LAST month Tim Donworth commenced a new phase of his career as a trainer, based in Chantilly.

Son of Round Hill Stud’s Bobby and Honora, he possesses a great pedigree and experience for the job in hand, though some might have assumed he would simply follow his parents into the breeding side of the business.

In an interview in this paper with John O’Riordan, he explained why he had chosen a different path. He said: “Circumstances and opportunity dictated that I base myself at Chantilly in France, rather than at home in Ireland or in Britain. Having wanted to train racehorses from as long as I can remember, it is satisfying to finally see those dreams come to fruition.”

Not only have the dreams come to fruition, but the young trainer has made a dream start to his new profession, and on Thursday he sent out his third two-year-old winner in five days, and his runners have only made five starts!

In the saddle, with summer work experience and more, Donworth spent time with the likes of Enda Bolger (rode his first winner on Zest For Life in the Ladies Perpetual Cup at Punchestown), Gordon Elliott (won five races on Oscar Barton while at college in Maynooth), Jim Bolger, John Ferguson, Philip Hobbs and William Haggas. After graduating from Maynooth, he spent over a year with the latter as pupil assistant before being selected for the Flying Start programme.

Opportunity

This gave him an opportunity to see at close quarters the work of trainers Peter Snowden [Australia], John Hyde [Dubai], Clive Cox and Tom Morley [USA]. Plans to join Christoph Clement had to put on hold and the trainer suggested that Donworth go to his brother Nicolas in France for a period. Donworth was hooked.

“After just a short time in France, I knew that it was where I wanted to remain to start my training career. Nicolas Clement was very good to me from the outset, introducing me to the country and its ways of life.” Then he moved to Jean-Claude Rouget, a man with a huge reputation for producing young trainers of the future.

Well, it looks like Monsieur Rouget has produced another trainer with a big future, and with only 10 horses starting out, Tim Donworth has run four and won with three of them.

It is no small measure of endorsement that his latest winner is a homebred of Kirsten Rausing. That winner is the juvenile filly Allada (Sea The Moon), the third successful offspring of three-time winner Algarade (Green Desert).

Algarade is a half-sister to seven winners, the best being the South African Group 2 winner Kingston Mines (Archipenko), and their dam Alexandrine (Nashwan) was one of eight winning offspring of the wonderful Lanwades foundation mare Alruccaba (Crystal Palace).

Some 10 Group 1 winners, including 2021 winner Alpinista (Frankel), descend from her, while Albaflora (Muhaarar) came agonisingly close to making it 11 when she was runner-up last weekend in the British Champions Fillies and Mares Stakes.

Tally-Ho sires

Both of Tim Donworth’s other juvenile winners are by Tally-Ho Stud stallions. Cotai Hero (Cotai Glory) had won in England before he transferred to France.

He has given his dam Clef (Dutch Art) the perfect start at stud, a winner with her first foal, and John Tuthill’s Owenstown Stud has since welcomed two full-sisters, the yearling selling for 65,000gns in Book 2 recently in Newmarket.

A day after Cotai Hero gave Tim his breakthrough first win, the trainer doubled the tally with She’s Evaporust (Galileo Gold). She was actually the first runner for Donworth and finished second on that occasion, making no mistake next time out. She is a third successful runner for the Italian stakes winner Chiara Wells (Refuse To Bend).

Watch this space.