Exceller
Encyclopedia
Exceller is widely considered one of the best horses to race in the United States
not to win a year-end championship. Despite his exemplary achievements as a racehorse, and his unique accomplishment in being the only horse to ever defeat two Triple Crown
winners in the same race (and only the second ever to do so in his career), Exceller is now remembered more for the tragic manner of his death and the horse rescue movement it helped inspire.
, he was sold as a yearling for approximately $27,000 to Nelson Bunker Hunt
. Hunt's advisors figured that a son of Europe
an champion stayer Vaguely Noble
with long and upright pasterns, would be better suited to European racing and sent him to France
.
, and later by Maurice Zilber
, Exceller didn't accomplish much racing as a two-year-old but blossomed as the distances got longer during his three-year-old season. While stablemates Empery and Youth were taking down the French and English Derbys
, Exceller pounded out wins in the grueling Prix Royal-Oak
(run at 1 7/8 mile) and the Group 1
Grand Prix de Paris
. Shipped to England
at age four, he wound up a half-length behind The Minstrel
and Orange Bay in one of the most exciting King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes ever run and annexed the Coronation Cup. Sent on to Woodbine Racetrack
in Toronto
, Canada
, Exceller won the Canadian International.
and placed in the care of Charlie Whittingham
. At first, Whittingham didn't have high expectations for a horse who walked stiffly on arrival and seemed the worse for wear. However, a little time off and some of Charlie Whittingham's expertise soon had Exceller competing and winning against some of the best horses in America.
As a five-year-old in 1978, Exceller had his best season on the racecourse, winning 7 of 10 starts, all in top company, on both dirt and turf racetracks. After claiming the Hollywood Gold Cup
, Hollywood Invitational Turf Handicap, San Juan Capistrano Handicap, Sunset Handicap
, Oak Tree Invitational Stakes, Exceller had his crowning moment. With Willie Shoemaker
in the saddle, Exceller came from 22 lengths back to beat Triple Crown
winners Seattle Slew
and Affirmed
in the Jockey Club Gold Cup
. To be fair, Affirmed
's saddle had slipped, effectively taking him out of the race, and Seattle Slew
had been hanging up almost suicidal fractions on the lead, but Exceller still powered through the Belmont Park
mud to win by a nose.
Exceller came back again at age six and managed some nice placings, but was not quite the same horse.
In sum, he had won 15 of 33 starts, including 13 stakes races, and placed in 11 more in France
, England
, Canada
, and the United States
and had earned $1,654,003. He and Noor
were the only horses in history to defeat two U.S. Triple Crown
winners, and Exceller was the only one to pull off this feat in a single race. Most racing writers agree that, along with Gallant Man
and Lure
, he may have been the best horse to race in the United States
and not win a year-end championship.
Exceller ran best, like many European horses, "covered up"—deep in the pack early. In the late stages of the race he produced a powerful burst of speed and caught the leaders in the stretch. From a race enthusiast's point of view, Exceller's final quarter mile times are nothing short of amazing: he regularly sprinted the final quarter in under 25 seconds. His fractions of 23 2/5 seconds at the end of the Hollywood Gold Cup
and Oak Tree Invitational is very fast as 23 seconds is considered a quick first quarter in such a race.
in Lexington, Kentucky
for the 1980 breeding season. He shared a small stallion barn with his sire Vaguely Noble
and classic-winning champion stablemate, Youth
. In 1986 (and probably before), he stood for a $50,000 stud fee, the second-highest listed fee at Gainesway at the time.
As time went on, however, it became obvious that Exceller was never going to be a leading sire. By 1991, his stud fee had plummeted to $2,500.
and Exceller was shipped back across the Atlantic Ocean
. He sired a few crops of foals, then was diagnosed with a mysterious infection that forced his removal from stud service for several years. When Exceller's owner went bankrupt, the horse was moved to a small farm where he remained for a year before owner Göte Östlund ordered him killed. He was taken to a slaughterhouse
and killed for meat.
winners and 40 stakes horses, none of them of his quality. His runners were headed by the fillies Slew's Exceller and Squan Song.
Exceller was elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
in 1999. Although their website does, the plaque in the museum makes no mention of the manner of his death, only that he died in 1997. His fate, essentially unheard of for an American stallion of his racing class, generated debate over the proper treatment of race horses after their careers on the track were over.
