Farewell to a Champion: Stern Idol's Final Race Approaches

The illustrious career of champion jumper Stern Idol is nearing its conclusion, with one final outing planned for the Crisp Steeplechase next Sunday.

Stern Idol is set to vie for his fourth victory in the Crisp Steeplechase (4200m) before being retired from racing.

Trainer Ciaron Maher was effusive in his praise for the nine-year-old, labeling him potentially the finest jumper to have graced his stable in over two decades of training.

"Bashboy won three Nationals, which is hard to do at a handicap level, but this horse is quicker, (and) is quite possibly the best jumper I've ever had, but it's hard to quantify eras," Maher declared.

"There was also Al Garhood and Regina Coeli (both Grand Annual Steeplechase winners), they were rippers and Regina Coeli has produced a horse called Melek, who is by St Jean, and I did have quite a few enquiries after he won his maiden here on debut."

Bred in Ireland with aspirations of competing in the Melbourne Cup, Stern Idol began his racing journey in France before his relocation to Australia to join Maher's stable with a focus on steeplechasing.

Stern Idol has achieved 18 wins from his 43 starts, amassing a prize money total close to $1.1 million.

Maher explained that retirement was on the horizon for the gelding, whom he characterized as the largest horse to have passed through his stable, due to the limited number of appropriate races available.

He conceded it would be a poignant moment to witness Stern Idol's retirement, considering how sparingly he has been raced throughout his career.

"He doesn't race that much," Maher elaborated.

"A lot of jumpers have half-a-dozen runs before they get to a hurdle race. He has one 3000-metre run on the flat every prep and he's very competitive.

"He ran the other day on the flat because we missed a run (at Hamilton).

"There's no reason why he couldn't race on, but there's only a couple of races a year that he can run in.

"He won the Brierly Steeplechase this year with 75 (kilos), so he's going to get more next year, the Grand Annual is too far, so there's only the set-weight races he can run in, and the Crisp is the next one which he will run in.

"He's just a beautiful horse. He's lived at Ballarat his whole life, they know him, they love him, they understand him very well, but he's a little bit quirky.

"He's got a lot of sass for a big steeplechaser. He wears earmuffs, he gets around always on the job, and you wouldn't know he's a nine-year-old.

"He's just a cracking horse."

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