“We are excited by the horse and hope he will be a tremendous success”
Lanwades Stud holds an esteemed position within the Newmarket landscape and boasts a rich history, spanning back to the late 1880s. Reportedly named for the crossing-place in the River Kennett which flows directly through the property, the stud is owned by businesswoman Kirsten Rausing and enters the next chapter with their newest stallion, Study Of Man.
When Kirsten Rausing bought the stud in 1980, Lanwades was undergoing a period of recovery – the land had been used for agricultural production during World War II and the fields required re-seeding before being put back to its original use as prime Thoroughbred property. Revitalisation of Lanwades required a figurehead and Rausing brought both her business acumen and a new stallion to continue the resurgence.
"Niniski and I arrived at Lanwades Stud, both together in the late autumn of 1980 and the horse was syndicated by the British Bloodstock Agency, having been purchased by them as a yearling at the Saratoga Yearling Sales in July," she explains.
"They purchased him for Lady Beaverbrook and when his racing days were done, he was again syndicated by the BBA, and not many people today would have wanted a horse that had the racing results that he had."
Son of Triple Crown winner Nijinsky, Niniski hailed from the family of Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe heroine Pearl Cap and was named in Lady Beaverbrook's traditional style – a seven-letter word, carried by the likes of Bustino, Terimon and Petoski. "He had the misfortune to win two St Legers, the French and the Irish, but he was a very good horse really and exceeded expectations by becoming Champion First-Season Sire in 1984 when his first crop two-year-olds, which were only twenty-seven live foals and they included unbeaten champion European Two-Year-Old Kala Dancer and Petoski."
Niniski marked the first involvement of the Niarchos family, a name which would become intertwined with Lanwades success over the following generations.
"The late Mr Stavros Niarchos purchased a share in the Niniski syndication. He was a well-known client of the BBA, and he bred champion Hernando from his share. After winning the French Derby and finishing a short head second in the Arc, Hernando came to Lanwades and spent his entire stallion career here, siring three Classic winners and other good horses".
Lanwades Stud continued to flourish over the next two decades, standing champions such as Selkirk, Archipenko and Zilzal. 2015 marked a year of change for the stud, with German Derby victor Sea The Moon joining the roster, closely followed by Breeders' Cup hero Bobby's Kitten in 2017. Yet it was important for Lanwades to offer more, to stand out from the vast competition.
"I would say that my commercial niche at Lanwades Stud, is to try and offer the industry something slightly out-of-the-box, something that others did not have, which we have done with Niniski himself, with Hernando, not least with Selkirk – he and Kris, who were the two best sons of Sharpen Up and Kris, he was one hundred grand per nomination, so he was out of most people's reach," adds Rausing. "Selkirk started at eight thousand and worked his way up to a forty thousand pound nomination at one stage. With Lanwades being a small stud farm, particularly in comparison with my main competitors, I have to offer my owners something that they may not be able to find elsewhere, particularly in terms of international outcross. As a small stud farm, it would not make much sense, in the old days, to stand a son of Sadlers Wells or another son of Galileo."
With the search underway for a new stallion, the established Niarchos connection offered an interesting opportunity. Study Of Man, an easy winner on debut at Saint-Cloud in September 2017, had the potential to fulfil the exhaustive requirements for an exciting young stallion in a saturated market.
By Japanese super-sire Deep Impact, Study Of Man heralded from a female family rich in French racing history. His dam, Second Happiness, was a one-raced daughter out of seven-time Group 1 winner Miesque and a half-sister to Classic winners Kingmambo and East Of The Moon. Winner of his sole start as a two-year-old , the beautifully bred colt enjoyed a successful Classic campaign, taking the Prix Greffulhe before a famous victory in the Prix du Jockey Club – a race with a stallion-making reputation, having produced Hernando, Montjeu, Shamardal and Lope De Vega.
"The stallion-making aspect of the Prix du Jockey Club certainly did appeal to me, but I had started negotiations long before that - in fact, when he was being prepared for his first race as a juvenile, he won his only race at two and I was talking to his connections as he passed the winning post.
"I was very, very keen on having a son of Deep Impact and with such a beautiful female family as well. Deep Impact was a great attraction for a stud in Europe or anywhere in the world for that matter. Study Of Man is a fantastically beautifully well bred horse and he's got the looks to go with it as well. He's almost faultless with perfect conformation."
Whilst racing ability and appearance may not guarantee commercial success, it is clear Study Of Man has made an auspicious start to his stallion career. Standing at £15,000 in his first year, he quickly achieved a juvenile Group 2 winner with Deepone and secured the all-important first Group 1 when Kalpana romped to success in the British Champions Fillies and Mares in October.
The second crop appear to be just as promising. With nine winners from thirty runners (the same numbers achieved with his first crop in 2023) and yearlings realising up to 260,000 guineas during the 2024 sales season, the future appears bright for Study Of Man, who has been deservedly raised to a fee of £25,000 for 2025.
His success is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the team at Lanwades, who continue to try and find unique offerings for breeders.
"We are delighted and it just goes to prove that with patience in this game, you may well be at some stage rewarded. Not always, but sometimes, and it is absolutely marvellous for the entire team. We are excited by the horse and hope he will be a tremendous success".