Today, a number of grassroots organizations, such as The Exceller Fund, ReRun
, The Communication Alliance to Network Thoroughbred Ex-Racehorses (CANTER) and Old Friends
, among others, take inspiration from Exceller's story as they work to purchase and retrain former racehorses for new careers. In addition, had the horse been in the United States, he may well have been given a proper home at the Kentucky Horse Park
's Hall of Champions in Lexington
as was done after the retired champion thoroughbred Cigar
was found to be infertile at stud. Or, the owner might have been able to have handed him over to the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation
in Shrewsbury
, New Jersey
, the world's largest and most respected organization devoted to equine rescue.
Like Exceller, Kentucky Derby
winner Ferdinand
ended up in a slaughterhouse in Japan in 2002.
In the Blood-Horse magazine ranking of the top 100 U.S. thoroughbred champions of the 20th Century, Exceller was ranked #96.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
not to win a year-end championship. Despite his exemplary achievements as a racehorse, and his unique accomplishment in being the only horse to ever defeat two Triple Crown
Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing consists of three races for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses. Winning all three of these Thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplishment of a Thoroughbred racehorse...
winners in the same race (and only the second ever to do so in his career), Exceller is now remembered more for the tragic manner of his death and the horse rescue movement it helped inspire.
Background
Exceller was foaled on May 12, 1973 in Kentucky. Bred by Mrs. Charles W. EngelhardJane Engelhard
Jane Engelhard was an US philanthropist, best known for her marriage to billionaire industrialist Charles W...
, he was sold as a yearling for approximately $27,000 to Nelson Bunker Hunt
Nelson Bunker Hunt
Nelson Bunker Hunt is an American oil company executive. He is best known as a former billionaire whose fortune collapsed after he and his brother William Herbert Hunt tried but failed to corner the world market in silver. He is also a successful thoroughbred horse breeder.-Personal:Hunt was born...
. Hunt's advisors figured that a son of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an champion stayer Vaguely Noble
Vaguely Noble
Vaguely Noble was an Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in the United Kingdom and France. The colt is best known as the winner of the 1968 Group one Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe when he defeated the best horses from England, France, Ireland and Italy...
with long and upright pasterns, would be better suited to European racing and sent him to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
European Racing Career
Trained at first by Francois Mathet, who had been the trainer for François DupréFrançois Dupré
François Dupré was a French, hotelier, art collector, and owner of the thoroughbred horse breeding and racing farm, Haras d'Ouilly....
, and later by Maurice Zilber
Maurice Zilber
Maurice Zilber was a thoroughbred horse trainer born and raised in Cairo, Egypt to a Turkish mother and a French-Hungarian father...
, Exceller didn't accomplish much racing as a two-year-old but blossomed as the distances got longer during his three-year-old season. While stablemates Empery and Youth were taking down the French and English Derbys
Epsom Derby
The Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
, Exceller pounded out wins in the grueling Prix Royal-Oak
Prix Royal-Oak
The Prix Royal-Oak is a Group 1 flat horse race in France which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 3,100 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year in late October.-History:The event was established in 1861, and it was initially...
(run at 1 7/8 mile) and the Group 1
Conditions races
Conditions races are horse races where the weights carried by the runners are laid down by the conditions attached to the race. Weights are allocated according to; the sex of the runners, with female runners carrying less weight than males; the age of the runners, with younger horses receiving...
Grand Prix de Paris
Grand Prix de Paris
The Grand Prix de Paris is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year in July.-History:...
. Shipped to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
at age four, he wound up a half-length behind The Minstrel
The Minstrel
The Minstrel was a champion Thoroughbred racehorse in Great Britain and Ireland. His performances led to him becoming the Horse of the Year in the United Kingdom, Horse of the Year in Ireland and being inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.Foaled at E.P...
and Orange Bay in one of the most exciting King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes ever run and annexed the Coronation Cup. Sent on to Woodbine Racetrack
Woodbine Racetrack
Woodbine Racetrack is a Canadian racetrack for Thoroughbred horse races located at 555 Rexdale Blvd. in the city of Toronto, Ontario. It is the only horseracing track in North America which stages, or is capable of staging, thoroughbred and standardbred horseracing programs on the same day...
in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Exceller won the Canadian International.
American Racing Career
In the middle of 1977, Exceller was shipped to CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and placed in the care of Charlie Whittingham
Charlie Whittingham
Charles Edward Whittingham was an American thoroughbred race horse trainer who is one of the most acclaimed trainers in U.S. racing history....
