Peintre Celebre, is a champion thoroughbred

Thoroughbred

The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...

 racehorse.

Bred and owned by Daniel Wildenstein

Daniel Wildenstein

Daniel Leopold Wildenstein was a French art dealer and scholar, as well as a leading thoroughbred race horse owner and breeder....

 (1917-2001), the renowned French

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 art dealer and highly successful horseman, Peintre Celebre came from a line of outstanding thoroughbreds. He was a son of Nureyev, France's champion miler in 1980, who was in turn the son of the great Northern Dancer

Northern Dancer

Northern Dancer was a Canadian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and the most successful sire of the 20th Century. The National Thoroughbred Racing Association calls him "one of the most influential sires in Thoroughbred history"....

. Trained by André Fabre

André Fabre

André Fabre is a French thoroughbred horse racing trainer.The son of a diplomat, Fabre graduated from university with a law degree but then decided to pursue a career in thoroughbred horse racing. He began by working in the stables as a groom then as a schooling rider...

, Peintre Celebre was sparsely raced as a two year old, entering only two races, winning one and finishing third in the other.

In 1997, at age three, the horse began to show his greatness on the racetrack, winning the French Derby

Prix du Jockey Club

The Prix du Jockey Club, sometimes referred to as the French Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...

 and the Grand Prix de Paris

Grand Prix de Paris

The Grand Prix de Paris is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year in July.-History:...

 before facing the best horses in Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 in France's most prestigious race, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe

The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year, usually on the first Sunday in October.Popularly referred to as the...

. Ridden by jockey

Jockey

A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...

 Olivier Peslier

Olivier Peslier

Olivier Peslier is a thoroughbred horse racing jockey.Peslier competes in flat racing mainly in France but travels often around the world for the big international races....

, Peintre Celebre ran away from the field, winning the 1½ mile race by five lengths and breaking the track speed record by an astonishing 3.4 seconds. His victory made him only the second horse after Le Pacha

Le Pacha

Le Pacha was a Champion French Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred by Andre Schwob, his dam was Advertencia, a daughter of two-time Arc winner, Ksar...

 in 1941 to win all three of the French Classic Races

French Classic Races

In France, the Classics of horse racing are a series of Group One Thoroughbred horse races run annually on the flat. The four races are organized by France Galop.The Prix de Diane is restricted to filles....

 open to colt

Colt (horse)

A colt is a young male horse, under the age of four. The term "colt" is often confused with foal, which refers to a horse of either sex under one year of age....

s.

Peintre Celebre raced only five times that year, winning four and finishing second by a neck in a race where he had been boxed in. Despite the limited number of races, he was named European Horse of the Year

European Horse of the Year

European Horse of the Year is an award in European Thoroughbred horse racing. Since 1991 the honor has been part of the Cartier Racing Awards. It is presented annually by Cartier SA to a horse of any age racing in Europe.-Honorees:...

 and the International Classification rated him world champion that year.

Before the 1998 racing season, Peintre Celebre suffered a career-ending injury and was retired to breeding at Coolmore Stud

Coolmore Stud

Coolmore Stud, in Fethard, South Tipperary in Ireland, is the world's largest breeding operation of thoroughbred racehorses. It was established in 1975....

 in Fethard

Fethard, County Tipperary

Fethard is a village in South Tipperary in Ireland. It is located east of Cashel on the Clashawley River where the R692, R689 and R706 regional roads intersect. It is in the barony of Middle Third, and is also a parish in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly...

, County Tipperary

County Tipperary

County Tipperary is a county of Ireland. It is located in the province of Munster and is named after the town of Tipperary. The area of the county does not have a single local authority; local government is split between two authorities. In North Tipperary, part of the Mid-West Region, local...

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

.