Irish National Stud

The Irish National Stud has reported interest among breeders in newbie stallion Arizona Blaze to be "very strong" and revealed that Amo Racing, whose colours the horse carried to Group 1 glory, will be sending up to 45 mares to the young stallion in his debut season.  A tough and classy sprinter, Arizona Blaze landed the Group 1 Flying Five Stakes at the Curragh last season. That was the sixth win of his glittering career that saw him amass close to €1m in prize-money.  All six of those wins were...

Michael "Daffer" Kelly, a longtime stallion man at the Irish National Stud, passed away peacefully on March 5. Kelly was synonymous with many of the Irish National Stud's stallions over the years and was particularly associated with the outstanding sire Invincible Spirit, whom he handled throughout the horse's distinguished stud career. A respected and familiar figure to breeders and visitors alike, Kelly was widely admired for his horsemanship and dedication. Having joined the Irish National Stud in 1988, Kelly devoted his career to the Kildare operation. Said Irish National Stud...

Arizona Blaze, a winner of the G1 Flying Five Stakes, has his first mares scanned in foal. The Irish National Stud resident stands for €12,500 this year. Elegant Madame (Inns Of Court), a half-sister to G1 Middle Park Stakes-placed Summer Sands (Coach House), is carrying to the son of Sergei Prokofiev. She is from the family of G2 Coventry Stakes hero Hellvelyn. Another in foal mare is Hi Milady (Sir Prancealot), a half-sister to G3 Anglesey Stakes second Hard Yards (Moss Vale), while Alumni Lia (Australia), from the family of...

Tom and Noreen Quinlan's Athnid Stud has welcomed the first reported foal by the multiple Group 1-placed sprinter Shouldvebeenaring. The colt is out of the unraced Equiano mare Irish Madam, who is the dam of three winners from as many runners to date, including recent Dundalk scorer How'sthebai (Bated Breath). Irish Madam herself is a full-sister to the G1 Sprint Cup runner-up Strath Burn. The Irish National Stud's director of sales Gary Swift described the new arrival as "an excellent colt for Shoulvebeenaring [with] good bone, great depth at his...

Were you part of the INS Class of 1976 or 2001? In June, the Irish National Stud is hosting a get-together for all individuals who embarked on the Thoroughbred Breeding Management course in either of those years. If interested in attending the reunion, all relevant parties should get in touch at achannon@irishnationalstud.ie or +353 45 521251. Back in 1976, the following trainees from Ireland were John Armstrong, Gertrude Brereton, William De Burgh, Mark Dixon, Noal Kennedy, Miceal Magill, Marion Mitchell, Elizabeth O'Neill, Amanda Power Smith and Simon Treacy. France was...

Cathal Beale reflects on a momentous run of sales results for the Irish National Stud as well offering his thoughts on new addition to the stallion roster Arizona Blaze Credit where credit is due, the Irish National Stud knocked it out of the park at this year's breeding stock sales. The stud netted just shy of €2 million at the Goffs November Foal Sale. That haul placed the Irish National Stud second only to the Castlebridge Consignment by €46,500, despite selling 33 fewer foals than that outfit. What was most...

The Goffs November Foal Sale is considered by many to be the jewel in the crown for Goffs - certainly from an Irish perspective - and Tuesday's trade, which followed on from a strong curtain-raiser on Monday, went some way to confirming that opinion.  Despite some of the best foals not being due into the ring until Wednesday, trade at the Kildare venue this week has been robust at every level. It's not exactly a secret at this stage that the foal sales at Goffs are popular among buyers but,...

The Irish National Stud has announced the Thoroughbred Breeding Management Class of 2026, comprising a diverse cohort of 26 students representing countries including the United States, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Japan, India, France, UK and Ireland. The six-month programme provides students with knowledge and skills in all aspects of Thoroughbred breeding and management, covering key areas such as equine breeding, mare and stallion management, foaling procedures, pedigree analysis and equine welfare. "We are once again delighted by the outstanding quality of applicants this year and the Class of 2026...

Group 1-winning sprinter Arizona Blaze (Sergei Prokofiev) has been retired by Amo Racing and will stand at the Irish National Stud next year. His fee has been set at €12,500.    An impressive winner of the first two-year-old maiden of the season in March 2024, Arizona Blaze quickly established himself with a defeat of the subsequent Classic winner Camille Pissarro in the Group 3 Marble Hill Stakes at the Curragh in May.   Over the remainder of his juvenile career, he continued to match the best two-year-olds around with a succession of...

Adrian Keatley trainee Chairmanfourtimes (Nando Parrado) had annexed one of six prior starts heading into Friday's Listed British EBF Stallions Harry Rosebery Stakes at Ayr and became his freshman sire's first black-type winner with a determined victory in the five-furlong contest. "I'm delighted for Andy [Finneran] for this horse to win today," said Keatley. "The owners had a bad day yesterday [with the fatal injury of Flying Finn], so this will give them the lift they require. We think he's probably a proper five-furlong horse even though he was a...

The board of the Gerry Dilger Equine Scholarship Foundation has selected Chance McKeever and Mark Schrenger as recipients of its awards granted for the 2026 Thoroughbred Breeding Management Course at the Irish National Stud. McKeever, a Lexington, Kentucky native is the son of Grade I-winning trainer Andrew McKeever and has gained track experience as an assistant to his father at Keeneland and with Michael McCarthy. He is currently employed at Hunter Valley Farm and has prepped yearlings at Springhouse Farm. "I am delighted to have been awarded this scholarship, and,...

Twenty-four students from the Irish National Stud's Thoroughbred Breeding Management course marked the completion of the six-month programme with a graduation ceremony on Friday, June 27. The event was hosted by well-known industry figure Leo Powell, with the family and friends of the graduating class among those in attendance at the County Kildare stud farm, as well as other respected figures from the Thoroughbred industry. A number of students were recognised for their exceptional performance and contribution over the duration of the course, including: Ava Banahan (Co. Kildare, Ireland) -...