Thais, a first-crop daughter of Rio de la Plata, landed her first Stakes race when impressing in the Listed Prix de Lilas at Maisons-Laffitte. Run over the straight mile, she was always cruising under Christophe Soumillon and when Ambivalence got first run two furlongs from home, she picked up well to run down her rival inside the final furlong to win by one length with three lengths back to the third.
She has now won two of her seven starts with Group places in the G3 Prix Imprudence and Prix Miesque, both over seven furlongs at Maisons-Laffitte.
Bred by G Sandor and Mme G Sandor, Thais is a half-sister to Group winner Trixia and out of the Stakes-winning dam Tianshan. Thais has a year younger full-sister named Teston, that is also in training with Pascal Bary, with Tianshan scanned back in foal to Rio de la Plata again this season.
Thirty minutes later Thais’s paternal half-sister Aiming For Rio made it a quick-fire Stakes double for her sire when easily winning the Listed Prix Marchand d’Or. A dual winner as a juvenile, she was recording her fourth success after coming into the race on the back of an easy Angers triumph.
Aiming for Rio was bred by Haras du Logis and Julian Ince before being purchased privately by Godolphin and is a granddaughter of the G2 Cherry Hinton Stakes winner Torgau.
Rio de la Plata, who is standing this season at a fee of €5,500, has sired an impressive winners to runners strike-rate of 56% from his first-crop, with Thais and Aiming For Rio joining the impressive multiple winners Silk Of Rio, Atkinson Grimshaw and Ocean Air.
