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| Staff Writer |
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Glennwood Farm owner Tanya Gunther is considered royalty even among the top breeders in the world.
Over three decades ago, Tanya’s father John Gunther, bought out his partners in the 350-acre Glennwood Farm in Versailles, Kentucky. Together with Tanya they have bred some of the world’s top performing horses including the US Triple Crown winner, Justify.
Here are excerpts from our interview with Tanya Gunther:
Q: What would you say differentiates your breeding methods from other commercial breeders?
A: While we are considered commercial breeders due to the fact that most of our young horses are offered for sale as yearlings at public auction, we retain an owner-breeder mindset to how we breed and raise horses. Our primary focus is to breed the best possible racehorses that we can rather than concentrating on the sales arena as the endgame. A top sales horse that does not go on to achieve success on the racecourse is very disappointing for us. Conversely, we find it very rewarding as breeders when one of our yearlings that sells for little or no profit achieves a high level success. Results on the racecourse are what matters most and we trust that maintaining our focus on producing top class racehorses will raise our profile as breeders and hopefully commercial success will follow as well.
Q: It is rumoured that you father has tasked you with breeding a Prix Arc de Triomphe winner. Is there any truth to this rumour? What is your vision and ambition for your stable over the next 10 years?
A: Producing an Arc winner would be an amazing achievement. I love the history of the race and the challenge it represents being run over a mile and a half with the race open to both fillies and colts of all ages, ensuring a top class, competitive field. With winners of the race including so many highly acclaimed horses, it would be an honour to join the list of breeders that have achieved the feat of breeding an Arc winner.
In the weeks after Justify won the Belmont Stakes and became the 13th Triple Crown winner, my father half-joked to me that our next goal would be to breed an Epsom Derby winner! He said it doesn’t have to be next year though – as if that provided a huge allowance! Suffice to say I am already falling short of his expectations, but this is how we operate: the bar is continuously being raised seemingly out of reach, and the result is a constant striving toward the next vision.
With that conversation lingering in mind, breeding a European Classic winner one day is currently the elusive dream that most persistently occupies my thoughts. However, all top-level successes are hard fought for and the pursuit much more frequent than the achievement which makes success in any one of the major races enormously rewarding.
Q: What would you say is your biggest life learning from the COVID19 situation?
A: The pandemic has prompted me, like many others, to reflect on what is truly important in life and to acknowledge things that I have taken for granted and to appreciate them more fully. Good health, the importance of family and connectedness, the glory of nature and the outdoors have been key themes for me. And I am also very grateful for horses and horse racing. For me, horses make life so much better, more interesting and fuller – even when I haven’t been able to see them in person as much as I would like.
Q: Which yearling sales do you attend (as a breeder) and typically how many horses do you breed and sell annually?
A: The sales that we have typically attended over the years are the major sales in Kentucky (Keeneland, Fasig-Tipton) as well as the sales in England, France and Ireland (Tattersalls, Arqana, Goffs) with our primary European focus being on the sales in England. In the US, we would typically sell around 20 yearlings during a year. In Europe, the number is smaller so we might sell a handful of yearlings during a year.
Q: Which racing events are ones you don't like to miss annually?
A: In terms of attending in person, I would be most disappointed to miss Royal Ascot and the Breeders’ Cup. I love having the opportunity to see so many top class horses in the same place during the same period of time and to witness the top class racing delivered by the elite group of horses at these events. As a breeder, I find these events extremely inspiring.
Q: Who is your favourite horse and why?
A: I have many favourites! But if I had to pick one horse and one that we did not breed (which makes it a little bit easier), then the horse that always comes to mind is Frankel. He was simply outstanding and his performances have left an indelible impression on my mind.
Q: Which Dubai World Cup meeting was your favourite and why?
A: Similar to Royal Ascot and the Breeders’ Cup, the Dubai World Cup night attracts a number of top-class horses from around the world competing in a select group of prestigious, top level races. Until last year, we had enjoyed watching the DWC night from afar but in 2019 we attended the event in person for the first time along with our horse Without Parole who ran in the Dubai Turf against superstar mare Almond Eye. This was our first time attending the event in person.
The incredibly exciting experience inspired me to return whenever the next opportunity presented itself. Sadly the event in 2020 was cancelled due to the pandemic, however this will, no doubt, make people excited for its return in 2021.
Another DWC meeting that will remain one of my favourites for a long time is 2015. This was the year that Tamarkuz, the half-brother to Without Parole, won the Godolphin Mile on DWC night. My father and I watched the DWC races on TV from opposite sides of the world that year and I remember rejoicing excitedly over the phone with my dad when Tamarkuz won. That was an outstanding evening for our farm (Glennwood) because on the same day we had another horse, Materiality, win the Florida Derby in the USA and announce himself as a contender for the Kentucky Derby.