THE bloodstock sales world has seen many changes, over many years, but the rate of change and adaptation it has had to cope with since the start of 2020 has accelerated at a fierce rate.

Now Keeneland is also undergoing a changing of the guard, with the appointment of Tony Lacy to the role of vice-president of sales.

Announcing this appointment last month, Keeneland’s president and CEO Shannon Arvin said: “Tony possesses a well-rounded knowledge of the thoroughbred industry, bolstered by valuable insight and a unique skill set gained from having worked on the ground in the US, Europe and the Middle East.

“He is an established presence globally and connects to a vast network of owners, trainers, consignors and buyers.”

This news came at the same time that another Irishman, the hugely popular Geoffrey Russell, announced that he was stepping down from his role as director of sales at Keeneland. The sales company veteran has seen the auction house through a myriad of good times and crises, and Tony has enormous regard for Russell.

Rock star

“Geoffrey is a rock star, an absolute rock star. I’m taking over his office and it feels a little strange, because he’s been in that office for a lot of years.

“I am very grateful to Geoffrey because he’s been very welcoming and helped me. There is so much he knows that is so important to a smooth transition of a new team.

“There’s a new structure forming from the top and that is filtering down. We want to come with a vision that we are horse people. Keeneland is an incredible brand, it is an incredible institution, and it is a pillar of what we do over here. It is important, and it is Shannon’s and the trustee’s vision, that the representation of horsemen and women is strong with the new teams that are being put in place.

“Shannon and I have worked together on various different projects over the years. I know she interviewed a lot of people for this role, and it was a little head-spinning when you hear you are in charge of the largest sales company in the world, and told to make it work and find a direction for the future. It is very humbling”

Tony Lacy's father Tom, who gave Pat Smullen his first winner, pictured at the Curragh with his other son Barry \ Healy Racing

Auction house

This is not the first time that Tony has worked for an auction house, and for some time he was the US representative for the French sales company, Arqana. That time has been a major help. He explains: “I would say that my experience at Arqana has been invaluable as far as being innovative, being outgoing and understanding the customer service aspect of the business is concerned.

“I think that’s something I want to bring to Keeneland and make it more approachable. It’s an intimidating environment for someone who has not been here before. I bring the perspective of being a consignor for 20 years. I have been a buyer, seller, breeder and agent. So it’s creating that empathy, and being able to have a vision of how Keeneland can evolve and modernise, while holding on very strongly to the traditions, its legacy and what its mission statement is.

“This is a not-for-profit entity that pumps everything back in, and it is important that it is run with an understanding of the industry on a very fundamental level.”

Tony Lacy pictured with Cindy and Scott Heider \ Joe DiOrio/Winningimages.biz

Perception

As someone who has been a client of Keeneland, Tony is well aware that there is a view in some quarters that the company is not as flexible at times as its competitor, and maybe not have its finger on the pulse of the industry. He is keen to address this perception.

“Quite honestly Leo it was my perception as well, and this is something that has motivated me to do this job. I had to give up everything to do this. I’m doing this because I see what needs to be changed. Yes, Keeneland is a big institution. I think there is a strong recognition internally that we need to become more aware of what is happening in the real world.

“I think complacency is one of the most dangerous things that can happen to a company of any size. That is something I can tell you that is not going to happen going forward. It may be a very big entity, but it is going to operate on the understanding that everything we do is extremely important to the health and the future of the industry.

Irishman at Keeneland’s helm

BECOMING a trainer was probably written in the stars for Tony Lacy, a fourth-generation horseman who now finds himself with the lofty title of vice-president of sales at Keeneland, the world’s largest sales company.

Indeed, much of his early career path would have indicated that the Co Offaly native was set fair to make a name for himself in the training ranks, and he certainly associated himself with some of the most respected names in the world, acting as their assistant.

Both of his grandfathers were trainers and, on the paternal side of the family pedigree, his grandfather Ned Lacy at one time handled the career of Height Of Fashion, the mare carrying Ned’s son Tom to victory in the Troytown Chase. That was in between finishing second to Arkle and Flyingbolt respectively in the Irish Grand Nationals of 1964 and 1966.

Nurturing talent

The family lived and worked in an area that was to spawn one of Irish and world racing’s favourite sons, Pat Smullen, and Tom Lacy played a leading role in nurturing that talented rider’s early career, along with many others. Tony also benefited from his father’s guiding hand, and the two are close and in constant contact, as is Tony’s brother Barry.

“My dad gave me a great grounding starting off, making me understand how to do everything. Even as teenagers we were exposed to owners, dealing and discussing stuff with clients. Barry and I were very involved from a very early age.

“We gained a respect for how hard it is to be a trainer, how hard it is in the horse business. There’s a humility that comes with that.”

Tony himself enjoyed a successful period as an amateur rider. Time and again the well-worn phrase of a golden era is used, but history often shows that each snapshot of time was, in itself, special. Tony was riding at a time when the likes of Willie Mullins, Ted Walsh, Aidan O’Brien and Andrew Coonan were “just some of the cast of characters in the weigh-room”.

Family reunion

Protocols and restrictions allowing, Tony may reunite with family, friends and former colleagues when Keeneland sponsors the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh in August. “Hopefully I’ll be over for that, to represent Keeneland. I’ll look forward to that”.

Ironically, Tony’s first interaction with his new employers came about in August 1988 when his father’s Ingabelle, a daughter of Taufan, won the Group 3 Keeneland Phoenix Sprint Stakes. Tom Lacy owned, trained and bred the winner. Ingabelle went on to become a renowned broodmare, her eight successful offspring including Group 1 winners Priory Belle and Eva’s Request, and she is grandam of the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies’ Turf winner Chriselliam.

