English, Irish classic winner Camelot retired

Triple classic winner Camelot has been retired from racing and will stand at

Coolmore for the 2014 breeding season. The son of Montjeu, who was being trained

for the November 2 Breeders' Cup Turf, was found to be lame pulling out Monday

morning. Although not a serious injury, it would mean missing exercise for at

least a week which would preclude him from going to Santa Anita.

An unbeaten Group 1 winner of the Racing Post Trophy as a two-year-old,

Camelot returned to action with a win in the Two Thousand Guineas at Newmarket

where he came from near last with only two furlongs to run. He then became only

the third horse since Nijinsky II to land the Guineas-Derby double following

Nashwan and Sea the Stars when scoring by an eased-down five lengths at Epsom.

Next time out he landed the Irish Derby before losing to Encke when bidding for

Triple Crown glory in the St Leger.

After a seventh-place finish in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, Camelot

developed a serious case of colic which require emergency surgery. He was able

to return to action this year, winning the High Chaparral at The Curragh before

finishing second in the Tattersalls Gold Cup at the same venue and fourth in the

Prince of Wales's at Royal Ascot.

"From the very first time we saw him at the sales we just loved him," trainer

Aidan O'Brien said. "He was the perfect racehorse, a beautiful horse with a

terrific action. Speed, class and a super-intelligent horse to go with it -- he

had it all.

"Unfortunately we never saw the same brilliance on the racecourse as we had

done before his colic operation but he was showing signs of it at home in recent

weeks so it's obviously disappointing that he won't get the opportunity to run

again."

Camelot is out of Kingmambo's Group 3-winning daughter Tarfah. A 525,000

guineas yearling purchase at Newmarket, he was the highest-priced colt to enter

training at Ballydoyle that year.

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