By Emma Berry
The question of whether geldings should be allowed to run in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe has been the subject of debate for some time, and on Monday, the board of France Galop voted overwhelmingly but not unanimously to invoke a rule change from next year.
The reasoning behind what has been described as a “landmark decision” is three-pronged, according to France Galop's vice president Arnaud de Seyssel.
He told TDN, “First of all, if I look backwards, we have been asking these questions ourselves over the last two years, and there was a lot of dialogue with the board, dialogue with the different entities, associations, and a lot of formal and informal discussions about the subject.
“I would say there are three reasons. The first one is clearly to open the race to the best horses, and basically, some geldings are obviously near the top of the list. We could have taken this decision two years ago, but we didn't want to do it under the pressure of Calandagan or Goliath or whatever. We really wanted to have discussions and hear the views of everyone.”
De Seyssel ventured that the second reason is to bring the Arc into line with some of the best middle-distance races in the world, such as the Japan Cup, the Breeders' Cup Turf, and the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, all of which have been won by geldings in recent years – namely Calandagan, Rebel's Romance, Ethical Diamond and Goliath.
He continued, “The key question was also, 'Is the Arc a stallion-maker?' And when you look back a bit, you look at the stallions who sired the best horses in the last 10 or 15 years, there are only two big stallions, Sea The Stars and Golden Horn, who are the triumphs. But you look at Wootton Bassett, you look at the other key sires, and they didn't win the Arc.”
Since the inauguration of the Longines World's Best Horse Race in 2015, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe has won the award a record five times – in 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021. In 2025, that title was shared by Britain's Champion Stakes and the Japan Cup, both of which were won by Calandagan. The Juddmonte International Stakes, Japan Cup and Breeders' Cup Classic have all been named world's best race since the title was last bestowed on France's flagship race. Regaining the top spot for the Arc is plainly high on France Galop's wish list.
“We believe that opening the competition to all horses was a little bit more fair, and is a way we can measure the true rating of the different horses,” said de Seyssel.
“For us, the [stallion-making race] is obviously for three-year-olds in the spring with the Prix du Jockey Club. So it was quite obvious to us that we have to move on and try to re-become one of the best races in the world by the rating.
“On top of that, the big majority of the board members were favourable to the decision, not that there was unanimity. So that's the reason why we decided to move forward.”
Regarding the timing of the announcement in June, after this year's Arc entries have already been made, de Seyssel pointed to the fact that France Galop's vote in favour of geldings will still need to be ratified by the European Pattern Committee (EPC) in order for the race conditions to be amended.
“There is a process, which is totally normal,” he said. “We will have an informal discussion [at an EPC meeting] in August, and the formal one in February, and at that time, we will be able to say that the Arc will be open to the geldings, but for the time being we have to have this EPC validation.”
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