programme. On August 14 we all arrived hoping, expecting, to begin our journey of making new friends, meeting new people and accumulating lifelong memories. I believe I can say with confidence that we have a pretty good bunch on this year’s programme, many of whom you have possibly already met. We have also had some unforgettable experiences.

Goffs

Starting with our time at the Goffs Orby Sale, ten trainees had the privilege of shadowing top bloodstock agents from Ireland, Europe and further afield. Two trainees worked for leading consignors in the Irish National Stud and Boherguy Stud. The opportunity to learn from the best is an opportunity few people get to have. 

I had the opportunity to learn from one of the best bloodstock agents by shadowing Anthony Bromley and his assistant Tessa Greatrex. It was an incredible, one-of-a-kind experience and to have the opportunity to learn one-on-one from an agent who I’ve always admired and absorb the valuable knowledge he had to offer, was great. Henry Beeby kindly invited us back to have a Q&A with him at Goffs, during which he gave us his unique insight of being the chief executive of Goffs, the success of the Orby sale and an overview of the current sales climate.

Longchamp

After Goffs, we had a great weekend in France at the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe meeting. Our first visit, however, was to Chantilly. Francis and Lisa-Jane Graffard took us around their unbelievable facilities and Francis took us to see his lot work on the gallops in the Chantilly Forest. It was a visit we will never forget, and we are extremely thankful to them and everyone at France Galop who helped us. 

At the races, we had an unbelievable time; witnessing Ace Impact’s dominant performance when winning the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe was a piece of history which I know I will never forget.

Tattersalls and Sheikh Mohammed

After Goffs we thought we were done in terms of sales for the near future and would have to watch the Tattersalls Book 1 sales from afar. However, we were happily surprised when Clodagh Kavanagh and Joe Osborne said we were on the first flight to Stansted on Wednesday, October 4. 

Harper Mcvey, Daisy Fenwick, Jake Swinburn, Claire Wilson, Johnny Marsh, Sam Baker, George Connolly, Anna Cahill, Harry Everett, Mitchell Whelan, Ger Donworth and Sean Cooper with Sheikh Mohammed

At Park Paddocks we had the privilege of meeting the founder of our course, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. It was an honour to meet such an iconic figure in our industry and to thank him for the opportunity which he has given us. He spoke only briefly to us, but he mentioned his love and admiration for horses and highlighted the importance that we should follow suit in that passion.

Visits and lectures

It’s starting to seem like we haven’t spent any time in Kildangan. We had the opportunity to tour two of the world's most renowned stud farms, Coolmore Stud and the Irish National Stud, given by former graduates of the programme, Tom Harris and Cathal Beale. 

Both trips were excellent and it’s great to see former trainees becoming successful industry leaders. We also received an inspiring lecture from Anne O’Connor about Treo Eile and the great work they are doing to promote racehorse aftercare by retraining them once their careers on the track are over. 

Charity Festina Lente magnifies the relationship between humans and horses and how they benefit people in so many ways. We were happy to offer our help to such a great cause, and to experience the sense of community with which people and horses work together unanimously was truly amazing.

The programme 

The Godolphin Flying Start programme has offered experiences like no other. The visits, people and knowledge we have gathered through UCD, and guest lectures, have helped us gather the tools necessary to become industry leaders. I would also like to thank all the yard staff in Kildangan for their time in helping us learn the process of breaking a yearling. 

It really has been a pleasure working with so many skilled horsemen and women. We are now excited to move onto to our next phase in Newmarket. 

Read more

Edmond Ryan's Flying Start blog​​​

'An exceptional athlete' - unbeaten Arc hero Ace Impact introduced to breeders at record €40,000 

'There’s a lot more to come' - Wathnan adds to growing strength with 500,000gns Tattersalls top lot Dark Trooper