John Magnier
Encyclopedia
John Magnier is Ireland's leading thoroughbred
stud
owner and has extensive business interests outside of the horse breeding industry.
Magnier has also been a Senator in the upper house of the Irish Parliament, Seanad Éireann
. He is based at Coolmore Stud
at Fethard
in County Tipperary
, considered one of the world's pre-eminent stallion stations, and a nursery of thoroughbreds.
, County Cork
, and received his formal education at Glenstal Abbey
in County Limerick
but had to leave school at 15 on the death of his father to take charge of the family estate near Fermoy. He showed a remarkable talent for matching bloodlines from an early age and soon gained a reputation as an up and coming stallion master. He later moved to Fethard, County Tipperary
, where he transformed Coolmore Stud
into a multi-million Euro international business. The business is headquartered in County Tipperary where a number of other stud farms are part of an extensive network which includes Longfield and Castlehyde studs. The operation also has branches in Versailles, Kentucky
and at Jerrys Plains, New South Wales, Australia
.
John Magnier began his association with Coolmore in partnership with his father-in-law and champion racehorse trainer, Vincent O'Brien
, and Vernon’s Pools magnate, Robert Sangster
. They developed the best racing horses and breeding stock, mainly by purchasing the progeny of the great Canadian stallion Northern Dancer
. Their forays to the bloodstock auctions at Keeneland Sales
furthered their rising stock at home. Eventually, John Magnier came to head the operation and thus began an upward spiral of success. His racing empire, which became arguably the most successful on the planet, is nowadays powered by a huge string of blue-blooded thoroughbreds trained at Ballydoyle
by Aidan O'Brien
, plus dozens of others in the care of a number of other trainers.
Champion sires to have stood at Coolmore include the incomparable Sadler's Wells
(retired from stud duties in 2008) who was champion sire of Europe on 14 occasions, though his success in his later years was somewhat eclipsed by the astonishing exploits of three other Coolmore stallions, namely Danehill
and his own sons Galileo
and Montjeu
. Other notable Group 1 winners who have turned successfully to stud duties are Danehill Dancer and Giant's Causeway
.
Less successful at Coolmore was George Washington
, winner of the 2,000 Guineas and Queen Elizabeth II Stakes
in 2006. George Washington proved infertile, was returned to racing, and suffered a fatal breakdown in the 2007 Breeders' Cup Classic
. George Washington was replaced at stud by another son of Danehill, Holy Roman Emperor
, removed from training at the start of his three-year-old season. The strength of thoroughbred talent residing at Coolmore is indicated by the fact that nine of the eleven winners of the blue riband of the turf, the Epsom Derby
, between 1998 and 2008 were sired by Coolmore stallions (High Estate, Fairy King, Grand Lodge, Sadler's Wells (twice), Danehill, Montjeu (twice) and Galileo).
. The couple have five children: Tom, John Paul (JP), Michael Vincent (MV), Sam and Katie. Whereas the sons have already made their mark in the business, Katie was married in August 2002 to trainer David Wachman in a high-profile ceremony in the Augustinian Abbey of Fethard.
, Joe Lewis, Michael Tabor
and Derrick Smith has enjoyed phenomenal success. A high profile venture was his stake of 28.89 per cent shareholding in the famous football club, Manchester United F.C.
, which was sold in May 2005 to Malcolm Glazer
, an American
businessman. A personal friendship with manager Alex Ferguson
was tested in a dispute over bloodstock rights to prolific Group 1 winner (seven wins) Rock of Gibraltar
which currently stands at Coolmore.
John Magnier is said to be the most influential man in horseracing and breeding worldwide, even over Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
. While his fortune is in the realms of speculation, The Sunday Times Rich List estimated his wealth at €1 billion (£800 million), although this is very conservative. Coolmore Stud is valued at more than €4 billion alone not to mention his extensive personal property empire across the world and other investments and holdings.
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
stud
Stud (animal)
A stud animal is a registered animal retained for breeding. The terms for the male of a given animal species usually imply that the animal is entire—that is, not castrated—and therefore capable of siring offspring...
owner and has extensive business interests outside of the horse breeding industry.
Magnier has also been a Senator in the upper house of the Irish Parliament, Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann is the upper house of the Oireachtas , which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann . It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its members Senators or Seanadóirí . Unlike Dáil Éireann, it is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members chosen by...
. He is based at Coolmore Stud
Coolmore Stud
Coolmore Stud, in Fethard, South Tipperary in Ireland, is the world's largest breeding operation of thoroughbred racehorses. It was established in 1975....
at Fethard
Fethard
-Constituencies:*Fethard *Fethard...
in County Tipperary
County Tipperary
County Tipperary is a county of Ireland. It is located in the province of Munster and is named after the town of Tipperary. The area of the county does not have a single local authority; local government is split between two authorities. In North Tipperary, part of the Mid-West Region, local...
