the caiani family
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he Caiani family was sat in the first row at Goffs during the 1983 November Sale – the two brothers: Paolo, a former architect and the boss at Holyhill Farm, Giovanni, an entrepreneur, who runs the family’s building business in Monza, near Milan, their sister Mariella, Paolo’s wife Bruna, as well as their mother Laura. At the time the weanling market was very healthy, the bidding was conducted in punts and the auctioneer, Philip Myerscough, was calling for some big prices. A chestnut colt by King’s Lake and out of Yankee Lady (Lord Gayle) sold by the Caiani family’s Holyhill Stud was knocked down to the BBA for Ir255,000gns. He was the first foal by King’s Lake (Nijinsky) ever sold at a public auction that year. But perhaps more significantly Yankee Lady became the dam of Scandisk (Kenmare), in turn the dam of the current Champion Hurdler, Hurricane Fly (Montjeu). Unfortunately that King’s Lake foal was eventually returned to Holyhill Stud, but on the day the Caiani family celebrated their big sale in their general low key way: both brothers are a little shy and steer away from flamboyant shows of exuberance. That day’s sale was probably (initially anyway) more noted for another purchase by the BBA: the agency bought the only foal by Shergar (ex Galletto by Nijinsky) sold at public auction for IR325,000gns. The following year the late Tote CherryDownes bought the horse as a yearling for the record price of IR3.1 million guineas on behalf of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. Called Authaal, the colt went into training with David O’Brien at Ballydoyle and won the Irish St. Leger (G1) before he travelled to Australia where he won two more Group 1s.
del Parco, 15 minutes away from Como where I live. The farm is part of the former Razza del Soldo’s premiere land, which the Caianis acquired from Credit Suisse in the early 1980s after a Swiss family, who had taken over operations from the Crespis, owners of the major daily Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera, went bankrupt. I kept a few yearlings at the farm on behalf of a small, but successful Italian breeder so visited the farm quite often. Paolo, who is not involved anymore in the breeding operation, moved back to Italy in 2008. During his time in Ireland he bred a lot of successful racehorses – they would be born at Holyhill Stud would spend up to six months at the farm before being sent for “fine tuning” in Italy where they would
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obody outside of Italy really knew of the Caianis, but Paolo had been a good show jumper and was keen to breed showjumpers when he bought Holyhill in the late 1970s. I got to know the Caianis well then as I was then a frequent visitor to Ireland – I was looking after a stud farm in Naas and was a frequent traveller to Tipperary to see and use the stallions at the various farms in the Coolmore ownership. But I had also known the Caiani family in Italy as the family’s stud farm is in Anzano
Hurricane Fly: left, winning the Champion Hurdle and, above, returning in glory
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