THE European record for a yearling was shattered on the opening day of Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale when the Galileo brother to Oaks runner-up Secret Gesture was sold to John Magnier for 3,600,000 guineas.
The sale represents a record for a yearling in Europe, eclipsing the 3,400,000 guineas paid for the subsequent Group 1 winner River Dancer at the Tattersalls Houghton Yearling Sale in 2000. The sale also represents the highest price for a yearling in the World in 2013, with 3.6m guineas equivalent to $6,000,000 and €4,500,000.
The opening day saw rises across the board with a total of 124 lots sold for 26,319,000 guineas, a rise of 14% on the opening session in 2012. The average and median both rose 28% and 7% to 212,250 guineas and 117,500 guineas respectively. The turnover for the day was the highest for Book 1 of the October Yearling since its inception in 2003.