Japan's two-time G1 Takarazuka Kinen winner Meisho Tabaru is set to contest the 2026 G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp, connections have confirmed, in an overseas raid that will see him follow in the erratic hoofprints of his sire, Gold Ship.
Undeterred by his 14th-placed finish in 2014 after becoming agitated before the race and at the start, Gold Ship reportedly enjoyed the remainder of his Parisian adventure, and was observed trying on multiple berets in and around Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré.
The French excursion did end in controversy however, with sources confirming that the white stallion was in fact removed from the Musée du Louvre by security.
A Louvre official, who spoke to this masthead on condition of anonymity, stated that Gold Ship took exception to a fellow museum-goer loudly valuing Leonardo da Vinci's iconic Mona Lisa work at "about 12 billion yen" in his presence.
The confrontation allegedly escalated when the man then made a disparaging comparison between Gold Ship's fractious behaviour in the Longchamp starting gates and the Mona Lisa, telling the six-time G1 winner that he could learn something about "sitting still and staying calm" from the iconic painting.
More to follow.
