JACKIE Bolger’s Cimeara, bred and trained by her husband Jim, was the outstanding attraction at the Goffs Champions Sale, the prelude to two exceptional days of racing on Longines Irish Champions Weekend.

One withdrawal whittled the select catalogue down to eight lots, and the six lots listed as being sold changed hands for a figure that came within a whisker of matching last year’s aggregate from 10 lots, producing in the process an average of €218,667 and a median of €185,000. These latter figures were 65% and 68% increases on last year.

Winner of the Group 3 Irish Stallion Farms EBF Stanerra Stakes and dead-heating in the Listed Kingdom of Bahrain Vinnie Roe Stakes on her most recent outings, Cimeara is by the Bolger’s own stallion Vocalised and from the female line of champion Goldikova and her Group 1 winning sibling Galikova.

She was sold after a protracted duel for a record €500,000, with Goffs UK managing director Tony Williams sealing the deal with a telephone bid. He later revealed that the filly was purchased for Sun Bloodstock in Australia. It is understood that she will continue to race.

The Bolgers also sold the first lot in the ring, bloodstock agent Gerry Hogan paying €52,000 for the improving Dawn Hoofer, a three-year-old daughter of Dawn Approach and a four-time winner in 2018, with earnings of more than £75,000.

Michael O’Callaghan Racing was listed as selling three lots and the best of these was the second into the ring, the grey two-year-old Angelic Light.

This daughter of Dark Angel, bred by Trevor Stewart and sold as a yearling at Tattersalls Ireland for €23,000 to Mark Flannery, was making her third appearance in a sale ring. O’Callaghan bought her for €56,000 at this year’s Goresbridge Breeze Up Sale.

Winner of a six-furlong, 20-runner maiden at the Curragh by five lengths on her second start, this Dark Angel relation to Group 1 Irish Derby winner Treasure Beach sold for €330,000 to Bill Dwan, acting for an undisclosed client. She turned out the following day in the Group 1 Moyglare Stud Stakes, still carrying the colours of the trainer’s father, and was eased down a furlong from home when her chance was gone.

Angelic Light was listed as being sold in the ring to BAA, the same purchaser listed as the buyer of the Down Royal winning two-year-old Dark Pursuit, a gelded son of Pastoral Pursuits, who was also offered from O’Callaghan’s yard. He was listed as selling for €60,000, three times his yearling purchase cost.

Placed twice at the Curragh on both his outings, the two-year-old Carbon Fibre, a son of Helmet, was runner-up to Ten Sovereigns when stepped up to six furlongs in a 25-runner maiden, He was another to fall to a winning bid from Tony Williams, this time acting for George Moore Bloodstock, and the colt will continue his racing career in Hong Kong. He cost €250,000, a nice return on his spring purchase price of €75,000 at Goresbridge this year.

The final lot in the catalogue was the Andy Oliver-owned and trained Shatharaat, a three-year-old gelding by Kodiac who won a 15-runner, seven-furlong maiden over seven furlongs at Listowel five days earlier. This was his second start, the first coming at Pontefract in April where he was last of nine. Subsequently sold for just 1,200gns in the spring (having brought £150,000 as a yearling) and gelded, his Kerry victory saw his value soar again to €120,000 and he was sold to BBA Ireland’s Michael Donohue.