On DVD or VHS: Picture above is of the grand filly ALLEZ FRANCE - dual Arc winner of 1973 and 1974

 

 

In racing it is the ambition of every breeder, owner and trainer to find a champion - a horse that has wings on its heels. Every year at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris on the first Sunday in October, that champion is found and the race is called the Prix de L'Arc de Triomphe - the first truly international race ever created.

From its inaugural running on October 3, 1920, won by COMRADE, who cost just 25 guineas, to the 1989 victory of CARROLL HOUSE, the race has remained true to its original objective - to attract the best horses from all nations to compete.

Witness how the race has survived through all the changing decades - especially during WW II amidst German occupation and American bombings which destroyed part of the track and subsequently was shut down for two years.

With unique archive footage, the Arc's history is showcased with victories by such celebrated horses as KSAR, the first dual winner in 1921 and 1922; the Arc's first two filly winners, PEARL CAP in 1931 and CORRIDA in 1936 and 1937; the gray MIGOLI (GALLANT MAN's sire) in 1948 who was the Aga Kahn's first Arc winner; the undefeated Italian superstar, RIBOT in 1955 and 1956; SEA BIRD II's defeat of the U.S.' TOM ROLFE in 1965; the courageous loss of SIR IVOR to VAGUELY NOBLE in 1968; SASSAFRAS' shocking victory over England's Triple Crown winner, NIJINSKY II in 1970; MILL REEF romping home in record time in 1971; RHEINGOLD beating the stellar and dominant French-trained fillies DAHLIA and ALLEZ FRANCE in 1973 - giving Lester Piggott his first Arc victory from fifteen attempts; ALLEZ FRANCE's 1974 victory; STAR APPEAL in 1975 - the Arc's longest price winner at odds of 119-1; ALLEGED's double in 1977 and 1978, the fillies DETROIT in 1980 and England's ALL ALONG in 1983 who at years end took U.S. Horse of the Year Title; RAINBOW QUEST in 1985 after the controversial disqualification of SAGACE; the much loved and come-from-behind horse, DANCING BRAVE in 1986; and the 1987 winner, TREMPOLINO.

No one at its inception in 1920 would have dared predict such success for a race that some thought wouldn't even make it through the war-torn decade of the 1940's. This is the story of the rich history of the Arc - the story of international racing at its finest from the years 1920-1989!
 

 

60 Minutes.

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