LIKE most people in racing, breeding had a lot to do with where I now find myself. My family own Castletown Stud in Cork, while my father Joe also works as a manager for Coolmore at Castlehyde.

His father before him bred and raced horses. Our next-door neighbours and first cousins are the Hardings who are steeped in the National Hunt game. As a young child, I had notions of being the next Brian or Richard Harding and wanted to become a jockey. Mother Nature plainly had other ideas so I turned my attention to other aspects of the industry.

By the age of 16, I had an idea of what I wanted to do in life and that was to be a horse trainer. At this time I was building up the required skillset under the eye of Jim Bolger and his team in Coolcullen and his advice to an aspiring trainer that “You’ll need to rob a bank” was very direct, and frankly, two years in to my career I can confirm the advice was very honest as well.

I gradually formed the view that opportunities were more limited in Ireland and decided to focus on France as I could see that premiums were quite lucrative and it appeared to me that an opening for an up-and-coming handler could present itself more readily there than any other European country. So over the course of the next decade, I went about gaining much-needed experience.

I had done small stints when in secondary school, with Mark Johnston, Christian Von de Recke and Emerald Bloodstock. At this point I knew I was hooked.

Education

After the Leaving Certificate I completed a degree in International Commerce with French at UCD. During the summer of my first year in college I got the opportunity to work as a pupil assistant for André Fabre. It was an incredible experience and I went back again the following season.

It was invaluable to observe the training regime of one of the world’s best in a yard where Group 1 horses are the norm.

After graduating from UCD I returned to France to work with Nicolas Clement who has become a close friend and mentor and whose advice has been instrumental in helping start out as a trainer.

I felt that everything I had learned up to this point really got tested when I got the opportunity to join the Graham Motion barn in Maryland, USA.

Graham Motion gave me a lot of responsibility and was the one that really threw me into the deep end, and after finishing my time in his barn I felt I was ready to go it alone.

A few weeks before my visa expired an acquaintance from China approached me with a view to training for him.

That was the push I needed I guess and things started falling into place from there.

In July 2018, with Jim Bolger’s words ringing in my ear and a young man’s exuberance, I set up my yard in Chantilly. I was fortunate to rent a yard from the recently retired François Doumen.

Our first runner in August of that year resulted in a fantastic win by Icefinger on his first start at Deauville during sales weekend.

We have been able to grow the stable very gradually at our own pace. In 2019, we had 25 horses in the stable, enjoyed 17 winners and broke the €500,000 barrier in terms of prize money and premiums.

Flighty Lady became our first genuine Group 1 horse, finishing third in both the Group 3 Prix d’Aumale and the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac before being sold.

In 2020, we have 40 horses in training. I was extremely fortunate to put together a team with a wealth of experience and knowledge from the start. I was adamant that the growth of the stable would only happen at a pace that the team and I were comfortable with and when we were able to recruit good riders.

Overseas owners

National Service became our first group winner last month; he is a very exciting horse that could be anything. He was only having his third career start when winning the Group 3 Prix Paul de Moussac at Chantilly. We think he is a horse with a very bright future who will be better again as a four-year-old, so we are in no rush with him.

We have an international group of owners. The majority of the horses are owned by French, Irish, British, German, Chinese or Scandinavian interests. Racehorse ownership in France is very attractive for overseas owners.

The average race value is €25,000 before premiums which are 60% on top of prize money, if the horse is born/raised in France. For horses racing in the 75-85 bracket, prize money can be upwards of €60,000 before premiums through the quinte handicap system whereby horses of these ratings have a valuable handicap to run for every single day.

Every horse declared in training in France is also entitled to €3,000 a year subsidy towards transport costs to the races. I often push this point because I feel it does not get enough attention. That amounts to about 10% of the annual training bill for a horse in most jurisdictions.

As a youngster, I dreamt of training an Irish Guineas or an Irish Champion Stakes winner and while I would love to come home with a horse good enough to do just that, for the moment the focus has to be on winning more group races in France and on the continent.

Hopefully, it will not be too long before we find a horse that can allow us to compete in those sorts of races. Having nurtured the quality of National Service and Flighty Lady with just our first crop of two-year-olds in the yard, we have every reason to hope that the wait won’t be too long.

Gavin Hernon was in conversation with John O’Riordan