. At first, Whittingham didn't have high expectations for a horse who walked stiffly on arrival and seemed the worse for wear. However, a little time off and some of Charlie Whittingham's expertise soon had Exceller competing and winning against some of the best horses in America.
As a five-year-old in 1978, Exceller had his best season on the racecourse, winning 7 of 10 starts, all in top company, on both dirt and turf racetracks. After claiming the Hollywood Gold Cup
Hollywood Gold Cup
The Hollywood Gold Cup is an American Grade I stakes race for thoroughbred horses inaugurated in 1938 at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California. It was run as a handicap race until 1997 when it was switched to weight-for-age conditions...
, Hollywood Invitational Turf Handicap, San Juan Capistrano Handicap, Sunset Handicap
Sunset Handicap
The Sunset Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the third week of July at Hollywood Park Racetrack in inglewood, California. The Grade III event is open to horses, age three and up, willing to race one and one-half miles on turf....
, Oak Tree Invitational Stakes, Exceller had his crowning moment. With Willie Shoemaker
Willie Shoemaker
William Lee Shoemaker was an American jockey.Referred to as "Bill", "Willie," and "The Shoe", William Lee Shoemaker was born in the town of Fabens, Texas. At 2.5 pounds , Shoemaker was so small at birth that he was not expected to survive the night...
in the saddle, Exceller came from 22 lengths back to beat Triple Crown
Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing consists of three races for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses. Winning all three of these Thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplishment of a Thoroughbred racehorse...
winners Seattle Slew
Seattle Slew
Seattle Slew was an American Thoroughbred race horse who won the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing in 1977, the tenth of eleven horses to accomplish the feat. He remains the only horse to win the Triple Crown while undefeated. In the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S...
and Affirmed
Affirmed
Affirmed was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who was the eleventh and most recent winner of the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing...
in the Jockey Club Gold Cup
Jockey Club Gold Cup
The Jockey Club Gold Cup, established in 1919, is a prestigious thoroughbred flat race open to horses of either gender three-years-old and up. It is typically the main event of the fall meeting at Belmont Park, just as the Belmont Stakes is of the spring meeting and the Travers Stakes is of the...
. To be fair, Affirmed
Affirmed
Affirmed was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who was the eleventh and most recent winner of the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing...
's saddle had slipped, effectively taking him out of the race, and Seattle Slew
Seattle Slew
Seattle Slew was an American Thoroughbred race horse who won the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing in 1977, the tenth of eleven horses to accomplish the feat. He remains the only horse to win the Triple Crown while undefeated. In the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S...
had been hanging up almost suicidal fractions on the lead, but Exceller still powered through the Belmont Park
Belmont Park
Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse-racing facility located in Elmont in the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, on Long Island adjoining New York City. It first opened on May 4, 1905...
mud to win by a nose.
Exceller came back again at age six and managed some nice placings, but was not quite the same horse.
In sum, he had won 15 of 33 starts, including 13 stakes races, and placed in 11 more in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and had earned $1,654,003. He and Noor
Noor (horse)
Noor was an Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse Champion who competed successfully in the United Kingdom and the United States. Given the Arabic name meaning "Light", Noor was sired by five-time U.S. leading sire Nasrullah...
were the only horses in history to defeat two U.S. Triple Crown
Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing consists of three races for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses. Winning all three of these Thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplishment of a Thoroughbred racehorse...
winners, and Exceller was the only one to pull off this feat in a single race. Most racing writers agree that, along with Gallant Man
Gallant Man
Gallant Man was a thoroughbred racehorse, named for a horse in a Don Ameche movie.- Career at Kentucky Derby:Gallant Man is remembered primarily for his upset loss in the 1957 Kentucky Derby...
and Lure
Lure (horse)
Lure is an American Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred and owned by Claiborne Farm in Paris, Kentucky, he is a son of the leading stallion Danzig, who in turn was sired by Hall of Famer and prominent sire Northern Dancer...
, he may have been the best horse to race in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and not win a year-end championship.
Exceller ran best, like many European horses, "covered up"—deep in the pack early. In the late stages of the race he produced a powerful burst of speed and caught the leaders in the stretch. From a race enthusiast's point of view, Exceller's final quarter mile times are nothing short of amazing: he regularly sprinted the final quarter in under 25 seconds. His fractions of 23 2/5 seconds at the end of the Hollywood Gold Cup
Hollywood Gold Cup
The Hollywood Gold Cup is an American Grade I stakes race for thoroughbred horses inaugurated in 1938 at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California. It was run as a handicap race until 1997 when it was switched to weight-for-age conditions...
and Oak Tree Invitational is very fast as 23 seconds is considered a quick first quarter in such a race.
