Racehorse TALK

Sea The Stars storms clear in the Derby to extend the remarkable Classic run of his dam, Urban Sea

PICTURE: EDWARD WHITAKER

How legend of 'goddess' Urban Sea lives on

THE trophy for this year's Derby, which depicted Arthur Budgett standing with his Derby-winning half-brothers Blakeney and Morston, could not have been more apt after Christopher Tsui's homebred Sea The Stars strode away with the Epsom showpiece to emulate his half-brother, the 2001 winner Galileo.

Sadly, their dam Urban Sea died in March after foaling an Invincible Spirit colt at the Irish National Stud but she leaves behind an incredible legacy, not just for the Tsui family but for the whole breeding industry.

Sea The Stars is the fourth winner at the top level out of the mare following Galileo, Black Sam Bellamy, and My Typhoon, a daughter of Giant's Causeway who became the most expensive filly foal eversold when falling for 1.8m gns to Live Oak Stud in 2002. Another two fillies, Melikah and All Too Beautiful, came close to Classic glory when finishing third and second in the 2000 and 2004 Oaks.

Sea The Stars at three months old

PICTURE: Irish National Stud

With Galileo since mirroring his own sire Sadler's Wells as champion, appeal for Sea The Stars as a stud prospect is immense. Yet the Hong Kong-based Tsui is content to enjoy the moment and the talent of a horse who presented him with a Derby victory at the young age of 27.

"Words cannot describe how winning the Derby felt," he says. "It was a magnificent win, a performance of sheer class and the fact that the only horses in the past40 years to achieve the Guineas/Derby double were Nijinsky and Nashwan makes it even more special. It was a magical moment for us because Urban Sea's legend is carrying on through Sea The Stars."

The Tsui family's association with Urban Sea stretches back to 1990 when Christopher's father, Hong Kong businessman David, purchased the daughter of Miswaki following her Fr280,000 sale as a yearling at the Deauville August Sale. Sent to Jean Lesbordes, she went on to capture eight races headed by the 1993 Arc, an event which unsurprisingly left a deep impression on the young Tsui.

"I learnt how to ride at Jean Lesbordes' yard during the weekends and I first met Urban Sea in her boxwhich had formerly been All Along's. As my mother preferred to work behind the scenes, I was the one who attended all the races," he says.

"I grew up with Urban Sea and it was unbelievable to own her. She was very quiet, good tempered, brave and determined to win. My mother considered Urban Sea a goddess; as all the Chinese Emperors used to say ‘when you get a good horse, you get the country.'"

It was Christopher's mother, Mrs Ling Tsui, now adviser to Professor Sun Jia Dong, Minister of China Aerospatiale, who was the driving force behind Urban Sea's stud career. At that time, the family owned a broodmare band of 40, mostly in France, but the decision was taken to send Urban Sea to Irelandas Mrs Tsui "believed so much in her and wanted to cover her by the best Irish stallions."

Under the guidance of the late Brian Grassick, the Tsuis were encouraged to sell their lesser mares, and by the time of Urban Sea's death, had reduced their numbers to a manageable five. Among the current band are Sassenach and Epping, the dams of Grade 3 winner Dress Rehearsal and St Leger runner-up The Last Drop, both of whom are by Galileo.

"Quality is the motto of breeding and Brian encouraged me to sell all my middle quality mares and to buy a few nice fillies from Ireland," says Mrs Tsui, who is currently advised among others by Irish National Stud chief executive John Clarke and the stud's stallion nominations manager Julie Lynch.

When able, Mrs Tsui aims to use stallions containing the blood of Allegretta, such as King's Best as well as Galileo. Otherwise, final decisions are made by using her "feelings and eyes and the physical compatibility rather than statistics and papers."

Urban Sea spent eight years at the Irish National Stud, during which time the Tsuis were kept up to date with her movements via regular emails from Clarke, which proved invaluable as Mrs Tsui explains:

"I think for someone who lives in Hong Kong it is impossible to breed horses in Ireland without someone like John or Brian Grassick. Brian was a tremendous help to my family."

According to Tsui, plenty of discussion took place regarding Urban Sea's mating to Sea The Star's sire Cape Cross, who was then standing his first season at €50,000 following a first crop of three-year-olds which included 2004 Oaks winner Ouija Board.

"Michael Youngs had advised my mother to cover Urban Sea with Montjeu but she had fallen in love with Ouija Board and wished to have a filly by Cape Cross out of the mare.

"My mother had reviewed the races of Cape Cross and believed he had a lovely change of gear and a lot of speed. John told her that the chance to get a filly was fifty-fifty while Brian warned her that Cape Cross was a miler and that my mother may not get a Derby horse by him.

"However, I remember my mother told me that Urban Sea could win from 1m to 1m4f on soft ground and good ground, and that she had even been once engaged in the Melbourne Cup. So she was sure that the resulting produce would have the stamina of his mother and the speed of his father. The result was Sea The Stars."

Lynch remembers Sea The Stars well as a foal, saying: "He was a smashing foal, all quality with great size, scope and strength. Urban Sea was huge in the third trimester of her pregnancy and no wonder as he weighed in at 142 lbs, well over 20lbs more than your average foal.

"Everybody was devastated at her death earlier this yer. Urban Sea was a living legend and we are proud to have been associated with her."

Naturally, the Tsuis received plenty of interest in the colt, but with Urban Sea nearing 20-years-old, they resisted all offers. Thus the colt became the first of the mare's progeny to carry the family's silks since her first foal, the Group 3 winner Urban Ocean.

The family has only one other horse in training - a two-year-old brother to The Last Drop named Nebula Storm with Jeremy Noseda - but they hope that their racecourse presence will increase following Tsui's entry into the family business of hotels and real estate after receiving a MBA from the Cass Business School in London. He also owns a PGA golf tour player qualification.

"In the past, we bought some yearlings to be trained by John Oxx and Michael Grassick and only kept the best ones one for breeding," says Mrs Tsui. "But now with Christopher's return, we will certainly extend our breeding operation."

Tsui continues: "My mother is extremely busy and because of the time difference between Hong Kong and Ireland she must wake up at 4am to speak to John Clarke or Mr. Oxx. If I can take over part of her job, she will be more than happy to increase our breeding operation to support Sea The Stars."

Speculation is rife as to where Sea The Stars will retire to stud but for now, the Tsuis remain focused on his racing career; whether that includes a four-year-old season will be discussed at a later date.

"We will take it one day at a time and won't plan that far ahead yet," says Tsui. "He won the Beresford Stakes as a two-year-old and is now unbeaten at three - a huge achievement. He is truly exceptional.

"Urban Sea's racing career brought our family joy, and although my mother had no experience in the breeding business, she believed that Urban Sea could be the best mare in the world. She was right."