Invincible Spirit’s half-brother Kodiac made it a day to remember overnight at Royal Ascot siring three Group winners – his two year-olds taking both the Group II Coventry Stakes (6f) and Queen Mary Stakes (5f), while his star older sprinter Hello Youmzain won the Group I Diamond Jubilee Stakes (6f) carrying the colours of leading New Zealand breeders Brendan and Jo Lindsay of Cambridge Stud.
Third in last season's Group I Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot and winner of the Group I Sprint Cup at Haydock subsequently, Hello Youmzain was ready to fire at his first run in 2020 .
Trained by Kevin Ryan and ridden by Kevin Stott he scored a tenacious head win taking his overall record to five wins and two placings from nine starts.
“Hello Youmzain has done it the hard way. He jumped well and his jockey let him find his stride. When it came to the end he battled hard and was very impressive,” said Adam Ryan, son of trainer Kevin.
Cambridge Stud purchased Hello Youmzain last spring with Haras d’Etreham, a partnership that are also the principal owners of multiple Group One winner Almanzor, who divides his time between the Normandy farm and Cambridge.
Hello Youmzain is among four Group I winners for Kodiac, along with middle-distance star Best Solution and Cheveley Park Stakes heroines Fairyland and Tiggy Wiggy.
“Hello Youmzain will definitely come to the Southern Hemisphere next year,” Cambridge Stud chief executive Henry Plumptre Plumptre said.
“He’s a horse of interest to a lot of people with that Danehill blood and the Invincible Spirit blood and that seems to be a mix of the moment for a lot of breeders. He’s got a beautiful pedigree.”
Hello Youmzain is the best of three stakes-winners from Spasha, an unraced half-sister by Shamardal to stakes-winner Persian Majesty.
Further back the family is packed with Australian bred Black Type horses including Group I winner Summer Passage and Group II winners Shania Dane and Man from Uncle.
Kodiac’s other two Group winning two year-olds on the last day at Royal Ascot were the Wesley Ward trained Campanelle, winner of the Queen Mary and Nando Parrado, who won the Coventry at odds of 150-1.
A half-brother by Danehill to Invincible Spirit, Kodiac is the sire of 56 stakes-winners worldwide and his young sire son Prince of Lir, also made his mark at Royal Ascot earlier in the week when his two year-old colt The Lir Jet won the Group II Norfolk Stakes (5f).
Kodiac stands at Tally Ho Stud at a fee of 65,000 euros.
