Tahiyra retired following gallant QEII performance

Irish 1,000 Guineas heroine Tahiyra has been retired following her third-placed finish in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes.

Trained by Dermot Weld, the daughter of Siyouni struck at the highest level at two before returning at three to become one of the leading milers of her generation.

Although denied by Mawj in the 1000 Guineas at the start of the year, she gained Classic compensation when securing the Irish equivalent and then gained further top-level success by winning the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot.

She returned from a summer break to pick up another Group One at Leopardstown in September, producing a dazzling display in the Matron Stakes, and brought the curtain down on her career with a brave third behind Big Rock on British Champions Day.

Tahiyra will now join her owner the Aga Khan’s broodmare band for the next stage of her career.

Explaining the decision, Pat Downes, manager of the Aga Khan’s Irish Studs, said: “We have been absolutely delighted with her and we have spoken about what we would do since she ran on Saturday.

“We just took a view that, unlike her sister Tarnawa, who didn’t win her Group One until four, Tahiyra was obviously a champion two-year-old and a champion three-year-old and a very important filly for the future of the stud.

“We felt we had done enough with her and she will move on now to the next stage.

“She’s been an absolute star and she ran her heart out on Saturday. We have been delighted with her and she has been a tremendous filly for us.

“We will now look forward to the next stage of her career which will be in the breeding shed.”