Workaholic, the very first Breeders Crown winner and a sire of champions in France, died Tuesday, Feb. 19, at the French National Stud farm (Haras du Pin). He was 30 years old and would have officially celebrated his 31st birthday on March 15.
Workaholic was sold to the French National Stud in 1989 for 1.7 million euros and became an instant success. His very first crop of foals in France made him the country's leading sire. In 17 breeding seasons Workaholic was bred to 1,500 mares and has more than 1,000 offspring.
Bred by Pine Hollow Farm, Workaholic was purchased as a yearling for $165,000 by a group headed by Ken Heineken called the Workaholic Stable. They entrusted the colt to Continental Farm's Hakan Wallner, Berndt Lindstedt and Jan Johnson.
"He was a beautiful yearling," Heineken recalled in an interview last year. "We had looked at all the Speedy Crowns, and we had Berndt Lindstedt take a look at him and he approved him, so we bought him. Then Jan Johnson called me in January as he was training down and told me the colt was unbelievable."
The colt was indeed an early bloomer, winning an elimination for the Peter Haughton Memorial in late July before finishing his season with the Breeders Crown triumph at The Red Mile. But he failed to grow much before his 3-year-old season and raced in the shadow of Prakas in the summer of 1985. His biggest accomplishment was a third-placed-second finish behind Prakas in the Breeders Crown.
Workaholic began his stud career at Lauxmont Farms in New Jersey, but he was moved to Walnridge Farm in New Jersey before poor fertility had marginalized his chances of success to the point that Heineken decided selling the stallion to European interests might be the best outcome.
The French stud book had been closed to American stallions for many years, but in 1988 a rule went into effect which opened the door.
Ready Cash, the two-time winner of the Prix d'Amerique, is out of a granddaughter of Workaholic.--harnessracing.com
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