MANY of those not professionally involved with runners in the Group 2 Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot will be shouting for the Michael O’Callaghan-trained The Harv if he is in contention at the final stages of the race.

The two-year-old Goodwood debut winner is a son of Ten Sovereigns (No Nay Never), and that sire did not make his juvenile debut until August, but won the Group 1 Middle Park Stakes. A son of No Nay Never (Scat Daddy) did capture the Coventry Stakes, Arizona. What would make it such a special win should The Harv do the business is that he is named in honour of publisher, accountant and all-round good man John Fleming, who died after a tragic accident in late-April.

‘Harvey’, as John was affectionately known, was on his way back from the Goffs UK Breeze Up Sale when the tragic accident happened at Dublin airport. It was at that sale that Michael O’Callaghan, with Harvey in company, spent £260,000 to purchase the colt that owner Eleanora Kennedy now has running in her colours. The price was the second-best at the sale.

The story behind The Harv is quite a fairytale. He was bred by Dr Magid Abdel Halim from seven-time winner Chitra (Sea The Moon). She gained all of those victories at two and three, over five and six furlongs in England, and joined Joseph O’Brien for a time. She was sold as a five-year-old at Goffs from Tinnakill House for a mere €3,000 to John Ryan, and covered by Awtaad (Cape Cross).

The resulting filly, Awraad, went through the ring from the Irish National Stud for €20,000 at Goffs, but the breeder in fact has her with trainer Gemma Tutty. Last year she won first time out and was runner-up in the Listed Champion 2yo Trophy at Ripon just before the yearling sales. This boosted the sale prospects of her Ten Sovereigns half-brother. He sold for €65,000 at Fairyhouse to Tally-Ho Stud, and they turned a very healthy profit in April. With two winners from her first pair of foals, there will be added interest when Chitra’s yearling filly by Calyx (Kingman) is offered for sale in the autumn.

Loved him

Cathal Beale described The Harv as “a rocket, and everyone on the farm loved him from day one.” The mare boards at the Irish National Stud, has a filly foal by Phoenix Of Spain (Lope De Vega) and has been covered by Ghaiyyath (Dubawi).

In addition to winning seven times, Chitra was placed on 11 occasions and raced a total of 38 times. She was sound, adaptable as she won four times on the all-weather and three times on turf, and she was the best of four foals from the unraced Persian Star (Shamardal). That mare had four winning siblings, including the group-placed Prompter (Motivator) and the multiple stakes-placed Penny Drops (Invincible Spirit). The latter has had a number of winners, her son Equality (Equiano) being a Group 3-winning sprinter who placed in the Group 1 Flying Five Stakes.

Persian Star is a daughter of Penny Cross (Efisio) who was trained by Mark Johnston and won three times at up to eight and a half furlongs. She was placed in listed races at Ascot and Baden-Baden, and despite her trainer’s best efforts, he could not get a blacktype win for her, even though she placed on the only occasions she contested that level.

Eight winners

Penny Cross and Priors Lodge (Grand Lodge) were two of the eight winners from Addaya (Persian Bold). Richard Hannon senior saddled Priors Lodge to win a couple of listed races. After the gelding moved to Marcus Tregoning he went on to produce his best two runs. He was beaten a short head by Passing Glance in a listed race at Salisbury he had won the previous year. Nine days later he turned the tables on Passing Glance, beating him a head to take the Group 2 Celebration Mile.

The Harv was sent to Goodwood to make his debut, and overcame greenness to win. The race has thrown up a number of smart winners in the past decade, among them Asymmetric. He went on to capture the Group 2 Richmond Stakes back at Goodwood, and run third in the Group 1 Prix Morny. Group 2 Superlative Stakes winner Boynton, Group 3 winner Snazzy Jazzy, multiple pattern winner Main Edition (including the Group 3 Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot) and US Grade 3 winner Guildsman are other recent graduates of last weekend’s race.

In Turkey

Ten Sovereigns left the Coolmore stallion ranks to take up residence in Turkey after the 2024 covering season, with a less than terrific record from his first two crops. No sooner had he moved than his runners started hitting the target, and not just any target. His son Zulu Kingdom won the Grade 1 American Turf Stakes at Churchill Downs last May, and almost a year on added the Grade 1 Maker’s Mile Stakes at Keeneland.

His daughter Lush Lips won the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Keeneland in early October last year, and has added two more graded stakes wins this year. Then, to cap an annus mirabilis in 2025, Ten Sovereigns sired Balantina, who credited Donnacha O’Brien with a Breeders’ Cup win when she crowned her first year at the races with victory in the Grade 1 Juvenile Fillies Turf at Del Mar.

Ten Sovereigns was purchased by Cem Ozbelge on behalf of Turkish owner/breeder Ali Çelikoglu to stand privately at stud in Turkey, and covered his first book last year.