It has been a stellar year of horse racing action across the globe, but some horses have reached their peaks in 2024, setting esteemed records in the process.
It will be the end of the road for some of the top-performers, as they will retire to stud and enjoy their retirement.
Meanwhile, the dreams of some will live on, as they will continue in training hoping to exceed what they have already achieved on track in 2024. But, who have been the standout performers in the sport of horse racing this year?
Thorpedo Anna
Kenneth McPeek has dared to dream this season, and a big reason for that has been down to the performances of superstar filly Thorpedo Anna. The four-year-old was overlooked by many as a Kentucky Oaks contender at the end of 2023 after being well beaten in the G2 Golden Rod Stakes.
However, she took her form to new levels throughout 2024, beginning with a dominant four-length win over West Omaha in the G2 Fantasy Stakes.
For many, her standout win remains her four-length demolition of the field in the G1 Kentucky Oaks, before she quickly added further top-level prizes against her own sex in the forms of the G1 Acorn and G1 Coaching Club American Oaks.
A shot of history waited at Saratoga, but she fell a head short to Fierceness in the G1 Travers. Her memorable campaign wrapped up with a straightforward win in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Distaff, and for many, she is the leading chance to be named American Horse of the Year.
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Sierra Leone
Chad Brown always promised that there was a major win in Sierra Leone, and his prayers were finally answered at the 2024 Breeders’ Cup.
Sierra Leone was the standout performer in the Classic, reversing the form with Fierceness by beating his rival by just over a length. Everything fell perfectly for the three-year-old on that day at Del Mar, and his fast-finishing style really suited this year’s high-quality race.
Sierra Leone has won four of his nine career starts, and was placed in the top three on all seven starts in 2024, including when a heart breaking second in the G1 Kentucky Derby.
Everything finally clicked at Del Mar, and connections will be targeting more top level prizes in 2025, as Coolmore revealed that their superstar three-year-old will be staying in training in November.
Bluestocking
Over in Europe, there was a red-letter day in Paris for the Ralph Beckett team, as the trainer who had been knocking on the door at the very highest level for a long time finally got his major breakthrough in the G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.
Bluestocking has been a superstar for the stable throughout her career, winning five from 13 starts on the turf. However, 2024 was all about her resurgence back to the top level of the sport after a disappointing three-year-old campaign.
The year couldn’t have got off to a better start in the G2 Middleton Fillies’ Stakes, beating Free Wind by six lengths, before scoring by just under a length from Emily Upjohn in the G1 Pretty Polly.
A storming effort saw her finish an excellent second in the G1 King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes, before she came into her own on more testing ground in France, wrapped up by a one-length win over Aventure in the G1 Arc. Bluestocking was retired at the end of October.
City Of Troy
Aidan O’Brien is no stranger to training horses at the top of the sport, but even the legendary Irishman was excited about the campaign mapped out for City Of Troy following a dominant two-year-old campaign. It would be easy to say that things didn’t get off to the best start, as he bombed out in the G1 2,000 Guineas, finishing ninth.
But, just as his stablemate Auguste Rodin had 12 months earlier, City of Troy stormed back to form in the G1 Epsom Derby, finishing nearly three lengths clear of Ambiente Friendly. Further Grade One victories would follow in the forms of the G1 Coral Eclipse and G1 Juddmonte International, with the latter being arguably his best performance under rules when beating Calandagan by a lengths.
Sights were set high for the son of Justify, as a first effort on the dirt in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Classic was set. His inclusion ensured international attention for America’s most lucrative race, with O’Brien chasing his first winner in the race.
However, the three-year-old never looked comfortable on the dirt, finishing 13 lengths behind Sierra Leone, but still a respectable eighth, ahead of proven dirt performers such as Derma Sotogake and Ushba Tesoro. His performances in 2024 will live long in the memory, but the decision was made before the Classic that the start in the U.S. would be his final appearance on track.