[my miss storm cat]

Racing Post...

Champion Bumper winner Pizarro put down


Tony O'Hehir

PIZARRO, twice a Grade 1 winner as a novice chaser and winner of the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham in 2002, has been put down at trainer Edward O'Grady's farm in County Tipperary.

O'Grady said: “Pizarro had been retired and was suffering from emphysema and a tumour on his lung. Sadly, he had to be put down on Friday morning.”

An 11-year-old, Pizarro had not run under rules for almost three years, and he had been pulled up onhis only point-to-point start at Punchestown in March.

He won all three bumpers he contested, the first of them when trained by Eddie Hales, before joining O'Grady after being bought by Edward Wallace and his wife, Trish.

Partnered by Jamie Spencer, he beat Rhinestone Cowboy by a neck in the Cheltenham Festival bumper with Back In Front, Thisthatandtother and Iris's Gift filling the next three places – a race rated the best bumper ever run on Racing Post Ratings.
O'Grady said: “It wasprobably the most memorable finish to a Cheltenham Festival bumper and there was also the tension of a stewards' inquiry.

“Pizarro was a very good horse and he had a good record at Cheltenham, where he ran Hardy Eustace to a length in the Royal & SunAlliance Hurdle the following year. We thought he was very unlucky in the 2004 Royal & SunAlliance Chase when he was brought down at the second-last, closing on the leaders.”

Pizarro achieved Grade 1 success in the William Neville & Sons Chase at Leopardstown and in the Dr PJ Moriarty Chase at the same track.

His last appearance under rules came at Punchestown in October 2005, when third in the Listed Daily Star Chase.

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Flying Feline (AUS), 4 years old... won her race and collapsed, striking her head.

She suffered severe head trauma and was euthanized.

Not sure which track... this was in an email but I had to mention her here.

Rest in peace.