In the colours of her breeder, His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalifa al-Thani, Samrah broke her maiden on just her second start in the Prix Decathlon La Teste, over 1,600m at La Teste-de-Buch yesterday.
The two-year-old filly, who is from the first crop of Al Shaqab sire Shalaa, had finished third on her debut, less than a length from the winner, over the same course and distance for trainer Francois Rohaut. The winner of that race, Euphoria, is now Stakes-placed. Reunited here with jockey Olivier Peslier, Samrah settled in mid-division from the off. Calliope led at a steady pace, with the rest of the field bunched behind her. Once in the straight, the way opened up for Samrah and Peslier, and the pair quickly took advantage of a clear run to come and take the lead in the final two furlongs. Calliope weakened quickly in the closing stages, while Flying Easy came with a good run on the outside, but Samrah had plenty in hand and held her lead to win by a short head.
“It was necessarily the right race for her”, said Rohaut, “as there wasn’t much pace and she was keen. She has a lot of potential.”