Sea The Moon

Background

Sea The Moon is a bay colt bred by Gestüt Görlsdorf and foaled on 29 April 2011. He was sired by Sea The Stars, who was undefeated as a three-year-old, winning the 2000 Guineas, Derby, Eclipse Stakes, International Stakes, Irish Champion Stakes and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Sea The Moon is one of Sea The Stars' first crop of foals, which also includes Oaks winner Taghrooda. Sea The Moon's dam is Sanwa, a daughter of Monsun. Sea The Moon is trained by Markus Klug.

2013: Two-year-old season

Sea The Moon only raced once as a two-year-old, when he won a race at Cologne-Weidenpesch Racecourse.

2014: Three-year-old season

Sea The Moon's first race as a three-year-old was the Frühjahrs Dreijährigen-Preis on 11 May 2014. Jockey Andreas Helfenbein sent him into the lead after the field had traveled one furlong. He was challenged in the finishing straight, but pulled away inside the final furlong to win by two lengths from Abendwind. Just over one month later, Sea The Moon started as favourite for the Union-Rennen. He was again sent out into an early lead by Helfenbein, and after being challenged with two furlongs to go, he drifted to the left and pulled clear in the final 100 yards to win by three lengths from Rapido. On 6 July, Sea The Moon started as the favourite for the Deutsches Derby, where he was ridden by Christophe Soumillon. After being drawn wide he soon took the lead. As the field turned into the finishing straight, he crossed the track to race on the opposite side to the rest of the field. In the closing stages of the race, Sea The Moon pulled well clear of the other runners to win by eleven lengths from Lucky Lion, who was a further two and a half lengths ahead of third placed Open Your Heart.

In September, Sea The Moon started the 1/2 favourite for the Grosser Preis von Baden in which he was matched for the first time against older horses. By this time he had been elevated to ante-post favourite for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. He led for most of the race but was overtaken in the closing stages and beaten three lengths into second place by the four-year-old Ivanhowe. A few days after the race it was announced that the colt had suffered a recurrence of earlier injury problems and would not race again in 2014. On 16 September it was revealed that the colt, who was receiving treatment at Newmarket's Equine Hospital, would be retired from racing and begin his stud career in 2015.

Honours

In April 2015, Sea The Moon was voted German Horse of the Year, taking 42% of the vote ahead of Protectionist (39%) and Ivanhowe (19%).