A career that went global

TONY Lacy realised at a very early stage of his career that “being a horseman is one thing, but you also need to be a good business person.

“You have to understand accounting, marketing yourself, taxation. I’ve seen over the years many good people whose businesses have, for one reason or another, crumbled. Maybe they were lacking in certain areas, but my parents were very adamant that I got a third-level education, something to fall back on.

“I got about three-quarters of the way to getting an accounting degree and just felt it was not the right way to go. I then veered towards majoring in marketing. It gave me a good grounding and understanding, opening and broadening your mind. I felt that was a great experience.”

To expand his experience as a trainer, Tony went to Chantilly in France where he worked with both Emmanuel Chevalier du Fau and Henri-Alex Pantall. After a period of time gaining experience in sales and breeding through his work for the Greely family’s Wintergreen Farm and Jerry Bailey in Ocala, he heard of an opportunity to join Erwan Charpy in Dubai.

Ingabelle wins the Keeneland Phoenix Stakes in 1988 \ Healy Racing

Learnig opportunity

“At the time Godolphin was a fledgling operation and I did not know what I was getting into. However, the opportunity to learn there was incredible. At the time you were working with the vets, meeting a lot of people who were coming in from different parts of the world, understanding different things. My learning curve was just on a straight-upward trajectory.

“I would say it was a relatively comfortable life, even though I worked my tail off and committed myself to it. After about three years there I went into Michael Osborne’s office to seek his advice. He advised me to stay where I was, that a couple of training jobs would be coming up. It was a great conversation, a great boost for morale because I didn’t know if anyone was noticing me.

“Unfortunately, about a year later Michael moved on and Les Benton was coming in. I knew the writing was on the wall if you didn’t come from Australia, New Zealand or South Africa. Michael tried to help me move elsewhere, but nothing was working out. I was at a crossroads.”

Then the cards fell into place, and a career in training was consigned to history. In 2001, Lacy, along with Kerry Cauthen, helped establish Four Star Sales, eventually becoming a partner and developing the company into a leading North American consignor with a diverse client portfolio. Dan Kenny and David Greathouse were also involved.

Arqana representative

From 2008 until now he served as the North American representative for Arqana. In that capacity, he has been involved in all aspects of the sales company, including the innovation of Arqana Online. His marketing skills helped to develop strategies and promotions in various mediums.

Throughout his career, Lacy has advised and managed a number of racing and breeding portfolios, farms and organisations. One of his more recent projects was helping to develop Scott Heider’s strategy to become a successful owner in America and Europe. Heider has raced recent group and listed winners Crossfirehurricane, Pista and My Generation, all trained by Joseph O’Brien.

Reflecting his international span of activity, Lacy has also advised or represented a broad range of bodies, including Emirates Racing, the Dubai World Cup, the French Breeding and Racing Committee and France Galop.

A thoroughbred president

THEY say that the best person to give a job to is a busy one. As if he hadn’t enough on his plate with his new role, Lacy is the incoming president of the Thoroughbred Club of America and will be the first foreign-born president in the organisation’s 89-year history.

He explains the role of the Thoroughbred Club of America. “It was founded in 1932, four years before Keeneland. Its purpose is to enhance and promote the development and future of thoroughbred racing in America. It is a blueblood institution – the list of past presidents has some very famous and influential names on it, and it holds a lot of prestige.

“It has probably lost direction a little bit in recent years, but now it’s coming back again. Its influence and its purpose in the industry is significant and it has over 2,000 members. It is guarded very carefully by Kentuckians especially.”

Lacy on ...

Moving from Dubai to America

“My Dubai connections were evaporating; I just didn’t see a way forward. I was in my early thirties, single. What had I to lose? I said I know people over there. At least I can reinvent myself. I pretty much put everything on the back of a pickup in Dubai and put it on a plane to Cincinnati. I followed about two weeks later, not knowing what the direction was going to be.”

On the equine business

“I love the industry we are in and I am passionate about it. I’ve devoted myself to the industry, and I see it as a holistic industry, and not just one part. I understand the importance of breeding to racing, but racing is also important to breeding. We are all interdependent. I love seeing things work and being successful.”

On being Irish in Kentucky

“I believe racing and horses are in our culture. We have a strong passion for what we do, but we also support each other. If something goes wrong you’ve got somebody that is going to pick you up and put you back on track again.”

On the best advice he has received

“I’d like to mention Ted Curtin. He was someone I had a very influential meeting with in the early nineties. I felt I needed to go away for a few weeks to a different country and challenge myself. He told me that what I needed to do was to go somewhere where you are not needed, and by the time you are getting ready to leave that they can’t do without you. That has stuck with me.”

On the challenges facing racing

“The pandemic in a strange way has brought the industry forward; it has been on television during all the lockdowns. The people are now hungry. I was at the Kentucky Derby last week. Amazing atmosphere with 52,000 people there, all having fun.”

On having many irons in the fire

“I tell a lot of young people that nothing you do in life is a waste. It’s an experience that you can retool into doing something else. When Barbara Hunter [Brownwood Farm] became ill, a young lady named Shannon Arvin hired me to help. She now happens to be president of Keeneland!”

On his personality

“You know I’m actually a very shy person. I wouldn’t say I am an introvert, but what I have learned about myself is that I am a good people person. I think that goes back to my dad throwing me in at the deep end early in life, and you had to learn sometimes how to handle difficult people. You had to know how to speak to owners, other trainers and jockeys, and it was a constantly evolving aspect of my personality.”