This year’s Melbourne Cup provided the ultimate fairytale result when Australian bred stayer Half Yours claimed a memorable victory for champion jockey Jamie Melham and popular trainers Tony and Calvin McEvoy, but there has been a tragic twist to this story.
Half Yours was bred in Victoria and sired by the little-known stallion St Jean (IRE), whose star was on the rise with the emergence of his famous son as the nation’s best stayer.
St Jean’s owner Grant Dwyer had been riding the high of spring success and deserved recognition at last for the 15YO son of Teofilo, but is now facing the tragic loss of his much loved horse.
Grant Dwyer issued the following statement on Thursday- It is with great sadness that I wish to announce the passing of our beloved Stallion St. Jean, a mere 3 weeks after his gelded son, Half Yours, won the Melbourne Cup.
After covering a mare, Memory Lane, on Monday the 24th of November, St. Jean was returned to be fed in his paddock where he had lived happily and safely since the autumn of 2017.
On the morning of 25th of November it was discovered, that for reasons unknown, St Jean had run into a fence post overnight, breaking it off at ground level and shattering his near side front leg around the elbow region.
Dr Duncan Pearce BVSc MVS MVSc attended to the Stallion, X-Rays were taken, and we were advised that nothing could be done for the horse. The Stallion was then humanely euthanised.
St. Jean was the first Victorian Stallion to sire a Melbourne Cup winner since 1973 and his achievement created a real buzz around the Victorian Breeding Industry.
His death was very untimely as breeders were only starting to recognise what an incredible pedigree this stallion had. Bookings had started to pick up and he was due to cover a mare by Desert King that afternoon which would have given the same cross as Half Yours. He was due to cover five mares by Desert King this season and had bookings of 35 mares in total.
I lament the fact that more breeders did not take the opportunity to breed to this stallion in the first few seasons at stud at an incredibly low price, when the opportunity was afforded to them.