Stud Career
Exceller was syndicated and retired to stud at Gainesway FarmGainesway Farm
Gainesway Farm is an American Thoroughbred horse breeding business in Lexington, Kentucky. It was originally called Greentree Farms.The 1,500 acre property has been home to sires such as Youth and Exceller and numerous others who are buried on the property...
in Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
for the 1980 breeding season. He shared a small stallion barn with his sire Vaguely Noble
Vaguely Noble
Vaguely Noble was an Irish-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who competed in the United Kingdom and France. The colt is best known as the winner of the 1968 Group one Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe when he defeated the best horses from England, France, Ireland and Italy...
and classic-winning champion stablemate, Youth
Youth (horse)
Youth was an American-bred French Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred and raced by Texas oilman, Nelson Bunker Hunt, Youth was sired by U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee Ack Ack...
. In 1986 (and probably before), he stood for a $50,000 stud fee, the second-highest listed fee at Gainesway at the time.
As time went on, however, it became obvious that Exceller was never going to be a leading sire. By 1991, his stud fee had plummeted to $2,500.
Death
In 1991, the syndicate was bought out by a breeder from SwedenSweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Exceller was shipped back across the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
. He sired a few crops of foals, then was diagnosed with a mysterious infection that forced his removal from stud service for several years. When Exceller's owner went bankrupt, the horse was moved to a small farm where he remained for a year before owner Göte Östlund ordered him killed. He was taken to a slaughterhouse
Slaughterhouse
A slaughterhouse or abattoir is a facility where animals are killed for consumption as food products.Approximately 45-50% of the animal can be turned into edible products...
and killed for meat.
Legacy
Exceller left behind 16 crops of foals in the United States, including 19 stakesGraded stakes race
A graded stakes race is a term applied since 1973 by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay...
winners and 40 stakes horses, none of them of his quality. His runners were headed by the fillies Slew's Exceller and Squan Song.
Exceller was elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
in 1999. Although their website does, the plaque in the museum makes no mention of the manner of his death, only that he died in 1997. His fate, essentially unheard of for an American stallion of his racing class, generated debate over the proper treatment of race horses after their careers on the track were over.
Today, a number of grassroots organizations, such as The Exceller Fund, ReRun
Rerun
A rerun or repeat is a re-airing of an episode of a radio or television broadcast. The invention of the rerun is generally credited to Desi Arnaz. There are two types of reruns—those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Reruns can also be, as the...
, The Communication Alliance to Network Thoroughbred Ex-Racehorses (CANTER) and Old Friends
Old Friends Equine
Old Friends is a nonprofit equine retirement facility in Georgetown, Kentucky. It is the only thoroughbred retirement facility in the United States that accepts stallions....
, among others, take inspiration from Exceller's story as they work to purchase and retrain former racehorses for new careers. In addition, had the horse been in the United States, he may well have been given a proper home at the Kentucky Horse Park
Kentucky Horse Park
Kentucky Horse Park is a working horse farm and an educational theme park opened in 1978 in Lexington, Kentucky. It is located off Kentucky State Highway 1973 and Interstate 75 in northern Fayette County in the United States...
's Hall of Champions in Lexington
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
as was done after the retired champion thoroughbred Cigar
Cigar (horse)
Cigar , is a retired American Thoroughbred racehorse, who in 1995 and 1996 became the first American racehorse racing against top-class competition to win 16 consecutive races since the Triple Crown winner, Citation did so in 1948 and 1950...
was found to be infertile at stud. Or, the owner might have been able to have handed him over to the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation
Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation
The Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation is an American organization founded in 1982, whose mission is stated to be: "To save Thoroughbred horses no longer able to compete on the racetrack from possible neglect, abuse and slaughter."...
in Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury, New Jersey
Shrewsbury is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 3,809....
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, the world's largest and most respected organization devoted to equine rescue.
Like Exceller, Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
winner Ferdinand
Ferdinand (horse)
Ferdinand was a Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1986 Kentucky Derby and 1987 Breeders' Cup Classic. He was voted the 1987 Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year.He entered stud in 1989 and was later sold to a breeding farm in Japan in 1994....
ended up in a slaughterhouse in Japan in 2002.
In the Blood-Horse magazine ranking of the top 100 U.S. thoroughbred champions of the 20th Century, Exceller was ranked #96.