Gavin Ryan

Providing her first-crop sire Ten Sovereigns (Ire) with his breakthrough first black-type winner on Sunday, Anne Marie O'Brien's filly Asean (Ire) was too strong for her peers in the five-furlong Listed Qatar Racing And Equestrian Club Irish EBF Curragh S. Off the mark at the fifth attempt at Cork last month, the Donnacha O'Brien-trained 17-2 shot was anchored in rear early. Asked to sprint by Gavin Ryan a furlong out, the homebred swamped the field to gain the advantage 50 yards out before asserting to beat Alabama (Ire) (No Nay...

Naas produced a pair of TDN Rising Stars on Saturday, with the first being Atlantic Thoroughbreds' Devious (GB) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}--Federation {GB}, by Motivator {GB}) in the five-furlong Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden. Backed into 11-5 favouritism, the Donnacha O'Brien-trained 140,000gns Book 1 graduate was reserved in mid-division early by Gavin Ryan before being allowed to cruise to the front 1 1//2 furlongs down. Soon clear, the powerful chestnut who hails from the family of Attraction (GB) (Efisio {GB}) may have been idling late as Mr Saturday (Ire) (Blue Point {Ire})...

It was a case of heads up, heads down at the conclusion of Saint-Cloud's G1 Criterium International on Saturday, with Coolmore's homebred Galileo duo Proud And Regal (Ire) and Espionage (Ire) engaged in a thrilling tussle in which the former ultimately prevailed. Last seen finishing runner-up in the Sept. 11 G1 Vincent O'Brien National S., the Donnacha O'Brien-trained son of the G1 Fillies' Mile and G1 Falmouth S. heroine Simply Perfect (GB) (Danehill) who captured the July 21 G3 Tyros S. at Leopardstown was asked to keep close tabs on...

Leopardstown's G3 Japan Racing Association Tyros S. had played host to three subsequent Classic-winning sons of Galileo (Ire) in the last eight years and the dream is very much alive for Donnacha O'Brien after the late great's son Proud And Regal (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) led at every step in Thursday's renewal. Off the mark on debut on yielding ground over this seven-furlong trip at The Curragh June 26, the son of Simply Perfect (GB) (Danehill) was sent forward by Gavin Ryan on this livelier surface to boss events and raced...

In as tight a finish as it gets, the result of Wednesday's Listed Tipperary S. was decided merely by the way each of the trio Wodao (Fr) (Showcasing {GB}), Ardad's Great (GB) (Ardad {Ire}) and The Antarctic (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) were bobbing as the photo was taken with the former getting the luck as his nose thrust briefly in front of his two rivals. Admirably consistent since his introduction when fifth in the hot six-furlong Curragh maiden Apr. 10 contested by Tough Talk (Ire) (Kingman {GB}), Little Big Bear (Ire)...

The turn of the year seems like a long time ago but the recollection of goals set, targets to reach or plans made still live fresh in the memory even if a worldwide pandemic may have put paid to some of them. For 20-year-old apprentice jockey Gavin Ryan, though, the course is firmly set. His big aim for the year was to ride out his five-pound claim by the Galway Festival, which he achieved, and now his trajectory is pointing toward the Irish Champion Apprentice title. Ryan has an easy...