logo
Horse trainer Christophe Clement dies at 59 from rare eye cancer

Horse trainer Christophe Clement dies at 59 from rare eye cancer

Fox Sports25-05-2025

Associated Press
Christophe Clement, who trained longshot Tonalist to victory in the 2014 Belmont Stakes and won a Breeders' Cup race in 2021, has died. He was 59.
Clement announced his own death in a prepared statement that was posted to his stable's X account on Sunday.
'Unfortunately, if you are reading this, it means I was unable to beat my cancer,' it said. 'As many of you know, I have been fighting an incurable disease, metastatic uveal melanoma.'
It's a type of cancer that affects the uvea, the middle layer of the eye. It accounts for just 5% of all melanoma cases in the U.S., however, it can be aggressive and spread to other parts of the body in up to 50% of cases, according to the Melanoma Research Alliance's website.
The Paris-born Clement has been one of the top trainers in the U.S. over the last 34 years. He learned under his father, Miguel, who was a leading trainer in France. Clement later worked for the prominent French racing family of Alec Head. In the U.S., he first worked for Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey.
Clement went out on his own in 1991, winning with the first horse he saddled at Belmont Park in New York.
He had 2,576 career victories and purse earnings of over $184 million, according to Equibase.
'I am very proud that for over 30 years in this industry, we have operated every single day with the highest integrity, always putting the horses' wellbeing first,' Clement wrote in his farewell message.
One of his best-known horses was Gio Ponti, winner of Eclipse Awards as champion male turf horse in 2009 and 2010. He finished second to Zenyatta in the 2009 Breeders' Cup Classic.
In the 2014 Belmont, Tonalist spoiled the Triple Crown bid of California Chrome, who tied for fourth. Tonalist won by a head, after not having competed in the Kentucky Derby or Preakness that year.
Steve Coburn, co-owner of California Chrome, caused controversy when he said afterward the horses that hadn't run in the other two races took 'the coward's way out.' He later apologized and congratulated the connections of Tonalist.
Clement's lone Breeders' Cup victory was with Pizza Bianca, owned by celebrity chef Bobby Flay, in the Juvenile Fillies Turf. Clement had seven seconds and six thirds in other Cup races.
Clement's statement said he would leave his stable in the hands of his son and longtime assistant, Miguel.
'As I reflect on my journey, I realize I never worked a day in my life,' Clement's statement said. 'Every morning, I woke up and did what I loved most surrounded by so much love."
Besides his son, he is survived by wife Valerie, daughter Charlotte Clement Collins and grandson Hugo Collins.
___
AP horse racing: https://apnews.com/hub/horse-racing
recommended
in this topic

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Lawyers for R. Kelly claim wrongdoing by prosecutors, say imprisoned singer's life in danger
Lawyers for R. Kelly claim wrongdoing by prosecutors, say imprisoned singer's life in danger

Chicago Tribune

time17 minutes ago

  • Chicago Tribune

Lawyers for R. Kelly claim wrongdoing by prosecutors, say imprisoned singer's life in danger

Lawyers for imprisoned R&B superstar R. Kelly claim they have uncovered evidence of government wrongdoing and that the Chicago-born singer's life is in danger. Kelly's legal team said in a news release Tuesday they will be filing an emergency motion in Chicago federal court documenting their allegations and seeking Kelly's immediate release from a federal penitentiary in North Carolina, where he's serving a 30-year sentence for sexual misconduct. The motion, the lawyers say, will be 'backed by concrete evidence and declarations that expose a disturbing pattern of government corruption and criminal misconduct' by federal prosecutors in Chicago and New York as well as officials with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. The news release claims the officials unjustly manufacture charges against Kelly and are trying to cover it up. A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office in Chicago could not immediately be reached for comment. Kelly's lead attorney, Beau Brindley, and other members of his office plan to hold a news conference outside the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago this afternoon. Kelly, 58, was convicted in 2022 in Chicago of child pornography for making explicit videos of himself and his then-teenage goddaughter, who testified at trial under the pseudonym Jane. He also was convicted of inappropriate sexual relations with Jane and two other teenage girls, 'Pauline' and 'Nia.' The jury acquitted Kelly and two co-defendants on charges they conspired to retrieve incriminating tapes and rig his 2008 trial by pressuring Jane to lie to investigators about their relationship and refuse to testify against him. Kelly was also found not guilty of filming himself with Jane on a video that jurors never saw. Prosecutors said 'Video 4? was not played because Kelly's team successfully buried it, but defense attorneys questioned whether it existed at all. Brindley represented Kelly's former manager, Derrel McDavid, in that case, but has since been hired by Kelly. Meanwhile, Kelly was also convicted in federal court in New York in 2021 of racketeering conspiracy charges alleging his musical career doubled as a criminal enterprise aimed at satisfying his predatory sexual desires. He's serving his time in a medium-security federal prison facility in Butner, North Carolina, and is not eligible for release until the year 2045, records show. Kelly also has a pending lawsuit against the Bureau of Prisons alleging a former employee leaked his jail calls and other information to a video blogger.