, considered one of the world's pre-eminent stallion stations, and a nursery of thoroughbreds.
Early life
The son of a County Cork land owner, Magnier was born in FermoyFermoy
Fermoy is a town in County Cork, Ireland. It is situated on the River Blackwater in the south of Ireland. Its population is some 5,800 inhabitants, environs included ....
, County Cork
County Cork
County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...
, and received his formal education at Glenstal Abbey
Glenstal Abbey
Glenstal Abbey is a Benedictine monastery located in Murroe, County Limerick. It is dedicated to Saint Joseph and Saint Columba. The current abbot of the monastery is Dom Patrick Hederman, OSB...
in County Limerick
County Limerick
It is thought that humans had established themselves in the Lough Gur area of the county as early as 3000 BC, while megalithic remains found at Duntryleague date back further to 3500 BC...
but had to leave school at 15 on the death of his father to take charge of the family estate near Fermoy. He showed a remarkable talent for matching bloodlines from an early age and soon gained a reputation as an up and coming stallion master. He later moved to Fethard, County Tipperary
County Tipperary
County Tipperary is a county of Ireland. It is located in the province of Munster and is named after the town of Tipperary. The area of the county does not have a single local authority; local government is split between two authorities. In North Tipperary, part of the Mid-West Region, local...
, where he transformed Coolmore Stud
Coolmore Stud
Coolmore Stud, in Fethard, South Tipperary in Ireland, is the world's largest breeding operation of thoroughbred racehorses. It was established in 1975....
into a multi-million Euro international business. The business is headquartered in County Tipperary where a number of other stud farms are part of an extensive network which includes Longfield and Castlehyde studs. The operation also has branches in Versailles, Kentucky
Versailles, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 7,511 people, 3,160 households, and 2,110 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 3,330 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 88.18% White, 8.67% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.35%...
and at Jerrys Plains, New South Wales, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
John Magnier began his association with Coolmore in partnership with his father-in-law and champion racehorse trainer, Vincent O'Brien
Vincent O'Brien
Dr. Michael Vincent O'Brien was an Irish race horse trainer from Churchtown, County Cork, Ireland. In 2003 he was voted the greatest influence in horse racing history, according to a worldwide vote hosted by the Racing Post newspaper...
, and Vernon’s Pools magnate, Robert Sangster
Robert Sangster
Robert Edmund Sangster was a British businessman, thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder. He was British flat racing Champion Owner five times and his horses won many major races, including two Epsom Derbys, four Irish Derbys, two French Derbys, three Prix de l'Arc de Triomphes and a Melbourne...
. They developed the best racing horses and breeding stock, mainly by purchasing the progeny of the great Canadian stallion Northern Dancer
Northern Dancer
Northern Dancer was a Canadian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and the most successful sire of the 20th Century. The National Thoroughbred Racing Association calls him "one of the most influential sires in Thoroughbred history"....
. Their forays to the bloodstock auctions at Keeneland Sales
Keeneland Sales
The Keeneland Sales is an American Thoroughbred auction house in Lexington, Kentucky founded in 1935 as a nonprofit racing/auction entity on 147 acres of farmland west of Lexington, which had been owned by Jack O. Keene...
furthered their rising stock at home. Eventually, John Magnier came to head the operation and thus began an upward spiral of success. His racing empire, which became arguably the most successful on the planet, is nowadays powered by a huge string of blue-blooded thoroughbreds trained at Ballydoyle
Ballydoyle
Ballydoyle is a racehorse training facility located in County Tipperary in Ireland. It is a sister thoroughbred facility to Coolmore Stud, and both are owned by John Magnier...
by Aidan O'Brien
Aidan O'Brien
Aidan Patrick O'Brien is an Irish horse racing trainer. Since 1996, he has been the private trainer at Ballydoyle Stables near Cashel in County Tipperary for John Magnier and his Coolmore Stud associates....
, plus dozens of others in the care of a number of other trainers.
Champion sires to have stood at Coolmore include the incomparable Sadler's Wells
Sadler's Wells (horse)
Sadler's Wells was a Thoroughbred racehorse that was later a leading sire in France, Great Britain & Ireland and North America during the 1990s. He was foaled in 1981 in the United States, but achieved most of his racing and breeding fame in Europe....
(retired from stud duties in 2008) who was champion sire of Europe on 14 occasions, though his success in his later years was somewhat eclipsed by the astonishing exploits of three other Coolmore stallions, namely Danehill
Danehill (horse)
Danehill was a Thoroughbred racehorse who was bred in the United States. During his phenomenal stud career Danehill became a champion sire on both sides of the Equator...
and his own sons Galileo
Galileo (horse)
Galileo is a retired Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and active sire. He is best known for winning the Epsom Derby, Irish Derby Stakes, and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes in 2001 and for his rivalry with the Godolphin champion Fantastic Light...
and Montjeu
Montjeu
Montjeu , is a thoroughbred horse racing World Champion colt and sire of champions. Sired by Sadler's Wells from the dam Floripedes, Montjeu is a grandson of Northern Dancer....
