DOUVAN met with his sole defeat on his racecourse debut and since then has run up a sequence of 12 successes. He is undoubtedly one of the most exciting horses we have in training and his ability to attract an audience was evidenced on Sunday at Cork.

The purchase of his sire Walk In The Park by Coolmore Stud last year was a coup for their National Hunt division and this was on the back of the emergence of both Douvan and Min on the National Hunt scene here. The son of Montjeu only won a single race, as a two-year-old, but he was runner-up in the Epsom Derby and Group 1 placed as a juvenile.

Douvan is a member of his second crop and he has been quite a flagbearer for his sire. On the dam side of the family Douvan is the outstanding runner in four generations, and you have to go back to that fourth dam to find the next blacktype horse, the Grade 3 hurdle winner Discover D’Auteuil. That said, the family is still young and have had limited opportunities to produce more winners.

Star Face, the dam of Douvan, is a daughter of Saint Des Saints and he is the sire of the other important Mullins-trained winner last weekend, Djakadam. A son of Cadoudal, Saint Des Saints was a leading hurdler in France before being given a chance at stud.

He took that chance well and has a long list of big-race winning sons and daughters. Some other progeny whose names will be familiar are Quito De La Roque, Lyreen Legend, Irish Saint and Quel Esprit.

Star Face ran once over jumps and was then sent to stud. When she was an eight-year-old she was sold, carrying her third foal, for just €2,000 at the Arqana December Sale and sent to Tunisia. There she produced a now three-year-old daughter by Charming Groom. She had foaled a now five-year-old son of Epalo in between but he has not raced. Star Face made another appearance herself in a sale ring last year at Tattersalls Ireland and was unsold, carrying a full-brother to Douvan, at €140,000.

Star Face’s dam Folie Star Gate was a four-time winner over jumps in France and she is the dam of a single winner from four runners. She has a number of young stock on the ground yet. She was the only foal produced by the unraced Miss French, a full-sister to the aforementioned Discover D’Auteuil.

Douvan was bred by Haras de la Faisanderie and the farm is situated about 70 kilometres north west of Auteuil. He is the star performer produced by the farm and initially raced for them before being purchased to carry the colours of Susannah and Rich Ricci.