A family thought the sculpture on their piano was a ‘fake' Rodin. Now it's sold for nearly $1 million
A family thought the sculpture on their piano was a ‘fake' Rodin. Now it's sold for nearly $1 million

CNN

time19 minutes ago

  • CNN

A family thought the sculpture on their piano was a ‘fake' Rodin. Now it's sold for nearly $1 million

A sculpture by French artist Auguste Rodin that had disappeared from public view for almost 120 years and was thought to be a copy has sold for 860,000 euros ($984,000) at auction. 'Le Désespoir,' which shows a female figure sat on a rock holding one foot with her knee hugged to her chest, was rediscovered at the end of 2024 after last being sold in 1906, said auction house Rouillac in a statement on Sunday. Rodin, who lived from 1840-1917, made several versions of 'Le Désespoir.' This particular sculpture was modelled in 1890 and sculpted from marble in 1892-93. Measuring just 28.5 centimeters (11.2 inches) by 15 centimeters (5.9 inches) by 25 centimeters (9.8 inches), the sculpture was originally modelled to form part of Rodin's monumental work 'The Gates of Hell,' which features more than 200 figures and groups. The previous owners – a family from central France – had no idea of its value and had displayed the sculpture on top of a piano alongside family photos, auctioneer Aymeric Rouillac told CNN on Tuesday. 'They said 'it's a fake, it's a copy,'' Rouillac said, but he decided to investigate further. The details of this sculpture are striking, Rouillac told CNN. 'The back, the muscles, they are perfect,' he said. 'You can feel every vertebra in the spinal column.' Following his own initial investigation, Rouillac took the sculpture for assessment by the Comité Rodin, which maintains a catalogue of the artist's work. On Tuesday, Jérôme Le Blay, co-founder of the Comité Rodin, told CNN that he was immediately struck by the 'exceptional' piece. 'I realized in a second that it was real,' he said. 'I had absolutely no doubt.' This particular example is 'extremely well made,' said Le Blay, adding that it dates back to a period when Rodin was dedicating a huge amount of time to making a small number of sculptures. Rodin would have worked with assistants who would have carried out the initial work on a piece of marble, before he performed the final stages, he explained. According to Le Blay, the sculpture dates to 'one of the best moments of Rodin's career,' before his growing fame meant that he started to produce more and more works after the turn of the century. Upon his death, Rodin left his works to the Musée Rodin in Paris, as well as granting it permission to continue producing his bronze sculptures. While many of these posthumous bronzes go under the hammer each year, marbles are much harder to find, said Le Blay. Most of Rodin's marbles are owned by the Musée Rodin or by other large museums around the world, he said. 'Marbles in private collections are rare,' he said, adding that this piece has a 'kind of magic' due to the fact that it has reappeared for sale after such a long time. Following a 'passionate' auction, the winning bid was made by a young banker from the US West Coast, according to the auction house.

Black sports trailblazer Billy Boston, 90, becomes rugby league's first knight
Black sports trailblazer Billy Boston, 90, becomes rugby league's first knight

Fox Sports

time28 minutes ago

  • Fox Sports

Black sports trailblazer Billy Boston, 90, becomes rugby league's first knight

Associated Press Billy Boston, who blazed a trail for Black sportspeople in Britain during the 1950s and '60s, became the first rugby league player to receive a knighthood in a special ceremony at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday. The 90-year-old Boston was given his knighthood at an investiture ahead of the official announcement of King Charles' birthday honors this week. It was brought forward amid concerns for Boston's health, Britain's Press Association reported. Born in the Welsh capital Cardiff, Boston is one of the greatest players in the history of rugby league, the 13-man code that split 130 years ago from the more widely played 15-a-side rugby union. He played 488 times for Wigan from 1953-68 and finished his career with a British-record haul of 571 tries. He also became the first Black player to represent Britain on the Lions tour Down Under in 1954, scoring 36 tries in 18 appearances in Australia and New Zealand, and featured in a total of 31 international test matches. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer described Boston as a 'true trailblazer who's contributed hugely to rugby league.' 'Boston is a legend of the game who overcame prejudice to represent Great Britain and opened the door to a more diverse game," added Starmer, who wrote personally to Boston to congratulate him. 'He's left a truly enduring legacy and the first knighthood in rugby league could not go to a more deserving player.' Boston's honor came after a sustained campaign by local councillors and lawmakers as well as leading figures in rugby league, who have frequently pointed out the relative lack of recognition for the code — played largely in the north of England — compared to rugby union, which has seen 20 knights anointed. 'It is a historic wrong," Starmer said, "that a sport which is the backbone of so many communities has waited so long to receive this honor." Wigan owner Mike Danson said he was 'thrilled' by Boston's award, describing it as 'a richly deserved honor which means this most humble of men rightly receives, at last, fitting recognition for his extraordinary efforts." Boston, whose father was from west African country Sierra Leone, has been living with dementia. ___ AP sports: recommended

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store