. Other notable Group 1 winners who have turned successfully to stud duties are Danehill Dancer and Giant's Causeway
Giant's Causeway (horse)
Giant's Causeway is a Kentucky-bred thoroughbred racehorse who competed primarily in Europe. In 2000, he won five straight Group One races. His performance that year earned him European Horse of the Year honors....
.
Less successful at Coolmore was George Washington
George Washington (horse)
George Washington was a thoroughbred racehorse foaled in Ireland by champion sire Danehill out of Bordighera, also the dam of the high class colt Grandera. Bred by Roy and Gretchen Jackson, he was trained at Ballydoyle by Aidan O'Brien and owned by Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith...
, winner of the 2,000 Guineas and Queen Elizabeth II Stakes
Queen Elizabeth II Stakes
The Queen Elizabeth II Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile , and it is now scheduled to take place each year in October. As of 2011, it is run on Champions Day as the final race...
in 2006. George Washington proved infertile, was returned to racing, and suffered a fatal breakdown in the 2007 Breeders' Cup Classic
Breeders' Cup Classic
The Breeders' Cup Classic is a Grade I Weight for Age thoroughbred horse race for 3 year olds and older run at a distance of 1¼ miles on dirt. It is held annually at a different racetrack as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships...
. George Washington was replaced at stud by another son of Danehill, Holy Roman Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor (horse)
Holy Roman Emperor, sired by Danehill out of a Secretariat mare, was a leading two-year-old winning four races from seven runs racehorse in Europe in 2006...
, removed from training at the start of his three-year-old season. The strength of thoroughbred talent residing at Coolmore is indicated by the fact that nine of the eleven winners of the blue riband of the turf, the Epsom Derby
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...
, between 1998 and 2008 were sired by Coolmore stallions (High Estate, Fairy King, Grand Lodge, Sadler's Wells (twice), Danehill, Montjeu (twice) and Galileo).
Personal life
He is married to Susan, the daughter of Irish racehorse-trainer Vincent O'BrienVincent O'Brien
Dr. Michael Vincent O'Brien was an Irish race horse trainer from Churchtown, County Cork, Ireland. In 2003 he was voted the greatest influence in horse racing history, according to a worldwide vote hosted by the Racing Post newspaper...
. The couple have five children: Tom, John Paul (JP), Michael Vincent (MV), Sam and Katie. Whereas the sons have already made their mark in the business, Katie was married in August 2002 to trainer David Wachman in a high-profile ceremony in the Augustinian Abbey of Fethard.
Business ventures
Outside the equine business, John Magnier has proven to be an astute investor and together with associates J. P. McManus, Dermot DesmondDermot Desmond
Dermot Desmond is an Irish businessman and financier. He is estimated to be worth €1.45billion and is ranked by the Sunday Independent as the sixth-richest person in Ireland.-Background and education:...
, Joe Lewis, Michael Tabor
Michael Tabor
Michael B. Tabor is a businessman and owner of Thoroughbred racehorses.-Thoroughbred racing career:...
and Derrick Smith has enjoyed phenomenal success. A high profile venture was his stake of 28.89 per cent shareholding in the famous football club, Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
, which was sold in May 2005 to Malcolm Glazer
Malcolm Glazer
Malcolm Irving Glazer is an American businessman and sports team owner. He is the president and chief executive officer of First Allied Corporation, a holding company for his varied business interests, most notably in the food processing industry...
, an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
businessman. A personal friendship with manager Alex Ferguson
Alex Ferguson
Sir Alexander Chapman "Alex" Ferguson, CBE is a Scottish association football manager and former player, currently managing Manchester United, where he has been in charge since 1986...
was tested in a dispute over bloodstock rights to prolific Group 1 winner (seven wins) Rock of Gibraltar
Rock of Gibraltar (horse)
Rock of Gibraltar is a Champion racehorse and stallion owned by Coolmore, for whom he currently stands in Ireland and Australia .He is named after the Rock of Gibraltar, a monolithic limestone promontory located in Gibraltar on...
which currently stands at Coolmore.
John Magnier is said to be the most influential man in horseracing and breeding worldwide, even over Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum , also Sheikh Mohammed, , is the Prime Minister and Vice President of the United Arab Emirates , and absolute monarch of Dubai.-Personal life and education:...
. While his fortune is in the realms of speculation, The Sunday Times Rich List estimated his wealth at €1 billion (£800 million), although this is very conservative. Coolmore Stud is valued at more than €4 billion alone not to mention his extensive personal property empire across the world and other investments and holdings.