He has been the best over 1730, 2400 and 3000 metres. And he has been the best on both grass and dirt. On Saturday Kari Petterøe’s Danish-bred Schamyl put a thick line under his status as Scandinavia’s best 3-year-old of 2024, when he took Svenskt St. Leger in Gothenburg in comfortable style.
The Jan-Erik Neuroth-trained Schamyl (Appel Au Maitre) went to post as a big favourite in the three-kilometre contest, which was also the year’s last on the classic scene in Sweden.
His stable companion Amason (Appel Au Maitre), who came from second place behind If He Says So (Summerfront) in Norsk St. Leger, set the pace from the start under Oliver Wilson, followed by Lennart J:r Reuterskiöld’s Yobro (Al Wukair) with Carlos Lopez.
As usual Sandro De Paiva chose a quiet start with Schamyl, who was well covered up along the way and was only asked for a little more in the last part of the back straight.
At the entrance to the home turn Schamyl had comfortably gone past his stable companion and only needed to get his claws into Yobro, who never gave up, however, and in the end followed his superior across the line a length and a half behind.
After that there were a further nine lengths back to Cathrine Erichsen’s Kjell Hroar (Zoffany) in third place, after which the last prizes went to Søren Jensen’s Esquire Hill (Storm The Stars), Ylva Brandt’s Anno (Juniper Tree) and the long-time leader Amason.
With the victory in Svenskt St. Leger Schamyl added 415,000 Swedish kronor to his already bulging prize money account, which in Swedish currency has now passed four million – of which a good 3.8 has been won during his 3-year-old season.
He managed seven starts between 17 May and 28 September, and of these the Appel Au Maitre son won five: Voterlöpning, Svenskt Derby, Norsk Derby, Breeders’ Trophy Classic and Svenskt St. Leger.
In addition he was second on his seasonal debut at home at Øvrevoll and third in Hurricanelöpning at Jägersro.
Schamyl, who is out of the Swedish Oaks winner and Danish Breeders’ Cup winner Whistler (Academy Award), is also entirely in a league of his own among the winning-most horses on the Swedish tracks in 2024.
He will also secure Jan-Erik Neuroth the Swedish trainers’ championship in his first season after taking over the business from his father Wido, and at present Schamyl’s sire Appel Au Maitre (Starborough) has also settled the Swedish stallion championship with a lead of more than four million over Mustajeeb (Nayef).
Likewise Stutteri Hjortebo leads by well over a million from Rävdansens Stuteri in the battle for the Swedish breeders’ championship, and Stall Petterøe’s Mix looks to have pulled decisively clear of Stall Poulard HB and Väsby Häst AB in the owners’ championship.
“He (Schamyl, ed.) has really earned a little rest now, and I am already looking forward to the 4-year-old season. This year’s progress will be hard to top, though”, said Jan-Erik Neuroth, who himself managed to win Svenskt St. Leger three times as a jockey – most recently last year with Ami De Vega (Lope De Vega).
