Vertigineux is an American Thoroughbred mare racehorse. She is out of the stakes-winning Forlì

Forlì

Forlì is a comune and city in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, and is the capital of the province of Forlì-Cesena. The city is situated along the Via Emilia, to the right of the Montone river, and is an important agricultural centre...

 mare For The Flag, by the outstanding sire Kris S.

Kris S.

Kris S. was an American Thoroughbred race horse who is best known as a highly successful sire. He was a son of the 1972 Epsom Derby winner Roberto who was a sire of international influence descending from the Hail to Reason branch of the Nearco sire line...

 Her owner is Eric Kronfeld, who bought back Vertigineux for $120,000 after she failed to meet her reserve at the 1996 Keenland yearling sale

Keeneland Sales

The Keeneland Sales is an American Thoroughbred auction house in Lexington, Kentucky founded in 1935 as a nonprofit racing/auction entity on 147 acres of farmland west of Lexington, which had been owned by Jack O. Keene...

. Her name means "breathtaking" or "dazzling" (speed) in French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

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During her racing career, she was trained by Michael Dickinson and had a modest career, consisting of two wins on Belmont turf in seven starts.

Vertigineux is best known, however, not for her racing success as a winner, but for her success as a broodmare. She is the dam of two Grade I stakes winners: Balance, by Thunder Gulch

Thunder Gulch

Thunder Gulch is a Champion American thoroughbred racehorse who left the starting gate at 25-1 odds in 1995 and went on to win the Kentucky Derby in 2:01.2 from post 16. He was ridden by jockey Gary Stevens. D...

, and Zenyatta

Zenyatta

Zenyatta is a retired American champion Thoroughbred racehorse, winner of 19 consecutive races in a 20-race career and American record-holder for consecutive victories without defeat in unrestricted races....

, by Street Cry

Street Cry

Street Cry is a Thoroughbred racehorse, winner of the 2002 Dubai World Cup, the 2002 Stephen Foster Handicap and runner up in the 2002 Whitney Handicap...

. Zenyatta is 19-1 in 20 career starts and the 2010 American Horse of the Year. She is the only female to win the Breeders' Cup Classic

Breeders' Cup Classic

The Breeders' Cup Classic is a Grade I Weight for Age thoroughbred horse race for 3 year olds and older run at a distance of 1¼ miles on dirt. It is held annually at a different racetrack as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships...

 and also the only horse to win two different Breeders' Cup

Breeders' Cup

The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Thoroughbred horse races, most but not all Grade I, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982. From its inception in 1984 through 2006, it was a single-day event; starting in 2007, it expanded to two days. The location...

 races. Vertigineux has also produced graded stakes winner Where's Bailey, who is her first foal. She also is the dam of a 2006 Pulpit filly named Treasure Trail, and a 2007 colt named Souper Spectacular by Giant's Causeway

Giant's Causeway (horse)

Giant's Causeway is a Kentucky-bred thoroughbred racehorse who competed primarily in Europe. In 2000, he won five straight Group One races. His performance that year earned him European Horse of the Year honors....

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Vertigineux was honored by the association of Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders (KTOB) as "Broodmare of the Year" in April 2009.

For the 2009 breeding season, she was covered by English champion colt Henrythenavigator

Henrythenavigator

Henrythenavigator is an American-bred and Irish-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. He won the 2,000 Guineas, the Irish 2,000 Guineas, the St...

and produced a filly on 4 March 2010.