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| Staff Writer |
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Born in France in Arbonne his father’s career would drive his passion for horses and his need to make a career around them.
“Where I was born my father as a vet was studying and then I moved to Compiegne near Chantilly where I spent a lot of my young age with horses and studying.
“It is a very nice area where you have a lot of horses and I was lucky enough to be in touch with racehorses very early. I was going to Chantilly when I was 13 and riding horses and am still doing it. It’s a very good place, it’s a horse place.
His father, a famous amateur jockey and later veterinarian, was not the only family member involved with horses. His grandfather was an eventing rider. As Gourdain said, however, of the five siblings not all held a passion for the animal or industry.
“I think it's a passion definitely because of the five children I was the only one who really developed this passion for horses.
“As a veterinarian for sport horses, I was well influenced by my dad and my granddad who taught me how to ride at the beginning.
‘I think the passion comes from riding horses, really. So that was the beginning. Where it all started.”
THE LEGACY CONTINUES
The passion for the industry continues as Gourdain said with him having five children of his own, three of whom are amateur riders.
“Yes they are amateur jockeys and they all work for me. So, it's really nice.”
The ability to instill this passion in his own children is something he is proud of.
“This gives passion to my family. My wife, Florence, has helped me very much from the beginning. She has always managed the office and the track work. She works very hard and helps me manage all of this yard.
“Technically, I have always taken care of the horses. We have always lived where the horses were. So we live in the stable with the horses. My children from a very young age were in touch with the horses.
“Three of my children took their license and are amateur jockeys. They love it and each time they come back on holidays to ride horses they all work for me, so it is a good thing.
“I think they have this passion from living with horses from a very young age.”
THE TESTS MATTER
For Gourdain the love for horses came before the competition but as he said they now go hand in hand.
“Of course, like all trainers I am very much into the competition.
“I love the animal first and I love the contact with them.
“I love to be in touch with them and breaking horses in at the beginning and living with them every day.
“It truly is a way of life.”
A LOVE AFFAIR WITH ARABIANS
He has built a reputation as a successful trainer of both thoroughbreds and Arabians having won on the flat and over jumps in France and abroad. During his early days of training, he exclusively trained thoroughbreds but reflecting he remembers his first experiences with the Arabian type.
“At the beginning, I was just training thoroughbreds.
“I was lucky enough to have my first Arabian horse called Vulcain Du Clos.
“It was not the top Arabian horse but a Group Three level.
“He was not a star but he was a very regular and very brave horse.
“We were lucky enough to travel with him all around, we went to Istanbul and Turkey and different parts of the world.
“It made me realise that Arabian horses can bring you a lot of pleasure travelling and getting to see and experience the racing world, and that was really nice.
“Then I was lucky enough to train better horses after that.”
Gourdain said that his training method with Arabians did not change much from the regiment with thoroughbreds but was slightly different.
“Well I don't think it's a very different way of training, the everyday training is about the same.
“But still the Arabian horses are very smart horses. They are very kind horses and you have to be careful with the way you train them.
“You need to make sure that you don’t train them too hard at work and manage their temper and just make sure that they are happy.
“Make sure that they have the feeling that they always can get better by being in a good mood.
“I never go too hard in work, that’s my way of doing it, I make sure that I am careful with them, and I manage morale because I want them to be happy.”
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THE MANY SUCCESSES
Since he set up training Gourdain has continually been driven to build on his winning numbers. In 1998 he would train eight winners from only 15 horses rising to 60 winners in 2014 with 60 horses in his yard.
In 2018 he would win five Group Ones in the year and has saddled eight Group One winners in the past five years while preparing to race frequently not only in Paris but also elsewhere including England, Qatar, Abu Dhabi and Oman.
His stable has included names such as Haya De Faust, Alkedri and three-time Group One winner Al Shamoos and Gourdain has accomplished memorable highlights as he commented.
“I think you know of course winning the Jewel Crown with Al Shamoos was very important for me.
“It was a brilliant race and this little filly was very brave and when she arrived home she wasn't eating very well. So, we first of all managed to have her eating properly then we wanted her to feel comfortable and to put some weight on.
“At the beginning looking back, you never would have thought she could be such a champion but then she improved, and she completely changed.
“That's one thing about the Arab horses in the morning they can show you nothing or not much. But at the end of the day, they can give you a lot of pleasure. So, you always have to be very careful the way you train them, and you have got to take care of them very well. It is very important.”
“Winning Nafees for the Royal Cavalry of Oman.
“With him, we won the French Derby then the English Derby. Then we won the Newbury Group One. He has finally retired to stud.
“That was a brilliant horse I really loved him. He arrived very late in my stables as a 3YO and the way he improved was very impressive.
“Then I had Rodess Du Loup who won the French Derby and the English Derby as well.
“It’s really nice for a young trainer to go to England and win a big race on the big day in front of 50,000 people, it's unbelievable.
“It's just a dream for a trainer as you cannot do much better than that so it’s always a lot of pleasure,” he said.
THERE IS ALWAYS A TEAM BEHIND A SUCCESSFUL MAN
“I think I was lucky also, you have to be lucky but you have to do your job every day. But if you don’t have those brilliant horses there is nothing you can do. So those horses were very impressive and very nice and I thank all of the owners who trusted me to train them.”
