Linda's Lad first foal is born: the pictures

Up until now, Linda's Lad has succeeded in anything that was asked to him. By Sadler's Wells, this cousin of Rail Link and Crossharbour, grand-nephew of Dahlia, stood up to the his family's standards when landing a Gr.1 at 2, the Criterium de Saint-CLoud. He managed to get out of the heavy ground with Christophe Soumillon aboard, and thus showed toughness towards pain, further to proving his precocity when scoring in the Criterium du FEE (Listed) in August at Deauville and in the Prix de Condé (Gr.3) at Longchamp

The first foal by Linda's Lad, with her dam Maia Dancer

Winner at 3 of a Gr.3 preparatory to the Epsom Derby at Lingfield, Linda's Lad became retired to stud duties in France in 2009. Settled at Eric Lhermite's Haras de Grandcamp, he has straightaway proved popular with breeders who brought him 70 mares to fill his first book. His dual-purpose image seems to have pleased. Besides, his very first foal is bred in this style.

Linda's Lad

This filly born at the end of last week at Jean-Philippe Dubois' Haras de Fresnaux is indeed the first foal out of Maia Dancer. She herdelf was the first daughter, unraced, of the jumps champion Maia Eria, student of Martine and Daniel Chassagneux (Haras du Bois aux Proux). One should not however forget that Maia Eria (Volochine) had finished 2nd on her debuts at 2 at Longchamp before taking a second placing of a flat Listed race between Behkara and Maredsous at Maisons-Lafitte on her last outting.

Maia Eria

To give birth to Maia Dancer, Maia Eria had visited Danehill Dancer before he became the current untouchable star.The first of Linda's Lad products thus has the genetic potential to race either in flat or jumps. In the future, she will be the one to decide. In any case, she has big ears and above all was born over in the knees. And as are grumbling the old connoisseurs: "These are the good horses!"