TOUGHNESS is a word that you can easily attribute to the recent Grade A thetote.com Galway Plate winner Clarcam. The French-bred eight-year-old was making the 47th start of his career when he won the Galway feature, recording his 10th success in the process.

The son of Califet (Freedom Cry) is one of the star performers for his sire who stands at William and John Flood’s Boardsmill Stud near Trim. Califet won at up to Group 2 level on the flat and was given a chance at stud in France, an opportunity he grasped and from which he has developed into a leading sire of jumpers, with surely the best yet to come. His initial years in France were at Haras du Chene Vert and he had his first season in Ireland in 2014, so his first Irish crop are just three-year-olds.

Prior to winning at Galway Clarcam had annexed a pair of Grade 1 chases, namely the Racing Post Christmas Chase at Leopardstown and the Manifesto Novice Chase at Aintree. He is the best of five winners to date for his winning dam Rose Beryl, a daughter of Lost World (Last Tycoon). She won over jumps in France as a three-year-old and is one of four winning offspring from the useful French chaser Rose Angevine.

A daughter of Master Thatch (Thatch), Rose Angevine won 10 races over jumps in France and was rewarded for her efforts and consistency with a victory in the Listed Grand Chase d’Angers, run at the course of the same name. Her placed efforts numbered among them being third in the Grand Steeplechase de Nantes.

Two of the four winners from Rose Angevine won blacktype races and the better of the pair was Bonbon Rose (Mansonnien). He was purchased as a breeze-up horse at the Goffs France April Sale in 2005 for €240,000 and ended up earning more than £200,000 from eight victories over jumps in France as a young horse, notably landing the Grade 1 Prix Gras Savoye Ferdinand Dufaure Chase at Auteuil. He has sired a number of winners.

Sainterose (Saint Estephe) is an unraced half-sister to Bonbon Rose and Rose Beryl and she bred a couple of minor winners. However, she is best known as the grandam of Irish Saint (Saint Des Saints), a listed hurdle winner in France who went to England and won three times at Grade 2 level, twice over hurdles and once over fences, and was placed a few times at Grade 1 standard.

Lost World, the damsire of Clarcam, was a Group 1 winning juvenile and is best known as the sire of Nickname, a Grade 1 winner over jumps in France and Ireland and now himself a successful sire.

Clarcam was fourth on his only outing in France on the flat before joining Gordon Elliott and for whom he has raced since in the colours of Michael O’Leary’s Gigginstown House Stud. Clarcam was bred by Jean Michel and Dominique Le Breton.