Gourdain is passionate and thankful for the owners he has had in the past as well as the present with owners in every corner of the world including the UK, Dubai, Libya and France. Their role in the training and allowing him to train cannot be understated said the trainer.
“I think they have the main role. My owners are very important. In fact, they are the main people.
“There's nothing we can do without them and we never thank them enough. I'm very grateful to those people who have trusted me and still trust me.
“They give me a chance; they bring me very good horses and they’ve always been very patient with me. This is important because I am not somebody who runs every five minutes, I take a lot of time to prep horses and give them the time they each may need.
“Maybe sometimes I take too much time but I try to do the job and I am glad when we have great results. At times horses can get hurt other times they are not good enough but at least we try to do our best.
“But without owners, there's nothing we can do.”
RIYADH CALLING
He now prepares the filly Rysk Tout for Saudi and her performances to date have been impressive. A win in the Group Three Prix de Sa Majeste le Roi along with a third place in the Group One Liwa International Stakes excites Gourdain.
“She came out from the sales in October in Paris.
“Her first year was quite good but to look at her she was looking like she didn't look like an awesome horse.
“But again, she ended up being one of those horses who improve a lot. She had a very strong temper, we had a hard time with her because one day she'd want to go into stalls and then the next she wouldn’t. She was a very temperamental horse, so we had to do a lot of work at home to make sure that she was feeling comfortable and happy.
“She was not always very easy and she still is not a very easy horse. You never know what's going to happen with her, but at the end of the day, she won the Prix de Sa Majeste le Roi in Morocco at the end of last year.
“So, we are very proud to be invited to Saudi for this race. Thanks to the organization for inviting us. We will do our best and the filly is very well.
“She loves the sand and she is a good horse on the sand. She is always very brave so we will see. It’s very difficult for her because she looks more like a Group Three horse than a Group One horse, but you never know.
“Again, need to thank her owner, Dhafi Al Marri, he bought her when she was a 4YO and she did well for him. He is such a nice man and I wish the best for her and him, of course.”
She has been nominated for the Al Mneefah and Obaiya Arabian Classic as well as a ticket in the Group One Dubai Kahayla Classic with plans in progress dependent on her performance in Saudi.
“We will see how she runs in Saudi. If she does run well then we will make the decision then but I try to go step by step, especially with her.
“She's a 5YO filly and you have got to be careful because at that age some fillies can really change but she's still similar. She looks like she wants to fight and she looks like she wants to be competitive.
“So as long as she's like that then we will carry on but it's difficult to do. Actually, in France, we do have some good races for her this year but we will see first how she does in Saudi.”
GROWTH AND SUCCESS AHEAD
The stable has had success in the Middle East and as the profile of horse racing continues to rise in the region Gourdain will only continue to travel with his stars in hopes of further wins abroad.
“I think those countries are brilliant and the organization is very good.
“The people are very nice and everything is done for the horses. Every year it keeps improving and it’s better and better all the time.
“I haven't been there for very long because but I was lucky enough to have some good horses to travel there and it's always a pleasure to travel there for a trainer.
“We are very proud to be invited and the owners over there are excited I am very happy that we are able to go and please them by having their horses running in their country.
“Everything over there keeps getting better every year in Qatar and it’s been the same in Dubai, it’s very well done and it’s nearly perfect.”
The stable currently sees 60 horses in training with a lot of younger horses in the mix as Gourdain said.
“Some of them look like promising horses but It’s the beginning and they are young 3YOs, just starting their training nice and steady.
“When you're a trainer you look at those young horses every day. You always dream and say ‘Oh this one looks extremely good’.
“With some of the horses that we have they look to have very serious potential when it comes to good pedigrees. Physically they look good also but you know you always have surprises.
“Some of them are disappointing while others you thought to be not good become extremely good, so it is very early to be able to say something and this is the magic of the job.
“You do your job every day, you have to be patient, you love your horses, you try to understand them, you look at them, you try to go through all of their little problems and to resolve all of the little problems that they can have physically or mentally.
“Then with your team at the end of the day, you get results but you do have surprises every year and that’s something I love about this job.”
Gourdain is upfront with the importance of an owner’s role in training and also the team he has around him. Like a car without wheels cannot drive a stable without a great team working together is equally as effective.
“In this job you have to be patient which is probably the best quality that you can have. You also have to have a great team, the team is very important.
“I thank my team for that I have very good people and very dedicated people. I cannot talk enough about those people who work hard every day for us. I try to be aware of everything that is happening and what we can do to improve. Having a good team around you helps with that.”
As a proud Frenchman, when asked which race he would love to target and win, Gourdain’s answer is simple but with it are other international races on the radar.
“It would have to be the Arc day, which is the biggest race that I never won but I wish I could win it one day.
“Then you have all of those big races, I would be very happy to win a Derby again in England.
“The big races in Qatar are amazing along with those other big races in Saudi, Dubai, France and England
“So they are always targets when you have a good horse, particularly to have a very good horse because the level is very high.
“Whenever you have young horses and you start with them those kinds of races need to always be on your mind.
“All of the big races in Saudi they are now coming up with are very interesting for us and the big race we have coming up next week for Rysk Tout is definitely a target for us.”