Silent Witness (horse)
| Silent Witness | |
|---|---|
| Sire | El Moxie |
| Grandsire | Conquistador Cielo |
| Dam | Jade Tiara |
| Damsire | Bureaucracy |
| Sex | Gelding |
| Foaled | 1999 |
| Country | Australia  |
| Colour | Bay |
| Breeder | Mr I K Smith |
| Owner | Arthur Antonio da Silva |
| Trainer | Tony Cruz |
| Record | 28: 18-3-2 |
| Earnings | $7,700,000+ |
| Major wins | |
| Hong Kong Sprint (2003 & 2004) International Sprint Trial (2003 & 2004) Sprinters Stakes (2005) | |
| Awards | |
| Hong Kong Champion Sprinter (2004 & 2005) Hong Kong Horse of the Year (2004 & 2005) World's Champion Sprinter (2003, 2004, 2005) | |
| Last updated on January 3, 2007 | |
Silent Witness (Chinese: 精英大師) (born 1999) is a racehorse in Hong Kong that won 17 consecutive sprint races. He was born in Australia, trained by Tony Cruz, riden by Felix Coetzee and owned by Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Antonio da Silva.
The Hong Kong Jockey Club made a website for him, making him the first horse with its own website in Hong Kong. The Jockey Club also sells gifts for him.[1] On 24 April, 2005, the day Silent Witness won his 17th consecutive race, the Jockey Club gave memorial caps to people, which led to a trampling incident.
Silent Witness is sometimes compared to another Hong Kong champion, Co-Tack, and the American horse Cigar who won 16 consecutive races.
He won the Hong Kong Sprint back-to-back in 2003 and 2004. After the 17 consecutive wins, Silent Witness attempted the mile race in the Champions Mile on May 2005 at Sha Tin Racecourse. The champion was beaten by Bullish Luck by a short head just two steps before the winning post.
However, Silent Witness tried the second attempt on the mile by going to Tokyo, Japan to participate in the Yasuda Kinen in June. Again, he ran great but was beaten by Asakusa Den'en, a Japanese horse, just a few steps before the winning post.
A mile is the maximum length that he could run. On October 2, 2005, he took part in the Sprinters Stakes, which is a Group 1 Sprint Race in Japan over 1200m. Silent Witness won the race easily by 1-1/4 lengths with a time 67.3 seconds, 0.3 seconds slower than the track record time.
For the three years from 2003 to 2005, the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities in Paris ranked Silent Witness the world's fastest sprinter.
Silent Witness has recently been retired, after his last race on the Sha Tin Racecourse on February 4th, 2007. He is now at Living Legends, the International Home of Rest for Champion Horses located in Woodlands Historic Park, Greenvale, Victoria, Australia[2].
Family Tree
| Sire El Moxie b. 1986 |
Conquistador Cielo b. 1979 |
Mr. Prospector | Raise a Native |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold Digger | |||
| K.D.Princess | Bold Commander | ||
| Tammy's Turn | |||
| Raise the Standard b. 1978 |
Hoist the Flag | Tom Rolfe | |
| Wavy Navy | |||
| Natalma | Native Dancer | ||
| Almahmoud | |||
| Dam Jade Tiara b. 1993 |
Bureaucracy br. 1987 |
Lord Ballina | Bletchngly |
| Sunset Girl | |||
| Tulla Doll | Oncidium | ||
| Doll | |||
| Jade-Amanda ch. 1986 |
Grosvenor | Sir Tristram | |
| My Tricia | |||
| Comptroller | Sumuggler | ||
| Shifnal's Pride (FNo.13-a) |
References
Aboolcarim, Zoher "The Measure of a Horse," Time, February 29, 2007:p. 52.